Chapter 389: with translation of chapter title, then ===GLOSSARY=== with list of named entities/coined terms appearing in these lines
391. Chapter 384 Xixi also wants to be like her father in the future, the great battle will first kill those just watching the fun【seek monthly ticket】
How could there only be four left?!
The empress's heart shuddered violently, even feeling some panic—indeed, it was panic!
You must know that each of these seven-thousand-year flat peaches is registered, and their distribution has already been arranged; for the Dàjǐng imperial family, they are extremely important.
And if it weren't for the special nature of the Queen Mother of the West's Guiyi Miao, the empress would have no qualification to control the distribution of these flat peaches.
Thus, every empress is extremely sensitive to the number of flat peaches.
When the gate of the seven-thousand-year flat peach garden opened, the empress, via the Tianhe Ruyi hairpin, sensed the number of flat peaches inside……
She felt as if the sky were about to collapse!
"Who is it?!"
After the empress panicked, she then gritted her teeth in anger!
The flat peaches couldn't just disappear for no reason, and moreover the flat peach garden is in a sealed state, making it impossible for anyone else to take them.
Huh?
Sealed……
The empress couldn't help but think of Li Che, who was the first to ascend into the seven-thousand-year flat peach garden.
Could it be that Li Che took the flat peaches?
But originally there were six seven-thousand-year flat peaches, and now only four remain, meaning two are missing……
One person cannot possibly pluck two flat peaches at the same time in the flat peach grove!
Because within the flat peach garden there exists a very strict rule power; a person with sufficient cultivation can pluck one flat peach, and that is doable.
However, if one wishes to pluck two flat peaches, they will inevitably suffer a strike from a terrifying force.
That force…… even a top-tier peak expert cannot withstand it, and would suffer extremely dreadful injury.
And Li Che……
Even if he were the first to enter the flat peach grove, it would still be impossible for him to pluck two flat peaches.
On the empress's dignified visage, she instantly turned pallid, her whole body swaying as if about to collapse, feeling as though the sky were falling.
Seven-thousand-year flat peaches……
Only four remain.
Fortunately, it just barely meets the condition for advancing to the fourth round.
After the empress announced the opening of the third round of the Flat Peach Victory Assembly, she slumped into her chair, while the emperor beside her felt somewhat strange.
He looked over doubtfully.
"Empress, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Could it be because Gongshu Changgong failed to make it into the third round, leaving you somewhat unhappy?"
The emperor asked with a smile.
On the empress's dignified and exquisite face, she could only force a faint smile.
The empress comes from the Gongshu clan, her veins carrying the blood of the Great Supervisor; thus her natal family is actually quite remarkable, and her union with the Dàjǐng imperial house is a strong alliance.
Beneath the emperor's countenance, which shimmered with divinity and vital energy, his eyes flickered faintly.
The empress's demeanor also let him notice something.
His complexion sank slightly.
Flat peaches……
Something went wrong?!
Because only the flat peaches in the flat peach garden can affect the empress's mood.
The empress's sudden change in mood can only be said……
Seven-thousand-year flat peaches……
Could it be that one is missing?!
……
……
The empress's emotional fluctuations cannot affect the moods of the many heroes who have stepped into the seven-thousand-year flat peach garden.
The Golden-Haired Xuan, the Venerable Jia Luo, and the Jade Guanyin of the Southern Sea Purple Bamboo Grove—these three heroes, after the flat peach garden opened, seemed to be pushed by immortal energy as they entered the flat peach grove.
As the immortal energy spread, the three of them unknowingly had already opened a considerable distance between them.
Between them, there seemed to be vigilance and solemnity.
"Amitabha… two benefactors, let us first go pluck the flat peaches."
"After obtaining the flat peaches, we shall each contend by our own abilities for the chief of the heroes."
Clad in a cassock and wielding the golden eight-ringed dharma staff, Venerable Jia Luo held his palm before him and lightly laughed.
The Golden-Haired Xuan glanced at him, his golden fur unfurled, he raised both arms, and his whole body shot forward like a cannonball.
The powerful heaven-man resonance, like a terrifying mad lion, rose to its feet, looked around, seeking a target!
"Really so fidgety……"
Venerable Jia Luo, having sworn his hair, lightly shook his head and laughed.
Light gleamed in his eyes: "This lion… actually has quite an affinity with my Buddhist gate."
The golden lion can take refuge in my Buddhist gate.
