Chapter 152: The Power of the Hidden Dragon Prodigy!

Xu Congtang, seeing Chen Mu boldly step forward to meet his challenge, his eyes blazed with venomous hatred and cruelty.

"Little brat! Give me back my son's life!"

He thrust both palms forward, his palm energy dark, cruel, and poisonous, carrying a corrosive, foul-smelling qi—clearly his famed technique, the Rotting Heart Palm.

Chen Mu's expression was icy, and the Star-Solitary Sword let out a piercing, soaring sword cry as he unleashed the Striving Heaven Sword Art to its full extent.

He pushed his sword intent to its peak, then activated the Five Elements Spirit Transformation Scripture, instantly converting his pure Duan Tianhe qi into raging fire-attribute energy!

Zhum~

Crimson flame sword qi erupted violently, wrapping around the Star-Solitary Sword, turning the blade into what seemed a blade of blazing fire.

The searing heat warped the air itself.

"Yao Guang Pierces Misfortune!"

Chen Mu growled, slashing forward—not a single sword technique, but countless flame sword shadows forming as if weaving a burning purgatory that swallowed Xu Congtang's Rotting Heart Palm energy whole!

Boom—!

The flame sword qi and the poisonous palm force collided violently, producing a deafening, earth-shaking roar.

The terrifying shockwave spread outward like a solid wall, instantly cracking the walls and collapsing the roofs of two adjacent side chambers, filling the air with dust.

Xu Congtang shuddered violently, feeling a searing, domineering sword intent—capable of burning away all things—crash through his palm force, causing his blood and qi to churn, forcing him to stagger back half a step!

Horror flashed in his eyes—this boy was clearly only in the Early Innate Stage, yet why was his qi so refined and domineering?

And this flame sword qi was even stranger.

But he had no time to ponder, for Chen Mu's assault came like a storm of rain and wind without pause!

Chen Mu abandoned all defense, using his formidable Cross-Refined Two Cauldron Body to absorb scattered palm energy, pouring every ounce of spirit and strength into his offense.

The Eighteen Forms of the Striving Heaven Sword Art flowed like water and clouds.

Thrust, sweep, chop, slash, slice, point… each strike carried the will to battle the heavens, wrapped in flames that scorched all eight directions.

Star River Sparkles!

Jade Sky Soars!

Moon Grotto Flows Radiance!

…

Sword techniques flowed endlessly, their meaning deepening with each strike.

Flame sword qi raged across the ground, scorching the earth and igniting the air.

Xu Congtang was caught off guard, forced to push his Rotting Heart Palm to its limit, desperately parrying and dodging, retreating step by step, completely overwhelmed and on the defensive.

His shock was beyond words—this was not the combat power of an Early Innate Stage cultivator!

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Xu Congtang roared inwardly.

Chen Mu had concealed his true realm!

Just this outburst alone—surely at least Fifth Stage Innate!

…

Just as Xu Congtang's old force had exhausted and new force had not yet formed, his guard slightly exposed by Chen Mu's "Silver River Reversing Waves"—

Chen Mu's eyes blazed with sharp light, his aura suddenly shifting, becoming utterly condensed, as if all his essence, energy, and spirit were compressed to their absolute limit and channeled entirely into the Star-Solitary Sword!

Six Directions Slash.

Essence, energy, and spirit united—focused explosion!

This was not a dazzling sword technique, but a special martial art that concentrated all power into a single point, seeking ultimate destructive force.

Shh~

A thin yet hyper-condensed sword qi pierced through space, ignoring Xu Congtang's hastily erected palm defenses, striking precisely at his Shanzhong acupoint on the chest!

"Puh~!"

Xu Congtang's body froze rigid, as if struck by a massive hammer!

His protective qi shattered like paper, and that concentrated, terrifying force exploded instantly within his body.

