Chapter 112: The Mantis, the Oriole, the Hawk, and the Falconer

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Seeing divine radiance shoot toward him, he dared not be careless.

Amid a thunderous dragon’s roar, countless azure scales surfaced across his body, and a single horn sprouted from his head—the horn of a flood dragon.

This technique was precisely the body-tempering killing art he had cultivated after absorbing most of the Azure Flood Dragon’s flesh and blood: the Azure Flood Dragon Transformation!

His flesh was roused by the technique, and in an instant he broke free of the ghostly claws’ restraint, soaring into the heavens.

The Yin-Yang Reversal Divine Radiance arrived a moment too late, striking only his lower leg.

In the blink of an eye, flesh withered and scales turned to ash. Its might was truly terrifying.

Correspondingly, such a supreme divine art, whose power far exceeded that of ordinary techniques, consumed an enormous amount of energy from Crimson Ninefold Sky.

Because he lacked sufficient control over his own magical power, a single strike had nearly exhausted him.

The Lord of the Heavenly Watchtower gave a savage grin. His blood and qi surged, and the withered lower leg fell away of its own accord. In the blink of an eye, a new pair of lower legs had grown back.

“For body-tempering cultivators such as us, unless the attack targets the soul, the regeneration of severed limbs is nothing worth mentioning.”

Such a villainous declaration, openly revealing his own weakness, was most unwise.

Crimson Ninefold Sky summoned the third-grade artifact Heaven’s Son Sword and raised his hand, sending several streaks of sword light to interfere.

Yet the Lord shot forward like a stream of light, making straight for Xiao Yan. He had seen through the truth: once Crimson Ninefold Sky lost the status of Yin’s Son of Heaven, he was little more than an empty shell. His cultivation realm had originally been too low, making it difficult for him to control the power within his body with precision.

Before, that power had been boundless; he had only needed to unleash it with all his might. Now that his strength was limited, it was even inferior to the Lord’s, and careful calculation was required.

The attacks created by a third-grade artifact combined with a sword art were still far too weak.

The Lord ignored them completely.

Xiao Yan was both shocked and enraged. Crimson Ninefold Sky had passed the status of Yin’s Son of Heaven to him, giving him, with difficulty, the power of an early-stage Golden Core cultivator.

But what was a fetter to Crimson Ninefold Sky was also a fetter to him. Had it not been for Xiao Xue’er, he had actually intended to attack Crimson Ninefold Sky and avenge himself.

Then, all of a sudden, this man had appeared.

As yin energy churned around him, Xiao Yan zigzagged through the air, leaving behind successive afterimages as he dodged the Lord’s iron fists.

“Sir, you and I have no grudge between us. Why do you wish to take my life?”

The Lord fused his blood and qi with his magical power and delivered a high kick, viciously striking Xiao Yan beneath the chin.

Bloodied teeth flew from his mouth. Xiao Yan crashed to the ground, blood spilling from his nose and lips, while a smile curled across the Lord’s face.

“You speak reasonably enough. But Miaodan has already told me everything. Now that the Nine-Turn Reincarnation Pill is beyond hope, your treasures still have some value. Hand them over, and everything can be discussed.”

“The location of your treasury, or perhaps some divine art or secret technique. I can promise to spare your life. I will leave Great Yue afterward as well. Wouldn’t it be pleasant for you to remain here as a local emperor?”

Xiao Yan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his gaze dark and gloomy. He could not understand what had gone wrong with this world.

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Ever since he turned twelve, he had been targeted by all sorts of people. His cultivation had been crippled, Xue’er had nearly been violated, his clan had exploited its own people, and the Heavenly Watchtower had discriminated against its colleagues. The only period of warmth in his life had been the years he spent in the Five Elements Sect as the disciple of the Divine Fire Adept.

When he was in the Spirit Refinement Realm, he had been bullied by those with Dao Bodies. When he possessed a Dao Body, he had been bullied by those with Violet Mansions. Now that he had obtained the status of Yin’s Son of Heaven, a peak Golden Core cultivator had appeared to covet his treasures!

“Then we’ll die together…”

“What?”

The Lord of the Heavenly Watchtower gave a disdainful laugh.

“Who do you think you are? Speak up. Were you so hungry you couldn’t even eat properly?”

Crimson Ninefold Sky stood with his sword in hand, sensing that something was wrong. His figure instantly transformed into a streak of light as he prepared to leave.

His old father had been slain by him. His escaping light swept once around the imperial palace, wrapped up the Empress Dowager Crimson Luan and the three princes, and carried them away.