Suddenly, Jia Luo looked toward the distant figure of a woman with disheveled hair, grasping purple bamboo.
One of the Eleven Divine Sects of Dàjǐng, the hero of the Divine Sect's Purple Bamboo Grove in the Southern Sea Circuit!
Like the Purple Mansion Divine Sect, which is the foremost divine sect of Dàjǐng, both the Young Dragon Victory Assembly and the Hero Victory Assembly each arranged three young dragons and three heroes.
And the South Sea Purple Bamboo Forest is considered to be the lowest-ranked divine sect among the Eleven Dao Divine Sects.
It is very low-key, neither showing its strength nor revealing its presence, unlike the Overbearing and Arrogant Purple Mansion Divine Sect.
Whether it's the Heroes' Assembly or the Young Dragons' Assembly, only one person is arranged to come.
However, Jialuo from the Thousand Chariots Buddha State of the Western Regions' Buddhist Lands does not dare to underestimate this Jade Guanyin in the slightest.
This woman is very strong… very unfathomable.
Jialuo gazed at Jade Guanyin, his eyes flickering.
"Lady Jade Guanyin, shall we join forces?"
"That Half-Saint Li is unfathomable; being able to advance in the first and second rounds at such extreme speed shows how powerful and hard to deal with his strength is."
The golden eight-ringed staff in Jialuo's hand trembled, emitting a tinkling sound.
Jade Guanyin plucked the purple bamboo from her waist, hoisted it onto her shoulder, and wore a half-smile: "Isn't it because Li Che has some connection with the netherworld?"
"I heard that the monks from the Little Spirit Sound Temple who came to Shendu were slaughtered to the last by the netherworld."
"The Little Spirit Sound Temple is the claw and fang of your Western Regions' Buddhist Lands within Dàjǐng… Are you planning to seek revenge for those monks of the Little Spirit Sound Temple who died?"
Jade Guanyin shook the purple bamboo she carried on her back and chuckled.
The monk Jialuo met her gaze with calm eyes, nodded, and said: "Indeed, there is such a reason."
"The Little Spirit Sound Temple has close ties with my Western Regions' Buddhist Lands, often exchanging Buddhist doctrines and scriptures with my Thousand Chariots Buddha State…"
"If Half-Saint Li truly has a great connection with the netherworld, then I, as a humble monk, naturally must seek a Buddhist principle for the monks of the Little Spirit Sound Temple who perished."
Jialuo said calmly.
"Benefactor Golden-Haired Hound, let us go find Half-Saint Li and join forces… We'll strike after they have fought to mutual ruin."
"After dealing with those two, we will then contend for the leadership of the heroes."
Jade Guanyin chuckled: "You monk, indeed cunning…"
"You proposing cooperation with the Golden-Haired Hound is probably just to provoke him, knowing only four can advance this round; the Golden-Haired Hound surely won't want to cooperate again, so you deliberately goad him into seeking Li Che."
"He and Li Che have a wager; the battle between the Golden-Haired Hound and Li Che will decide the wager's outcome… So you anticipate the Golden-Haired Hound won't be able to hold back."
Jade Guanyin narrowed her eyes, the purple bamboo she bore rustling its leaves.
"So you're just sitting back to reap the benefits, having prepared long ago to strike after they both suffer mutual loss?"
"But you lack full confidence, after all the Golden-Haired Hound comes from Witch God Mountain, while Li Che… also has ties to the netherworld, his methods mysterious and unfathomable."
Jade Guanyin laughed.
Jialuo spoke frankly, nodding: "It's not because of the Golden-Haired Hound benefactor; the Golden-Haired Hound is rather straightforward—nothing to fear—but rather that Li Che, the netherworld Half-Saint Li… is unfathomable."
"Whether in the first or second round, he can rise and promote that quickly; I, as a humble monk, cannot imagine how he does it…"
"Especially in the second round, Li Che faced the three great heroes of the Purple Mansion Divine Sect, yet he still managed to fight one against three and emerge victorious…"
"I, as a humble monk, have no full confidence facing Half-Saint Li."
The monk Jialuo spread his hands.
Jade Guanyin burst into laughter, laughing wildly, bending forward and backward.
Finally, she swayed the purple bamboo.
She likewise spread her hands and said: "How coincidental…"
"I also lack full confidence facing Half-Saint Li…"
"Then let's reluctantly cooperate."
The words having been spoken.
