Volcanic Age

Meanwhile, the battle in the inner chambers of the headquarters was just as fierce.

Twenty.

None of them were low-level warriors. This was a group of elites composed entirely of experts. They also had experts from Three of the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao.

It was hard to believe, but they had prepared this many people just to kill one person.

They had no doubts about their victory.

However…

"U-ugh!"

Thirteen of their experts had already fallen.

They had lost track of how much time had passed. It wasn't a short time, yet the outcome remained undecided.

Ren Chaojian muttered. His face, which had been confident at first, was gradually becoming tinged with anxiety.

Even though the Evil Valley Master was one of the Ten Empyrean Overlords, he could never have expected that he would have been able to withstand the combined forces of twenty experts.

But was this really reality?

Far from winning, they had already lost more than half of their members.

"Do you regret the choices you've made?" Evil Valley Master asked with a domineering gaze.

Even after being attacked by twenty people, his body remained unscathed, without a single wound.

The title of Ten Empyrean Overlords was only granted to ten people throughout the Central Plains—no, in the gangho murim. As if it wasn't just an empty title, the Evil Valley Master proved his divine status.

"Regret?"

Tiemu Minghuan snorted as if what the Evil Valley Master said was ridiculous.

He wasn't intimidated by seeing his enemy remain unharmed even after a combined attack.

"Instead of regret, I'm so proud of my past self that I want to shout it from the rooftops, Evil Valley Master."

"You are so energetic because you're young, you little brat."

Do you really think it's because I'm young?"

Tiemu Minghuan stomped hard. He imbued qi into his sword and moved vigorously as if boasting about his incredible health.

As expected of the Neidan Sword Gate.

To think that he could move to that degree even under the domain of the Hegemon Edict Art…

The Hegemon Edict Art wasn't invincible or absolute. Since it was a martial art created by humans, it was bound to have weaknesses.

Its first weakness was its range. Even if the Hegemon Edict Art held complete authority over a certain area, it wouldn't work on an opponent if they didn't walk into its range.

The second was one's qi reserves, which was especially important. Whether it was accumulated through elixirs or circulating one's qi, if the total amount of qi was too large or its purity too high, it was difficult for the Hegemon Edict Art to dominate.

The conditions were strict. The qi couldn't just exceed the opponent's—it had to be overwhelmingly greater.

In particular, wasn't the Evil Valley Master one of the Ten Empyrean Overlords, an absolute master? To overwhelm someone of that caliber with qi quality or quantity alone would require a gap of more than one sub-realm.

As long as one was in the Harmony Realm, it would be near impossible to escape the Evil Valley Master's oppression, and even if one had reached the next realm, it wasn't possible to completely shake off its influence. As for those below the Harmony Realm, that went without saying.

However, the Neidan Sword Gate Master Tiemu Minghuan was a bit special.

He was in the Harmony Realm. However, the amount of qi he possessed rivaled that of the Ten Empyrean Overlords.

The secret lay in the Neidan Sword Gate's elixirs and qi cultivation method. The level of elixir production was comparable to that of the Shaolin Temple or the Wudang Sect, and their qi cultivation method specialized in qi production.

For example, if a normal martial artist were to consume an elixir, they could only successfully absorb about seven-tenths of the qi contained within.

However, with the Neidan Sword Gate's cultivation method, one could absorb nine-tenths or even fully extract the elixir's qi.

"Seeing you try to make up for your lack of skills with elixirs really is laughable, hehe."

"Ahahaha!"

Tiemu Minghuan laughed mockingly.

"Valley Master. The speed at which you're defeating us, those you consider idiots, is slowing."

"...ah!" Ren Chaojian exclaimed, as if he too had just realized this.

"I see. That's true."

Ge Hongxi nodded in agreement.

"Even the old man is still human!"

Dan Libai smiled brightly and was convinced. The Evil Valley Master was exhausted.

It was just as Tiemu Minghuan said.

At first, the experts had been defeated in an instant, but now the pace had slowed noticeably.

While it was astounding that they couldn't defeat the Evil Valley Master despite their meticulous preparations, their efforts weren't entirely in vain. If the Evil Valley Master were in perfect condition, their heads would have rolled long ago.

Of course, even the Ten Empyrean Overlords had their limits.

Forced to face twenty elites, it was no surprise the Evil Valley Master was exhausted.

Ugh.

