This burst of sword qi was extremely powerful; Ma Minghai’s attacks appeared to be nothing in comparison.
Alarmed, Zhang Xuan assessed the situation before him warily.
Even with his strength, if not for his sharp instincts prompting him to escape in advance, he could have been sliced in two by that burst of sword qi.
Just who in the world was in the wooden hut?
Jiya!
The door opened, and a figure slowly walked out.
Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows shot up. The Boss of the underground black market?
It was none other than the person whom he had a hundred Saint low-tier sabers pummel back in the Ring of Death!
But why would he appear here?
The other party had mostly recovered from the wounds he had suffered back in the encounter with Zhang Xuan, but from the glaring scars that crawled all over his body like innumerable centipedes, one could still fathom the tragic plight he had once been in.
The Boss of the black market, Ji Lingfeng, glared at Zhang Xuan with deep hatred in his eyes. “Zhang Xuan, you have manipulated my rules, humiliated me, and snatched my wealth. For that, I shall personally execute you today!”
While the black market was known to be a lawless zone, the truth was that it was only subjected to a different set of laws, set solely by the Boss of the black market. Regardless of whether one was a master teacher or a combat master, one would have to obey the new set of rules in there. Yet, this fellow actually disregarded the rules in place and raised a huge commotion, severely injuring him even!
If he let the other party go, how could he re-establish his dominance and authority in the black market in the future?
“You knew that I would be here for the secondary selection, so you lay in wait for me?” Zhang Xuan asked with narrowed eyes.
The only ones who should have known that the secondary selection would be held in the Sword Lagoon were Zhao Xingmo and Pavilion Master Yue. For the other party to be lying in wait for him here, could it have been that the other party already knew of his whereabouts in advance?
Even with the vast intelligence network of the black market, it should have been impossible for them to uncover the location of the secondary selection on such short notice. So, for the other party to have been hiding within the formation all this while, waiting to launch an assault on him, that could only mean one thing.
“I’ll tell you after you go to hell!” Ji Lingfeng bellowed angrily as he flung his sword forcefully, sending another burst of sword qi toward Zhang Xuan.
His sword was only three chi1 long, but it emanated bone-chilling coldness. Even before the sharp burst of sword qi could arrive, an eerie sound reminiscent of the resentful mutterings of the departed echoed in the air, placing those who heard it in a distraught state.
Feeling a sudden bout of dizziness striking his head, Zhang Xuan’s eyes narrowed. A demonic tune!
All along, he had been using this trick against others. He did not expect others to use it against him, and in a moment of carelessness, he was placed into an unnatural state of mind.
Even so, with his Soul Depth of 25.1, a level comparable to 8-star high-tier master teachers, he was able to shake out of his unnatural state in just an instant. However, as soon as his unnatural state was dispelled, the sword qi was already right before his face. The sharp gale that rose from the movement left a slightly piercing sensation on his skin, leaving him feeling as if a blade was slowly sinking into his body.
Hu!
Zhang Xuan immediately flitted away from the spot, appearing a hundred meters away in an instant.
Unbounded Voyager!
After learning the second dan of Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel, his comprehension of the Unbounded Voyager had deepened, allowing him to move at greater speed. By driving his strength to its limit, he was capable of making near-instantaneous movements in desperate situations.
At this point, Zhang Xuan realized that his back was completely drenched with sweat.
It was fortunate that he had reacted with time, or else that attack would have gouged out a huge hole in his chest.
“Do you think that I will allow you to flee that easily?” Sneering coldly, Ji Lingfeng sent another burst of sword qi toward Zhang Xuan.
The sword qi spanned over two hundred meters, covering the entire area.
“That sword… Leaving Aperture realm pinnacle?” Zhang Xuan was astonished.
It was no wonder the other party still dared to provoke him despite having suffered a tragic defeat. It turned out that he had a top-notch Saint intermediate-tier sword that wielded strength comparable to a Leaving Aperture realm pinnacle expert.