Jade Guanyin tapped her foot; instantly, an invisible wave of qi spread outward, and every blade of frost grass on the ground, sharp as divine blades, was suddenly bent down.
Then Jade Guanyin, bearing the purple bamboo, shot forth like an arrowhead.
The monk Jialuo gave a light smile, his staff swaying gently.
He followed closely, as if shrinking the earth to an inch.
……
……
Boom boom boom—
His heart felt as if a muffled drum were beating violently; the spreading invisible sound waves struck his ears, causing Li Che's eardrums to feel somewhat distended.
His head swam, his divine nature boiling incessantly, like a turbulent surge.
As Li Che continually captured the Kunlun death-light projected downward by the Cosmos Heavenly Sun Kunlun Mirror, the world-soul kept exploding.
After the explosion, within the inner vision of the mud-pill, the seven-aperture exquisite heart incessantly trembled, emitting immaculate-heart divinity, swiftly recondensing the exploded world-soul.
The recondensed world-soul would become even stronger.
Becoming a cultivation method for Li Che, the triune world-soul grew ever more resilient, and its strength fed back into his divine cultivation.
Allowing the speed at which he absorbs divinity from the divinity crystals to increase ever more.
Thus, the process of tempering the world-soul is actually also a process of enhancing his divine cultivation.
In this process, Li Che's divine cultivation merely grew stronger and stronger.
Li Che also never expected that this Peach Orchard would become an extremely suitable place for his cultivation.
Here, he ate two Chi-dragon blood peaches, causing his qi and blood to surge enormously; one Chi-dragon blood peach can expand the pure martial qi sea's golden pool by eight hundred zhang, two thus by sixteen hundred zhang…
According to qi-blood martial arts, in the division of the Martial Saint's second opening realm, if the qi sea can expand to a thousand zhang range, one actually qualifies to assault the Martial Saint's third opening; from the boundless qi sea, one finds the mountain path and opens the road of martial ascent.
It lets one's martial way, like rootless duckweed, step onto the proper path, set foot on solid ground, and with each step upward, transform and surpass oneself.
Then, ascending to the mountain peak, looking down upon mundane martial ways, one achieves the supreme pinnacle!
And now, having swallowed two seven-thousand-year-old Chi-dragon blood peaches, it is actually sufficient for him to push his qi sea's golden pool to a thousand zhang range.
But Li Che still wants to expand the range of his qi sea's golden pool even further.
Allow the martial path's mountain trail to rise even higher.
Thus, after reaching the pinnacle of the martial path, one can also see farther.
They are all mountain peaks, yet there are differences in height.
Just as the mountains and rivers of the world stretch endlessly, countless peaks rise from the earth, some high, some low, some rising, some falling.
The martial path is like viewing the world's mountains and rivers; the same principle applies.
Buzz—
Within the heaven-and-earth chessboard, one after another aura of light intertwines.
Fortunately, the Chess Saint's Dao Fruit underwent transformation, greatly enhancing his capture and suppression abilities; otherwise, as he captured more and more Kunlun Dead Light, the heaven-and-earth chessboard would begin to distort, seemingly unable to bear it.
Gazing at the intertwined Kunlun Dead Light, Li Che, in the repeated shattering and reforming of his world-soul, captured roughly forty or fifty strands.
Faintly, it seemed to form a crescent-shaped glow, like the remaining crescent after the heavenly dog bites the sun.
Within the heaven-and-earth chessboard, Li Che's world-soul intertwined and took shape, his pupils flickering.
His heart trembled slightly, as if a hint of excitement arose.
"Looks like… there's a chance?"
"Perhaps I can truly capture the Kunlun Mirror? As the captured Kunlun Dead Light increases, perhaps it will finally coalesce into a true Kunlun Mirror."
"No, perhaps it should be said to be the complete radiance reflected by the Kunlun Mirror?"
"Then, could I, by following this connection, draw down the Kunlun Mirror and truly… pluck the Bright Sun?!"
Li Che's emotions surged.
A divine weapon of the Three Pure Ones' rank— for anyone, it is a top-tier temptation.
Not to mention Li Che; even the Grand Supervisor would likely be unable to resist this temptation.
Isn't the Dàjǐng imperial family holding this Peach Blossom Assembly precisely for that Three Pure Ones divine weapon?
However, Li Che cannot be certain he can actually achieve the feat of plucking the peach, truly storing the Kunlun Mirror in his pocket.
The difficulty is indeed not small.