Neither of the other two men stopped him.

Xiao Yan felt there was no need. The Lord of the Heavenly Watchtower had come for Xiao Yan’s secret treasure in the first place, while Crimson Ninefold Sky possessed a supreme divine art and likewise had no desire to interfere. Thus, they simply watched as he fled with his entire family in tow.

No one knew where he was headed.

With one side’s performance concluded, the game now belonged to the two of them.

Pitch-black flames suddenly erupted across Xiao Yan’s body. His yin energy reached its zenith, making him seem both sinister and wildly unrestrained.

Xiao Xue’er hid anxiously behind the broken walls and ruins. She was only in the early stage of the Dao Body Realm and could not help at all.

“Now that the unnecessary people have left, I’ll say it again: hand it over, and I’ll spare your life.”

“Oh.”

Xiao Yan’s figure flashed. Behind him appeared the phantom of an ape more than fifty meters tall, with short fur, sharp claws, and a face resembling that of a vengeful ghost.

This was the form created from the Mountain Goblin Ghostfire.

The black-flame-wreathed ape stretched out its sharp claws, its arms extending and contracting with perfect ease. In the blink of an eye, they had reached the Lord.

The Lord of the Heavenly Watchtower stood high in the air and assumed a horse stance. Behind him appeared the phantom of a coiling dragon.

“Hahahaha! Such a trifling trick. Today is the day I, Qi Tian, make my fortune!”

The coiling dragon clung to his back, and his fist transformed into a dragon’s claw as it shot forward.

Boom!

Claw met claw.

As expected, Xiao Yan staggered and fell directly into a disadvantage. Then his body suddenly trembled, as though a double image had appeared around him.

A solid physical body fell from his form.

This was his original body, which had already lost all vitality. The path of the Ghost Immortal resembled that of ghostly creatures in many ways, naturally granting him the ability to possess another body. However, he had forever lost the ability to be reborn through another vessel.

Yet he could use this trait to kill—in other words, to attack the soul!

The Lord had clearly not anticipated this. When Xiao Yan came rolling toward him amid billowing black energy, he instinctively took a step back and astonishingly offered no resistance at all.

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What was happening?

What was I doing?

Why wouldn’t my body obey me?

Xiao Yan successfully used the body of a Ghost Immortal to plunge directly into the Lord’s sea of consciousness. A tense, thrilling, and perilous battle of souls was about to begin.

The battle between the two had reached its climax.

Beneath the headquarters of the Heavenly Watchtower in the capital, deep underground—

An old woman radiating a deathly aura stared fixedly at the battle projected by a circular mirror overhead.

In her hands were a Eight Trigrams Mirror and an Astral Observation Pearl.

She was none other than the Myriad Forms Adept.

In a sinister voice, she said, “Lord, O Lord. You never imagined that I had secretly influenced your actions, did you? Revealing your own weakness—how foolish.”

“After fighting that youngster, my lifespan is indeed nearing its end. But my Heavenly Secrets Art has also advanced somewhat. The sensation of losing control of your five limbs must be unpleasant.”

After speaking with a sigh, the Myriad Forms Adept rose and hurried toward the battlefield.

The two greatest threats were currently locked in a battle of souls. Xiao Yan’s physical body was still lying at the original site, and all the opportunities he possessed should still be there.

“They’re all mine. The treasury! The life-prolonging spirit medicine!”

Her hunched body looked frail and vulnerable, yet she flew remarkably fast.

Back on the battlefield—

Seeing that the Lord of the Heavenly Watchtower had stopped moving, Xiao Xue’er, both frightened and furious, hurried out and concealed Xiao Yan’s physical body in a hidden place.

She failed to notice the flash of golden light across Xiao Yan’s chest. It attached itself to her heart, and an eye-shaped mark appeared over the outline of something snowy white.

The golden liquid was half full.

Just as she was about to take out the high-grade second-level artifact Xiao Yan had given her and attack the Lord, her entire body suddenly shuddered.

Mountain Goblin Ghostfire erupted around her.

Her eyes were completely filled with blackness, save for a single red point at the center. The sight was horrifying.

“Xiao… Brother Xiao Yan…”

“Hahahahahaha! Xiao Yan is already dead. How could a mere early-stage Golden Core soul possibly be a match for me?”

“No… No… How could this be? You’re lying! Brother Xiao Yan cannot be dead! I don’t believe you!”

“You don’t believe me?”