Sweep

Lie Tianxiong's foundation had already been damaged from the previous sneak attack. Eager for success, he was now struck by the shockwaves, causing his vital blood and qi to surge wildly. Like a kite with a broken string, he was sent flying backward.

With a dull thud, Lie Tianxiong smashed heavily onto the ground. The elder's hat he had just put on not long ago flew off his head, spun in the air, and landed in a nearby pile of spirit herbs.

With this, the two swollen bumps on the back of his head were completely exposed to everyone's eyes.

The left one was bruised green, and the right one was a deep purple. They bulged high, looking like two small lanterns resting on the back of his head, exceptionally glaring under the sunlight.

The surroundings instantly fell silent for half a second, followed immediately by the rising and falling sounds of stifled laughter.

"Wh-what is that? Why does Palace Master Lie have two 'tumors' growing on the back of his head?"

A rogue cultivator couldn't hold back and muttered in a low voice to his companion. His eyes, however, were fixed straight on those two swollen bumps, the corners of his mouth almost stretching to his ears.

"It's probably from getting beaten up earlier! Look at the color, all black and blue. Just looking at it hurts!"

The person next to him quickly chimed in, his eyes full of the excitement of watching a good show.

Even the elder charging at the very front for the Blood Soul Sect paused for a moment. His eyes couldn't help but glance at the back of Lie Tianxiong's head, nearly getting his arm slashed by Fang Hanyu's sword in the process.

Xue Wushang of the Blood Soul Sect also raised an eyebrow, a trace of mockery flashing in his eyes. Was this Palace Master of the Burning Heaven Palace just here to be a laughingstock?

"Palace Master! Your hat! Your head!"

The First Elder and Second Elder rushed over in a panic. One scrambled to pick up the hat, while the other carefully helped him up.

Looking at Lie Tianxiong's two prominent bumps, the Second Elder stifled his laughter so hard his shoulders trembled, yet he still had to force a look of deep concern.

"Palace Master, are you alright? I told you to wait a bit longer and not be so hasty..."

Helped into a sitting position, Lie Tianxiong reached back to touch the back of his head. The moment his hand brushed against the swollen bumps, he grimaced in pain, tears nearly bursting from his eyes.

Catching a glimpse of the suppressed amusement in the eyes of the surrounding crowd, his chest tightened with anger. Just as he was about to roar, "What are you laughing at?!", he suddenly spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood, dyeing the spirit herbs in front of him red.

He clutched his chest, the bumps on the back of his head trembling along with him. He looked like the very picture of someone strong on the outside but weak on the inside. Even the fierce and ruthless aura he had earlier had mostly dissipated, leaving only the sheer embarrassment of losing face in public. He wished he could find a hole in the ground to hide in.

If he had known he would lose so much face, he would have just listened to the advice and stayed put quietly!

Right at this moment, from the rear of the Burning Heaven Palace's formation, three black-robed figures suddenly made their move.

The leading black-robed elder had fiery spiritual energy condensed around him without being released, yet it exuded a heart-palpitating sense of oppression. This was precisely the hidden trump card Lie Tianxiong had concealed earlier.

These three King Realm elders, who had cultivated forbidden techniques, now erupted with the aura of the peak of the Celestial Realm.

"Attack!"

The leading elder coldly shouted. The other two nodded simultaneously. The fiery spiritual energy around the three of them surged wildly, transforming into three streaks of crimson light that lunged straight at Xiao Ruobai!

The aura of these three was even more tyrannical than Lie Tianxiong's. Their fiery spiritual energy was laced with a trace of bizarre black light, clearly a special power born from cultivating forbidden techniques. The moment they struck, the surrounding air became so scorching hot that it distorted.

As for the experts from the other sects, although they all stared at Xiao Ruobai and the Heaven Reaching Tower with burning gazes, their feet remained rooted in place. Everyone was waiting for Yun Canghai to make a move.

As the leader of the seven great sects of Xuan Province, the Myriad Law Pavilion's attitude often determined the choices of the other sects.

At this moment, Yun Canghai was standing at the very front of the formation, gently twirling a jade ruyi in his hand. Although his eyes were full of solemnity, he showed absolutely no intention of taking action.

He considered himself noble and aloof, always disdaining to associate with demonic cults, and even less willing to earn the reputation of joining forces with demonic cults to rob a legacy.