Not only is there pressure from the Dàjǐng imperial family, but also the pressure inherent to the Kunlun Mirror itself, a Three Pure Ones divine weapon.
Boom—!!!
Sizzle!
Even though Li Che's heaven-and-earth chessboard expanded greatly due to the Chess Saint Dao Fruit's transformation, his own divine cultivation had not seen a major breakthrough.
As if heavenly light poured down, amidst the sizzling sounds, it seemed to melt everything; even when the world-souls of the three divine embryos united, matching a divine embryo's three transformations, they still could not withstand the scorching radiance of the Kunlun Mirror.
Under the Dead Light's glare, the world-soul exploded once again!
However, while it exploded, Li Che firmly drew in a strand of Kunlun Dead Light, feeding it into the heaven-and-earth chessboard, like a diligent weaving maiden using Kunlun Dead Light as yarn to knit a sweater.
Bang—
The seven-aperture exquisite heart throbbed; in an instant, a faint divine energy surged forth, nourishing the damaged, collapsed world-soul, recondensing it anew.
A fierce wind rose, rustling the seven-thousand-year-old peach forest, causing the branches and leaves of many peach trees to whisper.
Li Che suddenly opened his eyes, slowly rose to his feet, his black robe fluttering, his jet-black, vigorous hair whipping the air, emitting explosive sounds.
"The third round of the Heroes' Assembly has begun…… the victors should have successively stepped into the Peach Garden."
Li Che's mind stirred slightly; the next moment, the heaven-and-earth chessboard spread its net.
Instantly, it captured everything happening inside the Peach Garden.
And the three who emerged victorious from the brutal second round to advance to the third round were likewise revealed in Li Che's perception.
This was not beyond Li Che's expectations.
"Indeed, it's them; it's not surprising—judging by overall strength, these three are indeed somewhat stronger…"
"However, the three heroes of the True Martial Divine Sect actually lost, which is somewhat unexpected."
Li Che fell into thought.
In his perception, the Golden-Haired Beast, Jia Lu monk, and Jade Guanyin's figures all appeared, impossible to hide.
As the Chess Saint Dao Fruit completed its four transformations, the heaven-and-earth chessboard underwent transformation and expansion.
Now his perception became even sharper, covering the entire Peach Garden, making their trajectories extremely clear in his sense.
"Huh? Are they parting ways?"
Li Che looked slightly startled.
In his perception, the Golden-Haired Beast split off from Jia Lu monk and Jade Guanyin, like a wild dog that won't turn back until hitting the southern wall, dashing away at full speed.
Meanwhile, Jia Lu monk seemed to have conversed with Jade Guanyin for a while, choosing to join forces…
Closely following behind the Golden-Haired Beast.
Seeing this, Li Che immediately understood what was happening.
"This Golden-Haired Beast is eager to settle a score with me… Jia Lu and Jade Guanyin likely sensed his mood, so they concealed their auras and secretly followed, hoping to reap the benefits as the fisherman."
Li Che laughed.
Through the heaven-and-earth chessboard peering, seeing his toe touch down, he stomped the soft ground, blasting out a deep pit, momentum surging, the golden-haired, soaring Golden-Haired Beast…
"This dumb dog, he's being used as a spear."
Li Che smiled indulgently.
Regarding his future mount, Li Che is still quite indulgent.
Although not now… but soon it will be.
From the straightforward nature of this child, Golden Tai Sui, the Golden-Haired Beast… should be similar.
Rattle—
The peach trees began to shift continually; their underground rhizomes, like flood dragons, swiftly writhed and turned, forming a labyrinth that constantly blocked the Golden-Haired Beast's scent detection.
After all, a peach tree three hundred zhang tall, reaching straight into the clouds; if not for the overly dazzling solar radiance transformed by the Kunlun Mirror, the entire area beneath the peach tree might be a patch of darkness.
Therefore, extending one's perception within the peach forest is extremely difficult.
Moreover, not everyone possesses Li Che's strange method of the Heaven-Earth Chessboard.
Li Che listened to the rustling of leaves, the creaking sound of the peach tree's roots and stems wriggling, yet the corners of his mouth lifted as he shook his head.
"No need for that."
"Come on."
"Golden Fur Beast, come find me."
Li Che stood ramrod straight; the next moment, he slowly spread his arms.
Boom—
A mighty divinity burst forth instantly from his inner vision at the niwan palace, shooting up into the clouds and exploding like fireworks!