An attack from a sword of that caliber was far more fearsome than that of the Golden Origin Cauldron!
Wielding such a sword, Ji Lingfeng would be able to rival even Pavilion Master Yue in a match.
Despite seeing through the other party’s strength, Zhang Xuan did not panic. Instead, he shook his head. “If you had drawn that sword in the battle against me yesterday, I might have been put in a spot, but now…”
The only reason it seemed like the situation was disadvantageous to him previously was because he had been caught off guard. Once he had managed to grasp the situation, with his strength, an opponent such as Ji Lingfeng was simply too lacking!
With a flick of his wrist, Zhang Xuan raised his palm, and a massive palm print materialized before him. “Heavenly Demon Great Sorrow Palm!”
Boom!
As soon as the sword qi collided with the palm print, it felt as if several tons of gunpowder had exploded simultaneously, and an intense shockwave blasted into the surroundings.
It was fortunate that the area was protected by a grade-8 formation, or else the stone wall would have been torn down by the sheer might of the shockwave itself.
Deng deng deng deng!
Retreating consecutively, Ji Lingfeng felt his blood flow running erratic, and his eyes turned crimson.
Just a single night, and that fellow had already grown much more powerful than before!
If he allowed the other party to continue growing at this pace, it would not be long before he was completely outmatched!
“I told you that you would die by my hands tonight, and I’ll do everything to ensure it,” Ji Lingfeng spat menacingly as he took out a pill and swallowed it.
In an instant, his aura began surging furiously.
Before long, he managed to overcome his bottleneck, reaching Half-Grand Dominion realm.
“That’s… a grade-8 Insane Demon Breakthrough Pill?” Zhang Xuan’s face turned grim.
The Insane Demon Breakthrough Pill was something reminiscent of a stimulant. After consumption, it had the effect of allowing a cultivator to temporarily surpass their limits. However, once the effect was over, not only would the cultivator suffer a steep decline in their cultivation, their body could suffer permanent damage as well.
To go this far just to kill him… the Boss of the black market sure was a tenacious fellow!
But then again, there was no more backing out for the Boss. Just the crime of assaulting a 7-star master teacher was sufficient to bring the wrath of the Master Teacher Pavilion upon him. If the Boss allowed him to escape alive, there was no doubt that his days would be numbered!
Thus, no matter the cost, since he had already made a move, he would have to see the deed through to the end.
“Strike not when at the bank of the river but when in the midst of crossing it!1”
With a cold harrumph, Zhang Xuan waved his hand, and more than a hundred puppets appeared before him.
Since the Boss of the black market had already made a move to kill him, he was not so magnanimous as to grant the other party the luxury of time to achieve his breakthrough before making a move.
It would take some time for the other party to assimilate the medicinal properties of the pill, so this was the ideal moment to knock him down!
In any case, the Myriad Anthive Queen had already gained full control over all the Myriad Ants within the grade-8 formation, so Zhao Xingmo and the others would not be able to notice a thing. Thus, there was no need for him to hesitate at all.
Huala!
More than a hundred puppets immediately charged straight for Ji Lingfeng.
When their might was combined together, they could destroy even a Half-Grand Dominion realm expert like Pavilion Master Yue easily. While the Boss was no weakling, there was no way he would be able to withstand their onslaught.
“Did you think that I wouldn’t be guarded against those toys of yours?” Sneering coldly, Ji Lingfeng flicked his finger and tossed a formation plate into the air.
While spinning in the air, a burst of mist suddenly diffused from the formation plate, shrouding the puppets within it.
Zhang Xuan was taken aback for a moment before his eyes slowly lit up. This is a… quasi 8-star formation plate? It seems like that fellow does have quite a few good items on him.
As expected of the Boss of the black market, the wealth he had accumulated over the years was truly nothing to scoff at!
Putting aside how valuable the Insane Demon Breakthrough Pill was, just the quasi grade-8 formation plate was bound to be worth a huge sum, at least a thousand concentrated high-tier spirit stones!