Furthermore, he wanted to use the hands of the Demon Heaven Sect, Blood Soul Sect, and Burning Heaven Palace to probe the true depths of Xiao Ruobai and his companion. After all, someone who could easily obtain the legacy of the Heaven Reaching Tower could not possibly only possess this superficial level of strength.

In the center of the battlefield, golden light and fiery glows, sword qi and blood shadows intertwined madly. The sounds of their collisions shook the spiritual mist of the secret realm until it trembled.

Xiao Ruobai swept his long halberd horizontally. With only mid-stage Grotto-Heaven Realm spiritual energy, he forcefully blocked the combined attack of the three elders.

The golden halberd light cleaved against the fiery blades. Not only was it not suppressed, but the impact also left the elders' arms numb.

Fang Hanyu, on the other hand, wielded his sword with agile grace. The pale green sword light shuttled back and forth like a phantom. Xue Wushang's proud blood shadow technique retreated step by step under his sword, and even Mo Luo's demonic qi was torn open by the sword qi, revealing gash after gash.

Up to this point, neither of them had utilized the power of their physiques from beginning to end. Xiao Ruobai's War God Physique remained dormant; he relied solely on his spiritual energy and halberd techniques to contend with the three elders.

Fang Hanyu's Chaos Sword Physique also did not show its edge; he suppressed Xue Wushang relying entirely on his sword moves and sword qi.

This scene made the onlookers completely forget to breathe. Their previous laughter and discussions were entirely replaced by shock. In the entire core area of the secret realm, only the roar of battle and the sounds of people gasping in cold air remained.

"My heavens... what exactly is the background of these two?"

A rogue cultivator gripped the formation-breaking awl in his hand tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force, and his voice trembled.

"Mid-stage Grotto-Heaven Realm! Yet their opponents are Mo Luo, Xue Wushang, and three elders of the Burning Heaven Pavilion—five peak Celestial Realm powerhouses!

"Crossing more than an entire major realm, and they can actually fight without falling into a disadvantage? The key is... it seems they haven't even gone all out yet!"

These words were like a stone tossed into a calm lake, instantly stirring up a thousand ripples.

"Yeah! This combat power is way too absurd!"

The cultivators nearby hastily agreed, their eyes fixed dead on the battlefield, deeply afraid of missing a single detail.

"Could they be disciples from the Holy Lands of the Central Domain? Only a Holy Land could cultivate such monstrous figures!"

"Holy Land disciples?"

Someone hesitated and shook their head.

"I once had the fortune to see an inheritor of a Holy Land. Although they were formidable, they weren't this ferocious! Look at that one wielding the halberd—he took a combined attack from three people head-on without taking half a step back!"

Yun Canghai's hand gripping the jade ruyi tightened slightly, the solemnity in his eyes almost overflowing.

He stared at the halberd-wielding figure in the battlefield, then looked at the freely weaving swordsman. After a moment of silence, he slowly shook his head. His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears.

"I'm afraid that even a Holy Land would be hard-pressed to produce such figures."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire venue fell dead silent.

Even a Holy Land couldn't cultivate them? Then who exactly were these two?

Standing among the ranks of the Qingxuan Sect, Shi Wanshan listened to the surrounding discussions, the corners of his mouth uncontrollably curling up into a quiet smile.

He secretly glanced at Li Xuanfeng beside him, and seeing his equally excited expression, he sent a voice transmission with a laugh, "Let them guess! Our Qingxuan Sect's disciples are just this amazing!"

Li Xuanfeng nodded repeatedly, his eyes full of shared pride—just a moment ago, he had been worried that the two wouldn't be able to hold on, but now it seemed he had overthought things.

In the battlefield, Xiao Ruobai seemed to have heard the surrounding chatter. His long halberd suddenly erupted with an even stronger golden light, forcefully driving the leading black-robed elder back three steps.

He looked up and swept his gaze over the spectating crowd, a faint smile curving his lips, and shouted to Fang Hanyu, "Junior Brother, let's finish this quickly. Don't drag it out with them!"

Fang Hanyu understood his intent. The Flowing Frost Sword's light surged, and its chaotic sword qi condensed into a ten-foot-long phantom sword, slashing straight toward Xue Wushang with bone-piercing coldness.

Xue Wushang hastily condensed a blood shield, but it was instantly shattered by the sword shadow, and the sheer force of the impact sent him flying backward.