Chapter 433: Not the Back Garden

"Cheng Yuexiao!"

Seeing his own Second Elder brutally slain—his soul and spirit utterly annihilated—the newly arrived Master of Xumi Palace, Luo Xian, his eyes blazing with rage, let out a thunderous roar!

"Now you feel pain?"

As Master Cheng Yuexiao sneered, he casually waved his hand; Dong Zhao swiftly slipped behind him, then Peng Lao appeared and immediately took Dong Zhao away.

Master Luo Xian of Xumi Palace stirred to act, but Grand Minister Cheng Yuexiao stood before him like an insurmountable mountain.

"Cheng Yuexiao, aren't you afraid Xumi Palace will fight you to the death?" Luo Xian roared.

"Would fear help?"

Cheng Yuexiao sneered, "If I were afraid, wouldn't you still have come with that Chi fellow to Wanyi?"

"Now you bring a large force of elites to ambush my Chen Guo's best, stealing our treasures."

"Our two sides have long been locked in mortal enmity—what's there to fear?"

"Good! Good! Good! Then let us settle this today—no quarter, no mercy!"

"Good!"

Cheng Yuexiao accepted at once, "Then let us settle this today—life or death!"

"Whoever runs is a coward!"

As his words ended, the Star Tower behind Grand Minister Cheng Yuexiao materialized; he held the Nine Sheng Bells, and five-colored meteors slammed toward Master Luo Xian—his opening strike was full power!

Master Luo Xian of Xumi Palace was unafraid; with a flick of his stringless qin, he vanished and reappeared like a ghost, momentarily locked in a fierce, evenly matched battle with Cheng Yuexiao.

The two clashed in a whirl of brilliant starlight.

The other Xumi Palace disciple who had barely escaped earlier dared only watch from afar.

As for joining the fight?

Please, he didn't want to die.

Earlier, Cheng Yuexiao had wiped out his Seventh-Rank senior with a mere wave of his hand, and even annihilated the Eighth-Rank Elder.

He wasn't ready to die yet.

The terrifying starlight fluctuations forced this Seventh-Rank Xumi Palace disciple to retreat further and further.

The two top-tier Eighth-Rank experts had turned the entire forest into chaos; nearby peaks had been flattened.

On the surface, they were evenly matched.

But Luo Xian, caught in the heart of the battle, suffered in silence.

He felt Cheng Yuexiao's combat power had grown stronger since a month and a half ago.

That should have been impossible.

At their level, gaining even half a percent or one percent in combat power required years of effort.

Yet he felt Cheng Yuexiao was now stronger by more than ten percent compared to a month and a half ago.

A month and a half ago, without the Star Tower's starlight strikes from Chen Guo, he could still trade blows with Cheng Yuexiao—offense and defense balanced.

But now, after only a dozen breaths of battle, Luo Xian felt crushing pressure.

He was defending far more than attacking.

Cheng Yuexiao's Thunder, Earth, and Fire Star Arts were absurdly powerful.

Wasn't Cheng Yuexiao famed for Wind Star Arts?

Especially his Thunder Star Art—it felt even stronger than the Wood Spirit Palace's master!

At this moment, nine out of every ten exchanges were him defending—fully, desperately defending.

Even when he managed to strike back, it posed little threat.

This stunned Luo Xian—and he had already begun planning his escape.

Cheng Yuexiao was stronger than him, but couldn't kill him in a short time.

But over time, things might change.

Especially with Peng Lao, the Eighth-Rank beginner who had just rescued Dong Zhao—if he turned back to join the fight, Luo Xian's situation would be dire.

Worse still, it seemed Chen Guo had likely acquired a Divine Dao True Meaning.

Cheng Yuexiao, without even breaking through, was already this powerful—what if he did?

Even as he fought Grand Minister Cheng Yuexiao, Luo Xian was already arranging his retreat.

As for reputation?

Being mocked?

Who cared?

Besides, hardly anyone was watching anyway.

Similarly, Grand Minister Cheng Yuexiao was pouring out his full strength to test his own recent growth through Luo Xian's resistance.

In the past month and a half, his power had made tremendous progress.

He had fully comprehended the Thunder Star Pattern to Eighth-Rank Middle, and the Fire Star Pattern to Eighth-Rank Lower.

Normally, he could already overpower Luo Xian, who was also Eighth-Rank Peak.

But this power alone was still insufficient to kill Luo Xian.

Even if he spent another month refining the Thunder Star Pattern to Eighth-Rank Upper, it still wouldn't be enough to kill Luo Xian.

To kill Luo Xian, he needed a killing technique.

But Luo Xian, as Master of Xumi Palace, possessed many life-saving treasures—he'd need careful planning to slay him.

If he could kill the Master of Xumi Palace, it would send a shockwave through all factions.

It would be a declaration that Chen Guo had truly risen.

But killing the Master of Xumi Palace might also trigger another outcome.

For a moment, Grand Minister Cheng Yuexiao weighed many considerations.

As he pondered, a purple-black thunderclap exploded across the distant sky, hurtling toward this location at terrifying speed.