Extremely dazzling, extremely eye-catching!
……
……
Shendu's Second City.
On the White Jade Plaza.
The Milky Way water curtain poured down with a clatter, the sunset's afterglow shining upon it, rippling with light.
At the same time, an image appeared within the Milky Way water curtain.
In the image, it was precisely the scene of the four participants in the third round of the Grand Heroes' Assembly promotion tournament.
Divided into four quadrants, it separated into four images, clearly introducing each person's situation.
Suddenly.
Everyone let out a cry of astonishment.
That was because Li Che had originally been sitting cross-legged beneath the peach tree cultivating; perhaps sensing the opening of the Peach Garden, he slowly rose from the ground, spread his arms, and released his divine aura……
As if telling everyone that the flowers he had been waiting for had withered!
How arrogant!
But Li Che has the capital for such arrogance!
Within Shendu's Third City, cheers erupted like a torrent; as if Li Che raised his arms and burst forth with divinity, it caused those wandering martial artists who had rushed from all corners of the Dàjǐng Eleven Provinces to have their emotions explode, letting out excited long howls.
Lü Taibai's gaze swept over, and he couldn't help but smile: "Elder Li's current popularity… is truly too high."
Second Elder Zhao Fangzhou took a sip of wine, his face also flushed with excitement: "How could it not be high? This is Elder Li's popularity carved out by slaughter… taking on three foes alone, he slew all three heroes of the Purple Mansion Divine Sect, the foremost divine sect of Dàjǐng."
"With such achievements, who wouldn't go wild?!"
"Elder Li, you have the capital for arrogance!"
Beside her, Xixi stood at the edge of the White Jade Plaza, head raised, watching the image in the Milky Way water curtain of her father raising his arms, which drew the cheers and shouts of the martial artists of Shendu's Third City.
Xixi's little face was as flushed as if she had drunk three catties of fragrant baijiu, her steps a bit unsteady.
"So handsome! So imposing!"
"Xixi, Great Emperor, I want that too!"
Xixi placed her hands on her hips.
She set herself a small goal.
From now on, she must be like her father… making everyone accept her arrogance and haughtiness!
……
……
In the dense forest.
The Golden Fur Beast, which had been sprinting at breakneck speed, suddenly dropped its stance, stepped down heavily, and countless frost grasses, resembling weapons, were shattered under its foot!
Its golden hair whipped through the air, and the Golden Fur Beast's keen eyes snapped upward, locking onto the distance.
There, an indescribable vast and ethereal aura rose from the ground, an extremely rich divinity, sharp beyond compare, like a terrifying sword intent that could cleave heaven and earth in two.
"Such divinity…"
"Li Che!"
In the Golden Fur Beast's eyes, golden light blazed, its whole body seeming to become cast of gold, radiant without end.
"He is provoking me!"
"He is shouting for me to hurry over!"
"You…"
"You can't wait any longer?!"
The Golden Fur Beast's fur exploded, its heart violently shaken.
How reckless!
How overbearing!
You, a cultivator at the Divine Embryo, Divine Transformation stage, what exactly are you being reckless about?!
However, the Golden Fur Beast did not underestimate Li Che, even placing great importance on him; after all, in two consecutive rounds of the Grand Heroes' Assembly, he ascended to the next round at a speed far surpassing others.
This is enough to demonstrate Li Che's strength, and moreover, in the second round he encountered the three heroes of the Purple Mansion Divine Sect!
But…
Would the Golden Fur Beast be afraid?!
He would only wish for it!
Goo-goo-goo-goo—
Inside, his blood seemed to be completely ignited by his agitated emotions, constantly boiling; the Golden Fur Divine Beast confirmed the location of that aura eruption, its feet suddenly sped up, and its whole body turned into a golden afterimage in the dense forest!
And not long after the Golden Fur Divine Beast sped up.
Two figures drifted over and landed on the enormous branches of the peach tree.
Yu Guanyin bore a purple bamboo, Jia Luo Monk grasped a golden eight-ringed staff; the two exchanged a glance, their eyes both filled with astonishment.
「This Half-Saint Li……so arrogant! 」
「He actually directly erupted divine aura, exposing his position; it feels like he promoted too early, and he's been anxiously waiting in the Peach Garden. 」
Both of their faces showed a faint smile.
Afterward, his body continued to shoot out, swiftly pursuing the Golden Fur Divine Beast.