He vomited a gout of blood mixed with internal organ fragments, his chest visibly caving inward; his entire body flew backward like a severed kite, crashing hard into the broken wall behind him, smashing it to rubble and burying him under bricks and stones, his aura instantly withering to near death—he was grievously wounded, on the brink of death.

All this seemed long in description, yet from the moment the two clashed to Xu Congtang's crippling defeat, it took only a few breaths!

Dong Fu, who had just barely blocked all the willow-leaf daggers, had not yet caught his breath when he witnessed this scene that froze his soul—he turned pale.

Is this the power of the Hidden Dragon Prodigy?

Xu Congtang, struck in one glance, was grievously wounded and collapsed into ruins, his life or death unknown.

Dong Fu's heart pounded like a drum; all will to fight vanished.

Shhh~!

Without hesitation, he turned and fled, pushing his lightness skill to its peak, running for his life out of the manor.

All talk of avenging a friend, all promises of reward—before absolute power and the threat of death—they became jokes.

"Think you can run?" Chen Mu growled.

Swoosh~!

His body moved instantly, unleashing his peerless lightness skill, clinging like a parasite, chasing after Dong Fu without letting him gain distance.

The two raced forward and back like twin wisps of blue smoke, darting out of the manor and into the wilderness beyond.

In Chen Mu's hand, the Star-Solitary Sword ignited once more with searing flame; from dozens of meters away, he slashed forward with all his might!

Striving Heaven Sword—

"Zhu Long Carries the Sun!"

Hu-hong~!

A massive flame sword qi, fifty or sixty meters long, broke free from the blade. Like a fire dragon emerging into the world, it tore through the earth with a momentum that could destroy everything and slashed viciously at Dong Fu's back!

Dong Fu felt the terrifying heat and the fierce sword intent behind him. Scared out of his wits, he let out a strange cry and desperately tumbled sideways to dodge.

Boom—!

The flame sword qi failed to hit Dong Fu, but it instantly sliced apart and ignited an abandoned forester's wooden cabin not far from his side.

Wood chips flew everywhere; flames shot into the sky.

Chen Mu did not pause for a moment, and slashed horizontally with another sword!

Another streak of flame sword qi roared out, slicing a grove of small trees clean off at the roots and setting them ablaze with a raging fire.

Dong Fu did not dare to look back at all. Summoning every ounce of strength he had, relying on his familiarity with the terrain and his survival instincts, he wildly changed direction and dodged, narrowly evading several successive terrifying long-range sword qi attacks by the skin of his teeth.

Although he had not been directly hit, the aura of death that brushed past him and the scenery behind him being constantly destroyed and set alight nearly shattered his psychological defenses completely, leaving him with only the single thought of fleeing for his life.

Chen Mu pursued and killed all the way, his flame sword qi invincible, leaving charred sword marks and burning ruins on the ground, chasing for a full ten li.

Seeing that Dong Fu had already fled far away, burrowing into a complex and dense mountain forest and vanishing from sight, Chen Mu finally stopped his steps.

He frowned slightly. Dong Fu was, after all, at the Ninth Stage Innate, and with his mind set on escaping, it was indeed hard to keep him here.

Snorting coldly, Chen Mu did not continue the pursuit.

He turned and executed his movement technique, swiftly returning to Sunset Glow Villa.

Inside the villa it was still deathly silent, with only the crackling of flames burning wood and the pervasive smoke and dust.

Chen Mu rushed at once toward the ruins where Xu Congtang had been sent flying earlier.

However, just as he approached, his steps halted.

He saw that the bricks and rubble had already been scraped aside. Xu Congtang was not dead; he was half-leaning against a broken wall, covered in blood, his breathing faint as a candle guttering in the wind, and the sunken hollow in his chest a shocking sight.

But his right hand was clamped tightly around another person's throat.

That person's clothes were torn, blood at the corner of his mouth, his face pale, his whole body limp as if his acupoints had been sealed — it was none other than the kidnapped Lu Tang!