As it moved, stars in the sky flickered faintly in resonance.

Its aura was immense.

Its speed was astonishing.

The Wood Spirit Palace Master?

This was the reinforcement Luo Xian had summoned!

Again!

Trying to gang up on him again!

In an instant, Cheng Yuexiao's earlier thoughts about the political consequences of killing Luo Xian vanished—he now felt absolute, unyielding intent to kill!

If he didn't kill him, these people would never be warned!

An Eighth-Rank Peak, without any notice, brazenly intruding into Chen Guo's territory—how dare he!

BOOM!

The Nine Sheng Bells rang repeatedly as five-colored meteors slammed down.

As before, terrifying lightning surged toward Master Luo Xian.

But this time, before the lightning struck, Cheng Yuexiao whispered a phrase and violently activated the Nine Heavens Thunder Rhythm within the Thunder Star Pattern.

In the past month and a half, Cheng Yuexiao had accumulated eighty-four Nine Heavens Thunder Rhythms in the Thunder Star Pattern—he unleashed them all without hesitation!

BOOM!

The lightning instantly blazed brighter, as if filled with water, yet its aura became terrifyingly multiplied!

In the very instant the lightning struck, Master Luo Xian sensed it.

A month ago, he had already faced this technique.

Again!

And stronger!

The lightning struck with blinding speed—barely visible, it was already upon his head.

His many life-saving techniques couldn't be activated in time.

Without hesitation, Master Luo Xian thrust his stringless qin upward.

Vast spatial star power surged; behind him, ninety-nine Star Towers erupted with starlight, and nine stars in the sky poured torrents of starlight into the ancestral treasure—the stringless qin.

In an instant, the stringless qin extended a spatial barrier over ten stories high.

Layer upon layer!

But in that same instant, the blinding lightning pierced straight through—his ancestral treasure's strongest defense shattered like paper, layer after layer torn apart!

The good news: each layer shattered weakened the lightning slightly.

But the bad news: when the fifteenth spatial barrier shattered, the lightning had only lost one-third of its power.

The next instant, the stringless qin was struck by lightning, its starlight devoured, rapidly disintegrating under the torrent.

And in that same instant, the defense of the ancestral treasure granted Master Luo Xian a single breath of time.

Without hesitation, in that critical moment, he activated Chaos Space!

As space rippled, his body vanished instantly—before vanishing, Luo Xian tried to retrieve his ancestral treasure.

But the next instant, he was struck as if by lightning; within his Upper Star Palace, his Nascent Soul trembled violently, as if struck by thunder, blood spurting from his mouth.

His form nearly tumbled out of the void.

In that instant of disappearance, Master Luo Xian's eyes bulged as he helplessly watched his ancestral treasure—the stringless qin—shattered into dust!

The ancestral treasure was linked to his spirit—its destruction now inflicted severe damage upon his Nascent Soul.

With the stringless qin destroyed, the residual lightning crashed to the ground, carving out a blackened pit dozens of meters deep.

Two hundred li away, the fleeing Master of Xumi Palace spat blood and roared, "Cheng Yuexiao, you've destroyed my sect's ancestral treasure—I swear enmity with you!"

Master Cheng Yuexiao naturally did not hear this roar, but that terrifying lightning—the Master of Muling Palace—had already arrived.

And the aura of the fleeing Master of Xumi Palace was not far away.

He could return at any moment.

Though destroying the Master of Xumi Palace's ancestral treasure was a great victory, if the two joined forces—

In an instant, Cheng Yuexiao made his decision.

The next moment, Cheng Yuexiao, who had just driven back Master Xumi Palace Luo Xian, instantly transformed into lightning and met the arriving Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei.

"Master Chi, your esteemed presence is a great honor—I've come to welcome you!"

Amid booming laughter, five-colored meteorites rained down upon Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei.

"Master Cheng, you move swiftly!"

As Master Chi Lei frowned, he had no choice but to fight.

But the instant combat began, the Nine Sheng Bells floating before Cheng Yuexiao's chest suddenly grew in size with the wind; two of the bells erupted in roaring flames and golden radiance.

Cheng Yuexiao brushed his hand across them, and instantly, a fire meteor and an earth meteor surged from opposite directions toward Master Chi Lei of Muling Palace.

Chi Lei sensed an anomaly in the aura and tried to dodge.

The next instant, lightning poured down upon Chi Lei's head.

Chi Lei casually unleashed his own lightning, but to his dismay, Cheng Yuexiao's lightning was slightly stronger than his own.

As the lightning pressed forward, the fire and earth meteorites emitted by the Nine Sheng Bells, as if guided by eyes, circled and relentlessly pursued Master Chi Lei of Muling Palace.

A series of lightning strikes forced Chi Lei to momentarily freeze in place.

The next instant, the earth-colored meteorite struck first.

Chi Lei countered with offense, his ancestral treasure, the Purple Thunder Annihilating Soul Pearl, erupting in terrifying lightning waves toward the earth meteorite.

