Chapter 488: Palace of Heaven Temple!!

Chen Mu finally moved.

He lifted his head, a flash of coldness passing through his eyes.

Then, his aura exploded violently!

Palace of Heaven realm!

This aura was piercing and unmatched, vast as an ocean, colliding head-on with the Blood Shadow Guardian's pressure, stirring a visible ripple in midair.

Where the ripple passed, air twisted, the ground cracked, and disciples of the Long Life Cult hundreds of zhang away were shaken into spitting blood, retreating step by step.

The Blood Shadow Guardian's sneer froze on his face, replaced by disbelief and shock.

"Palace of Heaven realm?! How is that possible—you're so young!"

He was truly stunned.

This young man before him looked no more than twenty years old, yet he was already a Palace of Heaven realm cultivator!

What did that even mean?

He, Blood Shadow, had trained for over a hundred years just to barely enter the Palace of Heaven realm, and even then, he was considered gifted within the Long Life Cult.

But this young man…

A Palace of Heaven realm at twenty? A monster!

A true monster!

Chen Mu gave him no time to think.

He raised his hand—the sword light on the Sunken Long Jian surged violently, and he slashed forward!

The sword light was piercing and unmatched, instantly shattering the claw, striking straight at the Blood Shadow Guardian.

The Blood Shadow Guardian's face changed; he shot backward, simultaneously raising his blade to block.

"Clang!"

Blade met sword, sparks flew everywhere.

The Blood Shadow Guardian was blasted back dozens of zhang, his grip on the blade trembling with numbness. He stared at Chen Mu, eyes filled with wariness and murderous intent.

This boy must not be allowed to live!

He roared loudly, his body shooting skyward, hovering in midair.

Chen Mu rose from the ground as well, facing him across the void.

Neither moved again; they simply stared at each other in silence.

But in that instant of locked gazes, the heavenly and earthly forces within a radius of dozens of li began to stir!

Heavenly and earthly forces, as if summoned, surged wildly from all directions, gathering and swirling and colliding around their bodies.

In the sky, dark clouds began to gather, obscuring the already dim starlight.

The night wind turned into a gale, howling through the mountains and forests.

Distant thunder rumbled within the clouds; occasional lightning tore through the night, illuminating the two opposing figures.

Heaven and earth changed color, wind and clouds churned violently!

Far away, Shen Ge and the others who had just climbed over the mountain ridge halted in shock at this sudden celestial phenomenon.

"What is that…" Xue Xue Ranran covered her mouth, eyes wide with horror.

In the sky, the two figures hovered like gods, surrounded by visible heavenly and earthly forces.

Dark clouds churned above their heads, lightning danced around their bodies, as if the entire sky trembled in response to their standoff.

"It's Elder Brother Chen!" Xue Xue Ranran cried out, "He and that man… they're…"

She couldn't finish.

Because the scene was too shocking, beyond anything she could describe.

Shen Ge stared blankly at the sky, suddenly realizing something.

Palace of Heaven realm.

That was the aura of a Palace of Heaven realm.

Chen Mu is a Palace of Heaven realm cultivator?

But how old is he?

Several years younger than me, barely twenty…

A Palace of Heaven realm at twenty?!

How is that possible!

Xu Qingyin was also stunned, murmuring: "A Palace of Heaven realm at twenty… this child—what is his origin?"

No one could answer her.

Everyone stared blankly at the sky, at the two opposing figures, their hearts churning with shock and awe.

In the sky, the Blood Shadow Guardian stared at Chen Mu and spoke slowly: "Boy, I admit I misjudged you. A Palace of Heaven realm at twenty—indeed a monster. But—"

He sneered: "You've only just broken through, haven't you? Can your control over heavenly and earthly forces compare to mine, a veteran Palace of Heaven cultivator who has trained for a hundred years?"

He formed hand seals; mist surged wildly around him, coalescing behind him into a three-zhang-tall crimson demonic god.

