Desolate Devouring Art

From the moment Liu Wuxie had arrived, the man's gaze had remained fixed on him, with a glacial gleam occasionally surfacing in the depths of his eyes. When their eyes finally locked, the Thousand Hands Yama showed no intention of looking away. Their silent confrontation lasted three breaths before both men turned their attention elsewhere.

Solemnity darkened Liu Wuxie's gaze. He had unmistakably detected an almost invisible thread of murderous intent concealed in the Thousand Hands Yama's stare.

Qian Yao soon concluded his opening address and formally commenced the competition. The rules followed the same structure as previous years, beginning with poison art and reserving the martial path for the finale. Since poison art belonged to the minor cultivation paths, opening the competition with it surprised no one.

Qi Wen and Hu Chou stepped out as the Azure Flame Dao Hall's only representatives in the category.

Four students emerged from the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's contingent. Their mentor conducted some final preparations, carefully analyzing Qi Wen and Hu Chou on their behalf.

Nervousness showed plainly on Hu Chou's face. This was his first time participating in such a big competition.

Two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students strode forward. "You fools from Azure Flame Dao Hall, get out here. We'll personally send you to your graves," they shouted.

The poison art category consisted of two separate matches. Only two students represented the Azure Flame Dao Hall, whereas the Celestial Moon Dao Hall had brought four. Consequently, both Azure Flame Dao Hall representatives would have to enter both matches, making their path to victory considerably harder.

Qi Wen gave Hu Chou a small nod, silently urging him to remain composed. Hu Chou answered by drawing in a deep breath and leaping into the arena.

"So tell us, brat, how do you want to die?" the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students taunted, laughing brazenly. Their greater age and superior cultivation left them utterly confident of victory.

"Enough talk. Fight me!" Hu Chou replied as a fierce fighting spirit erupted from his body.

During the previous three days, Liu Wuxie hadn't taught them any advanced poison arts or combat techniques. Instead, he had forged only two things within them—a fearless will to fight and an indomitable momentum.

"We formally request a deathmatch," the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students declared, turning together toward Qian Yao.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall's demand for a deathmatch in the opening round sent an immediate uproar sweeping across the venue. Such matches were normally reserved for mortal enemies whose hatred had passed beyond reconciliation.

The two Dao Halls might have been longstanding rivals, but many of their students remained close friends outside the competition. The Shen Clan, for example, had disciples studying in both the Azure Flame Dao Hall and the Celestial Moon Dao Hall.

Countless eyes shifted toward the two hall masters, yet neither showed the slightest reaction.

"You're free to reject their request," Qian Yao told Hu Chou.

If Hu Chou refused, the Celestial Moon Dao Hall would have to withdraw its demand. A deathmatch could proceed only when both sides consented.

Hu Chou looked toward Liu Wuxie and saw him offer a slight nod. Resolve hardened Hu Chou's eyes at once.

"I'll accept the deathmatch!" he declared.

The spectators naturally noticed that brief exchange. Bewildered murmurs rippled through the crowd as everyone wondered why Hu Chou had sought Liu Wuxie's approval rather than Gongye Zhang's.

"The match begins now and will last no longer than one incense stick. You must achieve victory using poison arts, and martial cultivation is strictly prohibited," Qian Yao announced, defining every rule with absolute clarity.

This was a poison art contest, so both sides had to depend on poison rather than their cultivation.

The two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students advanced forward without hesitation. They closed in from opposing directions and trapped Hu Chou inside a pincer attack. Each carried a bamboo container packed with countless poisonous needles, and a single successful strike would place Hu Chou's life in grave danger.

"That's the Thousand Venom Blossom," students cried in alarm across the venue, springing to their feet with grave expressions.

No one had anticipated that the Celestial Moon Dao Hall would unleash such a vicious weapon during the very first exchange.

"The Thousand Venom Blossom holds thousands of poisonous needles, and every needle can kill a Profound Immortal. Hu Chou is in terrible danger."

Anxious whispers spread among the Azure Flame Dao Hall's students.

"When activated, the Thousand Venom Blossom releases its needles like flowers bursting into bloom, covering an enormous area. Unless Hu Chou has reached the Origin Immortal Realm, avoiding every needle will be impossible."

Disciples from the surrounding sects joined the discussion. "This year's hostility is on an entirely different level!" they said.

Previous competitions had centered mainly on exchanging skills, and rarely escalated to a death match.

Oppressive tension smothered the arena, but Hu Chou remained vigilant. Below the stage, Wen Qi clenched both fists and stared unwaveringly at the Thousand Venom Blossom.

"Your time's up, brat!" roared the Celestial Moon Dao Hall student on the left as he triggered the Thousand Venom Blossom's mechanism.

Needles finer than ox hair exploded from the bamboo container. They spread like a torrential downpour, swallowing Hu Chou from every direction.

The poisonous needles sealed off every possible route of escape, regardless of how he moved.

The Azure Flame Dao Hall's students watched with hearts drawn tight, especially Xiang Rulong and the others. They understood how much depended on this opening match. Victory would stabilize their morale immediately and give everyone confidence for the battles ahead.

Since the rules forbade martial cultivation, Hu Chou couldn't use his cultivation to escape. Poison arts were his only means of overcoming the incoming assault.

With terrifying speed, the poisonous needles ripped across the arena like a shower of falling meteors.

Hu Chou had no time to evade. He suddenly thrust both hands skyward, leaving everyone baffled by his intentions.

Countless spectators shot to their feet. "What the hell is he doing? Is he actually going to catch every poisonous needle with his bare hands?"