The activation of a formation plate of this tier could trap even an expert of Pavilion Master Yue’s caliber for a short period of time. That explained why the other party was so confident as to swallow the pill right in front of his eyes!
In the first place, the spirits within puppets were significantly weaker compared to humans’ spirits, thus making it harder for them to perceive their surroundings once their senses were hindered by the formation. With this single move, the other party had effectively incapacitated all his puppets!
Admittedly, the method used was not too bad. If it had been any other 7-star pinnacle formation master, he would have been completely helpless before this situation. However, to Zhang Xuan, such a thing could not even be called a problem!
Muttering ‘flaws’ in his mind, the Library of Heaven’s Path jolted, and a book materialized in it. Flipping it open, the flaws regarding the formation plate appeared in Zhang Xuan’s head.
“Go!” Zhang Xuan commanded with a raise of his hand.
Hu la!
The next moment, more than a hundred sabers charged into the mist, and amid sounds of ‘ding ding dang dang’, as if slicing through certain structures, the mist swiftly receded before dissipating altogether.
Formation broken!
“Return!” With a flick of his finger, a saber swiftly brought the formation plate over to Zhang Xuan’s hands, and with a few taps on it, Zhang Xuan managed to make it his.
Hong long!
As swift as Zhang Xuan had moved, he was still inevitably delayed for several breaths. Within this period of time, Ji Lingfeng had already successfully assimilated the Insane Demon Breakthrough Pill into his body, and his cultivation had stabilized as well.
At this point, Ji Lingfeng’s aura had grown frighteningly fearsome, as if he had become a feral beast that would tear his claws through others.
It seems like this Boss of the black market has fought quite a few ring matches himself, Zhang Xuan thought warily.
From the killing intent that Ji Lingfeng was exuding, it could be seen that he had participated in quite a few life-and-death matches in his time as well, killing many of his opponents.
Otherwise, there was no way he could have emanated such an overwhelming aura of savagery.
It was no wonder the other party dared make a move on him despite knowing his identity. It seemed like the blood he had on his hands had already dulled his deference for life and the Master Teacher Pavilion.
“To be able to decipher even a quasi grade-8 formation so swiftly, you are indeed a formidable opponent. However, no matter what kind of tricks you have up your sleeves, there’s no way you will be getting out of here alive!” Ji Lingfeng gritted his teeth furiously.
Letting loose a feral wary cry, he raised his sword and hacked it down furiously, releasing an overwhelming burst of sword qi amid powerful winds.
Si la!
Ji Lingfeng’s strength as a Half-Grand Dominion realm cultivator complemented with a Leaving Aperture realm pinnacle sword was no joke. It felt as if it would tear through space and forcefully crush one into innumerable pieces.
Just this single move was sufficient to show that Ji Lingfeng’s current strength was already far beyond that of Pavilion Master Yue!
Even though Pavilion Master Yue was the head of a Master Teacher Pavilion, due to his lofty position, he was lacking in battle experience. There was no way he could compare to the Boss of the black market, who had undergone multiple life-and-death battles and killed innumerable master teachers!
Without such battle experience, it was inevitable that Pavilion Master Yue’s moves would be lacking in decisive sharpness and valiance, and those two factors had lowered his fighting prowess significantly.
This will be difficult.
A grim expression finally appeared on Zhang Xuan’s face.
“You won’t be useful against an opponent of this caliber… Return!” With a wave of his hand, Zhang Xuan collected the puppets and sabers back into his storage ring.
These puppets were only at Leaving Aperture realm intermediate stage and advanced stage. There was no way they would be able to stand against an opponent like Ji Lingfeng. They would only be crippled if they were kept on the field.
The same went for the sabers.
“Release!” After storing the clones and sabers, Zhang Xuan tapped the area before him, and a light sphere with a radius of roughly one meter covered him.
2-dan Heavenly Art of Dimension Unravel, Traverse!
Sensing the danger that he was in, Zhang Xuan had decided to use his strongest move!