Instantly, the earth meteorite melted like snow in hot broth—just as it seemed about to vanish, the forty-plus earth heart earth rhythms Cheng Yuexiao had infused into it exploded all at once!

It crashed down upon Chi Lei's head like a mountain.

As the Purple Thunder Annihilating Soul Pearl dimmed instantly, a green-glowing battle armor adorned with countless green silk ribbons materialized on Chi Lei's body, blocking all the earth heart earth rhythms.

This was Muling Palace's other ancestral treasure: the Vine-Infused Spirit Armor.

Master Chi Lei of Muling Palace bore both wood and lightning lineages, his power immense.

But at that very instant, the fire meteor struck!

The fire blazed fiercely, dimming the ninth-rank Vine-Infused Spirit Armor's radiance.

Countless vine-like lights surged wildly to defend Chi Lei, but the fire meteor struck faster.

The next instant, the thirty-three heavenly fire rhythms Cheng Yuexiao had infused into the fire meteor exploded.

The green silk ribbons of the ninth-rank Vine-Infused Spirit Armor were instantly incinerated, stripped of all verdancy, cracked open, and retracted into his body.

Damaged in his ancestral spirit treasure, Chi Lei's soul essence wounded, he spat blood and unleashed all his power to condense another lightning wave with the Purple Thunder Annihilating Soul Pearl, striking the erupting heavenly fire rhythms!

BOOM!

Fire met lightning waves.

Like a hot blade through butter, they dissolved swiftly.

The next instant, the Purple Thunder Annihilating Soul Pearl was blasted into utter darkness, its surface covered in countless cracks, then pulled back into Chi Lei's body as the fire struck.

Master of Muling Palace was flung backward like a kite caught in a gale, crashing into the forest below; ancient trees snapped in his path, his chest already charred black.

But Cheng Yuexiao pressed his advantage.

The Nine Sheng Bells grew again with the wind; his finger pointed, and two more fire and earth meteorites, one after the other, roared toward the fallen Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei!

Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei was terrified!

Again?!

This was unbearable!

If he took even one more hit, he might die here today!

Without hesitation, he crushed the sixth-rank supreme Void-Tearing Talisman he had held in his hand.

Instantly vanished!

The moment he disappeared, the fire and earth meteorites struck the spot, exploding in continuous detonations, igniting a sky-high inferno.

Far away, Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei reappeared three hundred li away, staring in shock.

When did Cheng Yuexiao become so fierce?

He felt that if he had been even a fraction slower, even if he hadn't died, his physical body would have been destroyed there!

Cheng Yuexiao's chest heaved violently.

In just a few dozen breaths, he had exhausted all his techniques.

Though he had plainly frightened the Master of Muling Palace into fleeing,

he knew his own situation well.

Those final two fire and earth meteorite strikes were actually quite ordinary—mere full-power assaults from a peak eighth-rank cultivator.

They could wound the Master of Muling Palace, but only slightly.

The earlier strikes that had severely wounded Chi Lei were the result of Cheng Yuexiao having infused all his accumulated heavenly fire rhythms and earth heart earth rhythms into the meteorites after attaining eighth-rank lower-level comprehension of the Fire and Earth Star Patterns.

That was why their power had been so immense.

Now, his body was utterly empty.

All the heavenly thunder rhythms, earth heart earth rhythms, and heavenly fire rhythms he had accumulated over this period were completely spent.

Not a single trace remained!

Master Chi Lei of Muling Palace had assumed it was the same as before—and fled in fear.

But even if he hadn't fled, he wouldn't have fared much better.

Cheng Yuexiao's real concern was the two joining forces—and worse, if they summoned other peak eighth-rank cultivators. That would be a true disaster!

"Master Luo, we were just moments from a fight to the death—why did you flee?" Cheng Yuexiao called out loudly as he flew dozens of li forward.

Master of Xumi Palace Luo Xian, healing with a Star-Repair Talisman, remained silent upon hearing Cheng Yuexiao's shout.

"Master Chi, would you like to resolve this with me in a fight to the death?"

Master Chi Lei of Muling Palace, who had just barely escaped death, was still trembling with fear—and remained silent.

Seeing both peak eighth-rank masters silent, Cheng Yuexiao roared, "Gentlemen, the Great Chen is not your private garden!

From now on, any eighth-rank who enters Great Chen without permission—

One comes, I kill one.

Two come, I slay a pair!

Don't say I didn't warn you!"

With that, State Preceptor Cheng Yuexiao snorted coldly and turned away instantly, heading straight for Jinshan County City.

Far off, Master of Xumi Palace Luo Xian and Master of Muling Palace Chi Lei watched Cheng Yuexiao of Great Chen depart, then cautiously approached each other, locking eyes—and both saw caution and astonishment in the other's gaze.

"Master Chi, how has Cheng Yuexiao's power risen so swiftly?

If he keeps advancing at this rate, I estimate he'll crush us underfoot within a year or less!" said Master of Xumi Palace Luo Xian.

Chi Lei stared at the direction Cheng Yuexiao had vanished, his expression equally stunned.

His eyes brimmed with unmistakable dread!

(End of Chapter)