Chapter 88: with translation of chapter title

Facing Wei Lei's insults, Hong Yi's expression didn't change; he continued to refute with reason and blame the other side. For the first ten or so years of his life he had stayed in the Wuwen Marquis's manor, and because of his status as a concubine's son and his mother's former background in a brothel, he often suffered open and covert bullying from the manor's masters and servants, but this also gave him a remarkably even temper.

"Hong Yi, you bastard——" Wei Lei stared at Hong Yi across from him, who showed no anger, while his own liver fire flared; his words began to become increasingly incoherent.

"Brother Wei, that's enough!" Xing Yuxian watched Wei Lei's face redden more and more, involuntarily shook her head, cut off his words, and stepped forward.

"King Silver Shark, and you senior as well, today I, a mere girl, wish to spar with Hong Yi; you two just make a move!" Xing Yuxian called out to Zhou Shuo and Chan Yinsha, who had been watching from afar; the reason Wei Lei was quarreling with Hong Yi ultimately lay in the intimidation of those two fellows.

"Exactly! Little one, speak a bit more humbly; since you've said all that, I don't have much to add, but I and Yi'er are like sworn brothers—if you want to fight him, ask him yourself; if he agrees to fight you, I won't say a word!" Zhou Shuo looked at the girl he'd just called "little one" without her getting angry, raised his eyebrows teasingly, and slightly turned his head toward Hong Yi.

"Hong Yi, as a successor of the Supreme Dao, don't you have any fighting spirit? Act like a man!" Hearing Zhou Shuo's words, Xing Yuxian couldn't help shouting at Hong Yi from afar.

"Miss Xing, since we've come to this point, I suppose there's no avoiding it, but there's one thing I must clarify first—I, Hong Yi, am truly not a successor of the Supreme Dao." Hong Yi looked at Zhou Shuo, who had turned his head away from him, realized he couldn't escape, accepted the challenge, and also gave an explanation.

"Hong Yi, let's be frank: just over a year ago you were an unknown nobody, yet now you've suddenly become a Dao arts master, and half a year ago you even killed the Holy Maiden Zhao Firong of the Great Luo Sect and seized her Yin-Yang Peach Divine Sword. If you claim you're not a Supreme Dao successor, then tell me which school or sect's Dao arts you've learned." Listening to Hong Yi's explanation, Xing Yuxian couldn't help but think it through: in such a short time, turning someone into such a master is something only the Supreme Dao could accomplish.

"Alright, that's all I have to say; I've told you everything. As for what we'll do later, there's one thing I need to mention up front: Yi'er is my brother, and everyone here today must keep whatever they see confidential and not spread it around—can you manage that?" Zhou Shuo looked at the clear-headed girl, couldn't help curling his lips, and issued his demand to the opposite side.

"Of course I wouldn't dare spread it." Facing Zhou Shuo's words, whether it was Xing Yuxian or Wei Lei, inwardly they didn't take it seriously, but outwardly they were very respectful, not spreading it to others; telling their own people was no problem.

"Hmm, that's good. Chan Yinsha, give the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Boundless Arrows to Hong Yi. And, Hong Yi, I still have a bottle of Pearl Pills here—use them if you can, grab a quick micro-spend before the duel, sigh, I'm just lacking accumulation." Zhou Shuo looked at the group across from him who had agreed to his request, nodded satisfied, turned to Chan Yinsha, and at the same time pulled out a porcelain bottle containing the Yuanpin Heavenly Pearl from his bosom and handed it over.

Upon hearing Zhou Shuo's words, Chan Yinsha didn't hesitate, handing over the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Boundless Arrows, taking back her own thoughts imbued in the bow and arrows; the bow and arrows originally bore the soul imprint of the Yan Zhen Sect, but that imprint had been refined away by Chan Yinsha earlier. Hong Yi stared at the bow and arrows and the porcelain bottle presented to him, dumbfounded—could it really be done like that?