Lethal poison coated every needle, and even the smallest puncture would allow the toxin to invade the heart meridians and kill its victim almost instantly.

"What an idiot! I immersed every needle in Bone-Eroding Fluid for a hundred days," the Celestial Moon Dao Hall student on the left sneered, convinced that Hu Chou had grossly overestimated himself. No matter how fast Hu Chou moved, could his hands truly outpace the poisonous needles?

The needles crossed the remaining distance in a split second.

Just when everyone became certain that Hu Chou would die, a peculiar pitch-black object materialized between his hands. Its size roughly matched two adult fists placed together.

With martial cultivation prohibited, Hu Chou could either avoid the incoming barrage or somehow neutralize the Thousand Venom Blossom.

"Up!" Hu Chou roared, hurling the spherical object into the air. It stopped and hovered directly above his head.

The instant the object appeared, every poisonous needle approaching Hu Chou veered from its original path and flew toward the black sphere. No one understood what had caused the sudden reversal.

"What just happened? Why did every needle change direction in mid-air?" spectators asked, confused.

The astonishing development caught the entire audience off guard. Even the Azure Flame Dao Hall's students stared at the arena in stunned disbelief.

They understood Hu Chou's capabilities better than most. His cultivation wasn't especially high, and nothing about him had ever seemed remarkable. Many therefore struggled to understand why Liu Wuxie had selected him from among so many students.

Before countless bewildered eyes, the poisonous needles landed upon the black sphere one after another and clung tightly to its surface.

"This is..."

Spectators throughout the venue jumped to their feet in shock. Even cultivators at the pinnacle of the Origin Immortal Realm couldn't understand what they had witnessed. Everyone craned their necks toward the arena as they fought for a closer look.

"It's a Supreme Lodestone," someone finally shouted after recognizing the black sphere above Hu Chou. The object was neither a weapon nor a poison pearl, but a Supreme Lodestone.

Profound Iron had been used to forge the poisonous needles, and the Supreme Lodestone happened to restrain that material perfectly. Every creation beneath heaven possessed a natural nemesis, and the world preserved its balance through that principle.

"That actually worked?" Many Origin Immortals stared in disbelief. Everyone had assumed Liu Wuxie had taught Qi Wen and Hu Chou some formidable poison arts. Therefore, they hadn't expected Hu Chou to employ such a crude method and neutralize the Thousand Venom Blossom with a Supreme Lodestone.

"That's brilliant! Why did I never think of this before? The next time I face an expert who relies on poisonous needles, I'll prepare a lodestone in advance," some spectators exclaimed.

Cultivators slapped their thighs as sudden understanding dawned upon them. The scene offered a flawless example of the dao reaching its simplest form.

The two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students exchanged disbelieving looks. They couldn't accept that the Thousand Venom Blossom, the weapon they had taken such pride in, had been dismantled with such effortless simplicity.

Even Qian Yao, stationed at the arena's edge, struggled to conceal his shock. He had already envisioned Hu Chou's death, only for the Supreme Lodestone to reverse the entire battle.

While the audience remained stunned, the Supreme Lodestone suddenly spun above Hu Chou and whipped up a powerful gale. Thousands of needles tore free from its surface and erupted outward in a spectacular storm, shooting toward both Celestial Moon Dao Hall students.

Hu Chou had turned their own weapon against them. The abrupt reversal caught both students completely off guard as the poisonous needles reached them before either could react.

With no other choice, the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students unleashed their martial cultivation and used immortal energy to blast the approaching needles away.

"How fucking shameless! Martial cultivation is forbidden in a poison art competition," the Azure Flame Dao Hall's students cursed, outraged by the Celestial Moon Dao Hall's conduct.

"What do we do now, Mentor Liu? Defeating them won't be easy if they're going to rely on their cultivation," the students beside Liu Wuxie said indignantly, turning to him for a decision.

A faint smile curved across Liu Wuxie's lips, but he offered no reply. When Hu Chou had released the Supreme Lodestone earlier, Liu Wuxie had secretly added several needles of his own to the barrage. Those needles hadn't been forged from Profound Iron. They were made from Ironwood, preventing them from attaching to the Supreme Lodestone.

Ironwood needles possessed neither the penetrating force nor the speed of those forged from Profound Iron. However, they could slip through a defensive aura. They followed the same principle as the Divine Mystic Yin Needle, making ordinary immortal energy exceptionally ineffective against them.

Thousands of needles flew into the air, allowing the two Celestial Moon Dao Hall students to survive the immediate danger. The moment they resorted to martial cultivation, however, they had already forfeited the match.

Before either student could celebrate, two inconspicuous needles silently pierced their necks. The sensation barely differed from a mosquito bite because the Ironwood needles were exceedingly fine. Their limited speed and penetrating force prevented them from completely passing through, leaving each needle embedded halfway into the flesh.

That depth was already sufficient. Poison spread through their throats in an instant and invaded their heart meridians.

"How the hell did this happen?!" the two asked, terrified. Neither had imagined suffering such a complete defeat.

"What extraordinary planning. He hid his own poisonous needles among the enemy's barrage," one of the spectators commented.

Thunderous applause exploded across the venue as countless gazes shifted involuntarily toward Liu Wuxie. Everyone understood that Hu Chou couldn't possibly have devised such an intricate strategy alone. Liu Wuxie had undoubtedly designed the entire plan.

Even a Divine Immortal couldn't raise the cultivation of one hundred students in three days. Liu Wuxie's sole viable solution had therefore been to sharpen their combat skills, allowing them to defeat opponents whose strength far surpassed their own.