Devouring Soul Emperor

Zhou Wushang and Huo Yuguang.

Neither of their groups noticed that atop a nearby pavilion, two young men who looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight, with exceptionally sharp gazes, had been watching the situation unfold.

These two were the King Realm disciples from the Celestial Sword Sect and the Saint Extreme Sect within Blood Abyss City.

The King Realm disciple from the Celestial Sword Sect was named Chen Yuqi. He was an Inner Sect Disciple of the Celestial Sword Sect and held a rather high status within the sect. This morning, he had seen Huo Yuguang lead a group of people out and, curious, had followed them.

The one from the Saint Extreme Sect, also an Inner Sect Disciple, was named Qi Hao. His strength and Realm were more or less on par with Chen Yuqi’s.

Seeing Zhou Wushang disregard the bigger picture and side with the people from the Celestial Sword Sect against his own, a flash of anger crossed Qi Hao’s eyes, and he was about to rush over.

However, Chen Yuqi of the Celestial Sword Sect reached out an arm to stop him. "Junior Brother Qi, let the examinees handle their own affairs. It’s best we don’t get involved."

"What do you mean by this, Chen?" Qi Hao said with a frown.

"I don’t mean anything by it. I’m just reminding you, Junior Brother Qi, not to forget the sects’ Forbidden King Order, lest you bring trouble upon yourself," Chen Yuqi said with a small smile.

Qi Hao was helpless and could only back down.

If Chen Yuqi weren’t here, he could have stepped in and resolved this matter.

But with a King Realm disciple from another sect present, it wasn’t appropriate for him to interfere. Otherwise, he would give them something to use against him.

「Meanwhile.」

When Huo Yuguang heard Zhou Wushang not only refrain from stopping him but actually speak up on his behalf, he snapped out of his daze, his heart instantly filled with wild joy.

’Now that Zhou Wushang has spoken, a mere level-four Martial Spirit like Chu Qingyun is mine to toy with. I can manipulate and crush him however I please.’

And when that time came, it wouldn’t just be Chu Qingyun he’d be crushing, but also the morale and fighting spirit of everyone from the Saint Extreme Sect.

By casually bullying one of their own right in front of them while they did nothing, it was easy to imagine what would happen in the Blood Sect ruins two days from now. If their two sides were to clash, the Celestial Sword Sect’s members would undoubtedly have the complete psychological advantage, feeling a stronger sense of superiority and the conviction of certain victory.

"Chu Qingyun, even Zhou Wushang has spoken! Aren’t you going to hurry up, get on your knees, and kowtow in apology to us?" Huo Yuguang stared at Chu Qingyun and barked.

Chu Qingyun, of course, saw everything clearly.

Therefore, he couldn’t be bothered to explain anything further. In a cold voice, he said, "And if I don’t kneel?"

"You won’t kneel? Hmph. If you won’t kneel, I’ll beat you until you do!"

Huo Yuguang snorted, taking a step forward. The aura of a level-seven Martial Spirit, of the Celestial Spirit Realm, erupted from him. A terrifying pressure instantly descended upon Chu Qingyun.

At that moment, Mu Xiaoxiao, who was beside Chu Qingyun, also took a step forward, placing herself in front of him. She released an equally powerful aura to counter Huo Yuguang’s.

"Huo Yuguang, I had a hand in rejecting your Celestial Sword Sect yesterday too! What’s so great about bullying a level-four Martial Spirit? If you’ve got the guts, come at me!" Mu Xiaoxiao said.

Behind her, Dai also hefted his warhammer, ready to fight at a moment’s notice.

"Hm? Another one at the Celestial Spirit Realm?"

Huo Yuguang frowned and glanced from side to side. Instantly, someone took the hint, and two more at the Celestial Spirit Realm stepped out from behind him.

Just then, on the Saint Extreme Sect’s side, a few Celestial Spirit Realm experts could no longer stand by and were about to step forward. However, a threatening glare from Zhou Wushang forced them back.

"He should solve the trouble he started himself. We allied to explore the Blood Sect ruins, not to clean up someone else’s mess," Zhou Wushang said coolly.

Mu Xiaoxiao shot him a glare. "Despicable man!"

Huo Yuguang’s side had three people at the Celestial Spirit Realm.

On Chu Qingyun’s side, however, there was only Mu Xiaoxiao. They were clearly at a disadvantage.

But at this moment, Chu Qingyun grabbed Mu Xiaoxiao’s arm and pulled her behind him. Then he looked at Huo Yuguang and said, "Huo Yuguang, you came looking for trouble with me. Let’s settle this ourselves. A one-on-one duel between you and me. How about it?"

A one-on-one duel?

Huo Yuguang stared at Chu Qingyun, stunned for a moment, before he finally couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! A joke! This is an absolute joke! A level-four Martial Spirit dares to challenge me to a one-on-one duel? Since when did level-four Martial Spirits get so confident?"

Behind Huo Yuguang, those who had already joined the Celestial Sword Sect also erupted in laughter.

A level-four Martial Spirit challenging a level-seven Martial Spirit was simply laughable.

"Chu Qingyun, are you crazy? He’s a level-seven Martial Spirit! There’s a huge gap between that and a level-six," Mu Xiaoxiao said, staring at Chu Qingyun in astonishment.

"Don’t worry, I have a plan," Chu Qingyun said.

"Well... alright. If you can’t hold on, don’t force yourself. I should be able to handle two of them, and Dai can probably manage one..."

As she spoke, Mu Xiaoxiao motioned for Dai to fall back with her.

Seeing that they were actually about to fight, the surrounding crowd quickly backed away, leaving a large courtyard in the center for the two of them as a battlefield.

"You overestimate yourself. I’ll make you understand what a real gap in power means!"

Huo Yuguang sneered and casually sent a blast of Primordial Power flying straight toward Chu Qingyun.

The Primordial Power of a level-seven Martial Spirit was incredibly pure, more than ten times stronger than that of a level-six. Just this casual attack made Chu Qingyun sense immense danger.

"Profound Celestial Divine Pattern!"

"Iron Thread Ten-Star Vine!"

"Thunder Light Sword Qi!"

In an instant, Chu Qingyun used every technique at his disposal. The Martial Soul Power of his three Martial Souls surged into his Primordial Power and his body.

Then, gripping the Earth Seal Sword, Chu Qingyun tried his best to recall the feeling of successfully executing his self-created move: the Thunder Sword, an attack infused with Sword Intent.

However, his first attempt failed.

BANG!

With a violent collision, the Thunder Light Sword Qi tore through the blast of Primordial Power, barely blocking the attack. However, the immense force still caused the Profound Celestial Divine Pattern on Chu Qingyun’s body to flare to its absolute brightest, clearly showing it was on the verge of being overwhelmed.

Chu Qingyun himself was forced back several steps before he could completely disperse the force.

A casual strike from a level-seven Martial Spirit was even more powerful than an all-out attack from an average level-six!

’He actually blocked it?’

Many in the crowd nodded to themselves. For a level-four Martial Spirit to block a Primordial Power attack from a level-seven was already quite impressive.

Huo Yuguang, however, revealed a savage grin. "No wonder you dared to challenge me. I’ll admit you have some skill. But you won’t be so lucky with the next move."

"Get on your knees!"

Huo Yuguang gathered a massive amount of pure Primordial Power in his palm, then charged forward, viciously striking out at Chu Qingyun.

This time, he not only attacked personally but also locked his entire crushing presence onto Chu Qingyun, intending to finish him in a single move and force him to his knees!