With Li Che's erupted divine aura as guidance.
The peach tree seemed to be pulled by the aura, slowly parting to reveal a frost-grass-paved path, allowing the Golden Fur Divine Beast to come directly to Li Che's side.
Bang——!!!
It seemed as if crimson qi and blood exploded all over his body, spraying out from every pore of the Golden Fur Divine Beast.
His whole body leapt out like a golden bomb, shooting along an arc and heavily smashing into the ground, the ground instantly cratered.
The Golden Fur Divine Beast's spine bent, then slowly straightened, its golden fur also burst forth, each strand striking the air; its eyes, like those of a canine beast, emitted a dim light.
His blood seemed to overflow with a faint gold, a violent divine aura surged like an abyss and sea, rising up.
He suddenly stepped down, exploding outward!
The ground within a ten-zhang radius was extremely soft, with no resistance, completely shattering, collapsing, and sinking!
Dust and smoke billowed up; countless shattered stones and broken frost grass, under that step, trembled and flew up, hovering around his body.
As if solidified by an invisible force around his body.
The next moment, the Golden Fur Divine Beast suddenly opened its mouth and let out a roar, like a lion's roar that shatters gold; instantly, the air blast sprayed, countless shattered stones and frost grass turning into arrowheads and flying swords, sweeping over and covering Li Che, who stood beneath the enormous peach tree.
However, Li Che looked at him with a faint smile on his lips.
Facing the Golden Fur Divine Beast's move, he opened his five fingers and lightly pressed down.
All the shattered stones and frost grass, upon nearing his body, were instantly taken over by the mighty world-soul, deprived of speed and strength, like a rainstorm falling to the ground, crackling up dust.
「I know you're in a hurry. 」
「But don't rush first. 」
Their brief clash made the Golden Fur Divine Beast's eyes narrow involuntarily, becoming solemn.
Li Che's faint voice echoed, further causing the Golden Fur Divine Beast to furrow its brow.
This guy, does he not know that the Golden Fur Divine Beast is full of hot blood, its blood just boiling, eagerly craving a hearty battle?
Does this guy want to pour cold water on him? Make his blood cold and unable to exert his full strength?
Li Che merely smiled.
"I know you really want to fight me; to be honest, I'm also quite interested. After all, my daughter has a little follower, and as her father...... getting a mount isn't bad either. I heard you can transform into the Golden Lion King? Is it because you have the blood of a demon emperor in your body?"
Li Che's words made the Golden-Haired Divine Beast's fur explode!
"Arrogant! You want to take me as your mount? Wait until you defeat me first before you say that! Do you think I'm some useless thing like the Golden Tai Sui?!"
Li Che merely smiled, pressed his palm: "Don't rush."
"Our battle concerns the wager, and that wager is of great importance, after all, if you lose, you will become my slave; what's the difference between a slave and a mount?"
The Golden-Haired Divine Beast gritted its teeth, its golden hair exploding: "You're full of crap!"
"So, this battle concerning your future destiny must be fought with all our might......"
"You don't want such an important battle to be disturbed by others, right?"
"If someone plans to wait until we both lose, then swoop in to reap the benefits, would you be willing?"
Li Che said with a smile.
As his words fell, the Golden-Haired Divine Beast's ferocious eyes instantly turned glossy: "Huh?!"
Li Che's words make perfect sense!
The Golden-Haired Divine Beast, though impulsive, is not stupid.
His eyes glossed for a moment, then instantly turned sharp, sweeping sharply behind him, because he sensed two faint auras far behind.
Although those two auras had used concealment techniques, for some reason they were still cleverly caught by the Golden-Haired Divine Beast.
Li Che was very pleased seeing the Golden-Haired Divine Beast's reaction.
It was no waste that he deliberately used the Heaven and Earth Chessboard to break the Jade Guanyin's aura-isolating technique, exposing the concealed auras of both.
"Damn!"
The Golden-Haired Divine Beast roared.
"These two assholes!"
The Golden-Haired Divine Beast immediately started cursing.
"Golden-Haired Divine Beast, you wouldn't want our pure wager to be disturbed like this, would you?"
Li Che said.
"Even if they're just watching the fun, it's still...... really annoying."
"Anyway, they'll eventually compete with us for the title of chief hero."
"Why not...... first take out the spectators?"
Upon hearing that, the Golden-Haired Divine Beast's eyes instantly narrowed into a slit, looking at Li Che with great admiration.