The Evil Valley Master neither confirmed nor denied it.

However, he muttered to himself in annoyance.

You annoying bastards.

They weren't wrong. He was getting tired.

Out of the twenty experts, four of them were Harmony Realm Masters. The Hegemon Edict Art had to compensate accordingly.

The Hegemon Edict Art's domain control required one's ability to dominate and obtain control, as well as an immense amount of qi. The more powerful people there were in the domain, the higher the requirement of qi.

That was why he wasn't able to hold out for long. He wouldn't be able to last for half an hour at this rate. At most, he would only be able to last an hour.

However, the situation wasn't completely hopeless. Except for Tiemu Minghuan, everyone else looked exhausted.

I'll finish it in one go.

He couldn't afford to be careless. The longer he stalled, the more advantageous it would become for them.

While the difference in skill meant that he wouldn't lose his life, he might end up having to give up one of his limbs. Moreover, he was also worried about an ambush from an outside force.

There seem to be seven left.

Four Harmony Realm Masters and three Transcendents.

He couldn't look down on them just because they were Transcendents. Since they were still alive, their skills had to be outstanding. They should be the best among the Transcendents.

I'll handle those trivial ones whose names I don't even know first.

There were four Harmony Realm Masters.

While they may not have had as much experience as the Evil Valley Master, they still should have had quite a bit considering their age.

It may not have been concerning if they were young brats who had only just entered the Harmony Realm, considering this was a situation where he had to deal with four experienced masters, the presence of three Transcendents was bound to be concerning.

"All will kneel before me!"

The Evil Valley Master let out a majestic roar, louder than the beastly cries of the Beast Gate. The seven remaining Evil Faction experts flinched and couldn't move.

This is the moment!

The Evil Valley Master kicked off the ground, his beard swinging as he flew through the air. He moved so fast that only an afterimage was left behind.

He began his attack from the left, next to Ren Chaojian. His target wasn't the Beast Gate Master, but the Beast Gate's Transcendent.

"Ha!"

A short shout was followed immediately by a single palm!

Moreover, it wasn't just any palm. If one looked closely, one would see that the palm was filled with a terrifying aura!

"Agh!!"

The Beast Gate's Transcendent was hit in the chest by the palm and flew backward, rolling, without even being able to counterattack.

"Ah!"

Ren Chaojian instinctively crossed his arms to block the anticipated blow.

However, the Evil Valley Master's target wasn't Ren Chaojian. He passed him and approached the Transcendents of the Twin Saber Gate and the Neidan Sword Gate, blasting each with a palm wind before following up with a fist.

Bang!

"Agk!"

While the Hegemon Edict Art was active, it limited their movements within a certain range.

The circulation of their qi slowed down, and their reflexes and senses dulled. There was nothing that they could do.

Although they shouldn't have been taken down so easily, they still fell like autumn leaves when the Evil Valley Master launched a storm of attacks.

The Evil Valley Master's eyes blazed with resolve.

Since he had dealt with the three of them, he would move to kill the bastards who started this!

"I've been waiting for this moment!"

Dan Libai moved as if he had been waiting for this very opening. Ren Chaojian, Ge Hongxi, and Tiemu Minghuan surrounded the Evil Valley Master from all sides.

They didn't give the Evil Valley Master a chance to retreat. Approaching him while risking their lives, each showing their fierce devotion.

Ren Chaojian's Beast Claw Technique, Tiger King Claw!

The king of the mountains, the tiger's claws, pounced on the Evil Valley Master.

Ge Hongxi's Twin Saber Technique, Explosive Tempest!

The storm created by the twin sabers moved to tear apart the Evil Valley Master.

Tiemu Minghuan's Neidan Sword Technique, Overflowing Ocean!

A wave of brutal qi poured down.

"ROAR!!"

As if he was ending it all, Dan Libai unleashed his Crimson Eyed Vampiric Art in full force. His eyes blazed with bloodthirst, exuding a crimson glow.

The blood he had consumed by draining people all this time had rapidly enhanced his physical abilities.

This was a power greater than the Neidan Sword Gate's prized internal strength. The power that allowed him to surpass his limits in an instant exploded like a volcano.[1]

"HA!!"

A power closer to that of a scream burst out from the Evil Valley Master's mouth. This time, he couldn't help but be nervous.