"Senior, what do you mean by this?" Although Xing Yuxian was far away, she could still hear and see Zhou Shuo's actions.

"Little one, you were born with a silver spoon in your mouth—you must have the Peacock King's Five Elements Sword Pellets, right? Did they give you the Heavenly Fan? I'm giving my brother a few items for self-defense, how about that?" Zhou Shuo answered in an unperturbed manner, meanwhile squeezing his eyes at Hong Yi, making Hong Yi feel a bit strange, both amused and exasperated, yet also a little moved.

"It seems you're quite familiar with my father!" Hearing Zhou Shuo's words, Xing Yuxian's eyes sank slightly; her father had indeed given her the Heavenly Fan and the Five Elements Sword Pellets, so Zhou Shuo giving the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Boundless Arrows to Hong Yi couldn't really be considered a foul.

"As one of the Eight Great Demonic Immortals of the world, Brother Xing's great name—I couldn't possibly not have heard of it. Alas, I've said too much already. Hong Yi, let's begin!" Zhou Shuo feigned regret, then cut off his words, and looking at Hong Yi, who had already prepared the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Boundless Arrows nearby, he said.

"Then Miss Xing, let's begin!" Hong Yi gripped the Heaven-Shaking Bow and Boundless Arrows, saw Zhou Shuo announce the start, and bowed his hands toward the distant Xing Yuxian.

"Then please, Brother Hong, instruct me." Xing Yuxian looked at the distant figure bowing his hands, returned the salute, showing her good upbringing.

You have courtesy, I have courtesy, the atmosphere is fine, but once both of them project their spirits outward, it becomes completely different. Xing Yuxian raised her hand and released the Five Elements Sword Pellets—five pearls, each five-colored and about the size of a walnut. These five sword pellets were formed by combining the quintessential lethal qi of heaven and earth with essence blood, then condensing it with focused thought.

As soon as Xing Yuxian moved, the yellow Thick Earth Sha Pellet rolled and instantly turned into a yellow mist that wrapped around the spirit; the black Heavenly Wood Sha Pellet dispersed into black mist, condensing into one black crystal great axe after another; as for the bright Kui Water Sha Pellet, the blinding gold essence Sha Pellet, and the crimson Departing Fire Sha Pellet, they flew straight toward Hong Yi.

Facing Xing Yuxian's Five Elements Sword Pellets, Hong Yi simply had his spirit fire five Boundless Arrows, which collided with the Kui Water, gold essence, and Departing Fire Sha Pellets she emitted, as well as the black crystal great axes formed from the Heavenly Wood Sha. In an instant, water and fire overflowed simultaneously, black qi spread throughout the space, golden lines cut in all directions, the runes on the five Boundless Arrows trembled, condensing sunlight to produce fire, blocking the crystal axe's chop and the golden lines' cutting, transforming into five fire dragons that dove and emerged within the water‑fire clouds.

"Not bad speed." Chan Yinsha watched the five arrow shadows darting through the crystal light and flames in the air, and couldn't help narrowing her eyes.

"It would be strange if he weren't fast enough, but those five arrows probably aren't a match." Zhou Shuo watched the tangle in the sky, and couldn't help feeling intrigued and excited.

"Oh!" Chan Yinsha drew out her voice as she watched Zhou Shuo stare fixedly at the sky battle; since he gave no explanation at all, she felt a bit vexed, but could only focus her spirit on watching the fight.

Hong Yi released five Boundless Arrows, but they couldn't withstand Xing Yuxian's four‑element sword sha, so he had to fire the remaining four Boundless Arrows in his hand as well; Xing Yuxian also released the Thick Earth Sha meant for self‑defense. The five elements united, the five‑colored sword sha instantly changed again, jointly resisting Hong Yi's nine Boundless Arrows. Five‑colored clouds surged in the air, nine fire dragons rose and fell, light scattered dazzlingly, drawing one into illusion.