"You're very crafty."
Li Che: "......"
The Golden-Haired Divine Beast spread its arms, a crackling sound exploded, terrifying qi and blood surged within its body, instantly, golden radiance blazed forth, and vaguely, the phantom of a golden lion king slowly appeared.
"I'll take the bald donkey from the Western Buddhist lands; that woman holding the bamboo branch is yours!"
"I don't like hitting women!"
The Golden-haired Beast threw down a line.
Then, like a lion king on the prairie locking onto prey, it sprang forward, tens of li flashing past in an instant as he swiftly crossed them.
Its body surged up like a divine dragon, diving down at breakneck speed, an aura of overwhelming dominance, terrifying like thunder roaring.
As they sped along, Monk Jialuo and the Jade Guanyin of the South Sea Purple Bamboo Grove, who had lightly landed on a large branch of the Flat Peach Tree, suddenly felt their hearts jolt violently, sensing a fierce wind sweeping in, the air seeming to be mercilessly compressed and shattered by a pure force.
A golden lion, almost in an instant, after a few leaps, came flying toward them.
It charged straight at Monk Jialuo!
The faces of Monk Jialuo and the Jade Guanyin both changed!
"What madness has possessed this beast?!"
"Wasn't he supposed to fight Li Che? Why is he attacking us?!"
Monk Jialuo clenched his fist, the golden eight-ringed staff in his hand whirring to life with a clatter, and he thrust it forward fiercely.
The Golden-haired Beast ignored the Jade Guanyin outright, the golden lion king's palm slamming out and brutally striking the monk's staff.
Like the wave of an ancient, heavy bell, it spread out in trembling ripples, kicking up dust.
At the point of their clash, the Flat Peach Tree's seal erupted, blasting their forces apart and exploding upon the ground, causing the soft earth to erupt into ferocious gullies.
"Benefactor Jin, have you gone mad?!"
"Your opponent is not this humble monk!"
Monk Jialuo's brows knit tight; struck by the Golden-haired Beast's terrifying power, his whole body was flung a hundred zhang along the Flat Peach Tree's branches, crashing hard into the trunk before stopping.
"Don't call me benefactor!"
"Call me Golden-haired Beast!"
"I'm the one hitting you, yet you want to reap the benefits like a fisherman, even wanting to eat my scraps?! I'll beat you to death!"
The Golden-haired Beast let out a long howl, the illusory image of the golden lion king seeming to howl to the heavens, terrifying sound waves surging without cease, continually striking the soul and mind.
Monk Jialuo's face also instantly turned cold.
"Beast, turns out you're not stupid after all."
"Or... did Li Che tell you that? You'd rather believe Li Che than this humble monk?"
Monk Jialuo lifted his gaze to the distance where the wild wind howled, seeing a tall figure in black robes stepping from deep within the Flat Peach Forest—Li Che, whose face bore a gentle smile.
The Golden-haired Beast widened its eyes and spat.
"Bald donkey, do you even deserve to compare with Li Che? You bald donkeys have the integrity of a bird's egg!"
"Still believe you? Do you really think I'm a fool?!"
Monk Jialuo's face darkened.
Being called a bald donkey by the Golden-haired Beast also stirred killing intent.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
The Jade Guanyin bearing purple bamboo stood on the branch of the Flat Peach Tree, her whole body tense, immensely solemn.
She fixed her gaze on the carelessly approaching black-robed figure.
These two, who ought to be fighting to the death, seem to intend to first clear out the onlookers, then proceed with the decisive battle…
The Golden-haired Beast faced off against Jialuo…
That was Li Che's target.
Naturally, it was her!
Li Che looked somewhat helplessly at the barefoot, disheveled, highly vigilant Jade Guanyin, and gave a gentle smile.
"The Golden-haired Beast said he doesn't hit women…"
"So I'll deal with you."
"Don't worry, I won't hit either."
Hearing those words, the Jade Guanyin seemed to have her inner vigilance melted by Li Che's gentle words.
But.
The next moment…
She abruptly lifted her head.
She saw a colossal mechanism beast, its twin wings spread wide, blotting out the sky, releasing a terrifying aura, accompanied by a resonant clang and the simultaneous burst of light from a hundred thousand mechanism seals—a half-step peerless mechanism beast, the twin-winged little Yinglong king, hovering above her head.
It smashed down at extreme speed!
"This is what you call not hitting women?!"
End of Chapter