The power coming for him made his hair stand on end. In order to block what was coming, he expanded his Hegemon Edict Art to the limit and moved.

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

"Ugh!"

Ren Chaojian and Ge Hongxi, who were already exhausted, fell first. They were vomiting blood profusely, most likely from internal injuries.

However, the other two were different. Rather than being pushed back, they held on and even counterattacked.

"Huh!"

The Evil Valley Master's eyes widened in surprise..

Putting aside Dan Libai, who had gotten himself involved with demonic arts, the Evil Valley Master was amazed by Tiemu Minghuan's skills. He had never expected that the Neidan Sword Gate Master would be this powerful.

It hadn't been long since Tiemu Minghuan and the Neidan Sword Gate had begun to make a name for themselves. It was after the destruction of the Flowing Waterfall Saber Gate.

The Neidan Sword Gate's martial prowess and scale were originally quite small. It was nothing more than a small sect, let alone one qualified to join the Eight Gates of the Evil Dao.

As expected of a sect of its nature, one that required extensive amounts of cultivation resources and elixirs, it required an incredible amount of money. The amount of money a single disciple needed wasn't small and if that disciple were to go out into the murim and die suddenly, the loss would be enormous. Because of that, they had no choice but to take on a passive stance regarding battles, meaning that they didn't get involved often.

At first, the Evil Valley Master didn't think much of it. He had just assumed that someone like Tiemu Minghuan must have gained enough wealth to become an expert.

Normally, the Evil Valley Master would have questioned things, but with the Seven Swords War and the other big events within the murim, he never had the time to question deeply.

'Just how the hell…?'

Tiemu Minghuan's cultivation was allowing him to counterattack even within the domain of the overwhelming Hegemony Edict Art. That was impossible to achieve with just ordinary elixirs.

Even if the Neidan Sword Gate poured everything they had into a single person, they wouldn't have been able to obtain an elixir that could provide this level of qi even if they had the money.

If someone had tried to obtain an elixir or cultivation resources on this level, they would have been caught in his intelligence network. No, there were more than one or two suspicious points about it all.

"This is the end!"

Dan Libai's eyes glowed with desire and bloodlust. The crimson glow flowing from his eyes wrapped around his hand and created a blade.

Swish!

A piercing sound of destruction filled the air as the blood-colored blade tore through the Hegemon Edict Art's domain and created a hole.

As if he was helping Dan Libai from the very beginning, he used the Overflowing Ocean form of the Neidan Sword Technique to block Evil Valley Master's retreat.

Just as the son was about to kill his father!

Clang!

An arrow shot through the air, leaving behind a pure white beam of light, landing on the back of Dan Libai's hand.

"What kind of dog dares…?!"

Dan Libai's face turned red and blue. As he wrapped his hand in qi, the arrow wasn't able to penetrate his hand. However, the qi contained within the arrow was so strong that it disrupted his trajectory. The Evil Valley Master took advantage of the opening and attacked with a twin palm.

"Ugh!"

"Agk!"

Dan Libai and Tiemu Minghuan screamed as they were pushed back.

"An arrow?"

Evil Valley Master's eyes also flashed with surprise.

"Which bastard is it?!"

It was a line that would often appear only in heroic tales.

However, the owner of the arrow liked the way it sounded.

"A passing…"

Thud, thud.

In front of the broken gate, a man holding a bow walked in.

"You're… the Xia Wu Sect…?"

Dan Libai was surprised to see Zhou Xuchuan's disguised face.

"Swordsman."

Zhou Xuchuan smiled coldly as he nocked an arrow on his bow.

'Swordsman?'

Dan Libai was confused. To think the man in front of him just introduced himself as a swordsman? He was wondering what sort of nonsense the man was talking about when Tiemu Minghuan remembered who he was and called out his name.

"The Phantom Bow Swordsman!"

"W-what?"

Dan Libai, who had been wondering why some worthless coward from the Black Hand had appeared here, was surprised to hear his title.

The Evil Valley Master was no different. He had searched far and wide, hoping to persuade the man now before him. Despite finding no trace for so long, the man had suddenly appeared here.

"You take care of educating your son, Evil Valley Master."

Zhou Xuchuan's gaze turned to the Evil Valley Master, then to Tiemu Minghuan standing next to him.

"You. You're that man with a veil from before, right?"

Tiemu Minghuan's pupils shook.

1. Ehehehe Volcano. ☜