The demonic god bore twin horns, its face grotesque, mouth gaping wide in a silent roar.

"Blood Demon Slash!"

He clasped his hands in midair; the crimson demonic god swung its fist, unleashing a blow that carried the power to destroy heaven and earth, crashing down upon Chen Mu's head!

Chen Mu did not retreat.

He simply raised his hand and slashed.

One sword strike—no flourish, only purest power!

Boom!

In the instant the sword light met the fist shadows, a visible shockwave spread in all directions.

Where it passed, the air exploded, and the void twisted!

The forests below suffered greatly.

Where the shockwave passed, trees fell in vast swathes—some uprooted, others snapped mid-trunk.

Massive boulders shattered into countless shards, flying everywhere.

The summits of several peaks were sheared clean off, dust rising in a thick veil that blotted out sky and moon.

Among the Changsheng Cultists hiding at a distance, many were struck by the residual waves—some spat blood and collapsed on the spot, others were instantly shattered by the force.

The peak where Shen Ge and the others stood shook violently, rocks tumbling down, forcing everyone to press flat against the ground, afraid to lift their heads.

In the sky, the two figures separated again, each recoiling dozens of zhang.

The Blood Shadow Guardian panted heavily, the condescension in his eyes gone completely.

He had assumed this young man had only just broken through, and must still be clumsy in controlling the forces of heaven and earth.

But after fighting, he realized the opponent wielded the forces of heaven and earth with flawless mastery—each sword strike carried overwhelming heavenly and earthly might, no weaker than his own!

"Impossible!"

He roared, "You've only just broken through—how could you control it so flawlessly?"

Chen Mu did not answer—he raised his sword again.

The sword light blazed like a rainbow, striking straight at the Blood Shadow Guardian.

The Blood Shadow Guardian gritted his teeth and charged forward; the two clashed once more.

In the sky, the two figures alternated between crossing and separating—each collision triggered violent tremors in the forces of heaven and earth.

The heavenly and earthly forces within dozens of li were thrown into chaotic turmoil; the sky churned with wind and swirling clouds, thunder and lightning raging wildly.

This was the battle of a Tiangong cultivator.

Every movement drew upon heaven and earth; every thought changed the wind and clouds.

The Blood Shadow Guardian grew more and more alarmed with each passing moment.

He realized this young man's control over the forces of heaven and earth was subtly surpassing his own!

Not through quantity—but through purity of quality: the heavenly and earthly forces he summoned were purer, more condensed, as if naturally attuned to heaven and earth itself!

What he did not know was that Chen Mu cultivated the Great Luo Martial Scripture, a martial art compendium whose insight into the forces of heaven and earth far surpassed ordinary techniques.

Added to that, Chen Mu had spent half a month at the Star Palace refining his pact force daily, long since mastering the patterns of heavenly and earthly force flow.

Boom!

The two clashed again, each recoiling a hundred zhang.

The Blood Shadow Guardian panted heavily; the crimson mist around him had thinned considerably, his aura no longer as sharp as before. He stared at Chen Mu, eyes filled with madness and resentment.

"Boy, you are indeed strong," he rasped. "But to kill me? You're still far from capable!"

He formed hand seals; the mist around him erupted in furious flames, coalescing above his head into a massive crimson vortex.

The vortex spun wildly, unleashing terrifying suction that forcibly drew in surrounding heavenly and earthly forces, absorbing them into itself!

"Blood Demon Swallows Heaven! This technique will take your life!"

The crimson vortex grew larger by the second—within moments, it spanned three hundred zhang, blotting out sky and sun.

At its center, a grotesque crimson face could barely be made out, mouth gaping wide, as if ready to swallow all things.

Chen Mu looked up at the crimson vortex, his eyes showing not a trace of fear.

Slowly raising the Sunken Long Jian, two luminous shadows suddenly appeared upon its blade.