Locked in a stalemate, Xing Yuxian took out a five‑colored feather fan and casually swung it at Hong Yi, blowing out gusts of black wind; Hong Yi then transformed his form into a figure with a topknot, muscles coiled like ropes, treading on dragons and elephants, displaying the dignified, powerful aspect of a bodhisattva, and thrust out his fists to blast away the black wind she blew, but the black wind, blade‑like in its strips, kept slicing into his spirit.

"Not looking good." Chan Yinsha watched the spirit enveloped by the black wind in the air, her face slightly changing, feeling that Hong Yi's spirit was weakening.

"Don't rush." Zhou Shuo saw Chan Yinsha's face changing, smiled and soothed her, while keeping his eyes on the spirit gradually being swallowed by the black wind; Hong Yi's defeat wouldn't come that easily.

As expected, just as Zhou Shuo's words finished, the black wind enveloping Hong Yi's spirit in the sky suddenly flared with a burst of light; the light directly dispelled the black wind, and in that light Hong Yi transformed into a magnificent great Buddha seated in the void, displaying an unfathomably profound conception, while his spirit suffered no injury at all.

"What's going on?" Chan Yinsha looked at the great Buddha formed from Hong Yi's spirit, her eyes shifting slightly; how could this be? Just moments ago she clearly felt his spirit weakening—what Dao art has he cultivated? This Buddha is profoundly mysterious.

"This……" Not only Chan Yinsha, but even Xing Yuxian, who had been pitted against Hong Yi, felt a strange bewilderment; she had barely managed, with the Heavenly Fan, to refine Hong Yi's spirit to near destruction, yet the opponent instantly returned to full health—how could she not be astonished?

"Miss Xing, I think this match doesn't need to continue—you can't beat me." Hong Yi, whose spirit had taken the form of a great Buddha, demanded that Xing Yuxian cease fighting, and even recalled the nine Boundless Arrows hovering in the air to his side.

"Hong Yi, don't speak so absolutely." Xing Yuxian looked at the great Buddha that Hong Yi had become, speculated in her mind about his cultivation method, and felt a little unwilling to accept it.

"I'm not speaking absolutely; rather, my strongest technique is the Profound Yin Slay Ghost Seize Soul Great Method—once unleashed, it could very well tear your soul apart, scattering it to oblivion!" Hong Yi looked at the haughty little girl and earnestly advised her.

"Profound Yin Slay Ghost Seize Soul Great Method, that ** kind of Dao art!" Hearing Hong Yi's words, Xing Yuxian's face changed dramatically; she had heard her father Xing Xuan speak of that Dao art—visualizing the five demons of the human heart, then shattering them all at once, and with an explosive burst of spirit power drawing out and crushing a person's spirit; it's a desperate, vicious move, and if Hong Yi were to use it with his cultivation, she feared she wouldn't die outright but would suffer grave injury.

"Little Miss Xing, are you done yet?" Zhou Shuo looked at the astonished Xing Yuxian in the sky and couldn't help asking with a smile.

"Brother Hong, Miss Xing truly isn't your opponent; she lost this match." Xing Yuxian glanced down at Zhou Shuo, then bowed her hands toward the great‑Buddha‑formed Hong Yi.

"Not at all." Hong Yi dispersed the great Buddha form, returned to the appearance of a youthful scholar, bowed his hands humbly; however, Xing Yuxian didn't reply, instead turning and descending downward, not speaking to Wei Lei either, as the Five Elements Sword Sha stirred, seeking to envelop her physical form and carry her back to the ship where her Golden Wolf Guard was stationed.

"Little Miss Xing, you can just leave on your own—remember what you promised earlier, keep it secret!" Zhou Shuo watched Xing Yuxian, who was about to lead her Golden Wolf Guard away, his eyes flickering slightly and the corner of his mouth curling into an arc; in this world, only the dead can keep a secret.