BOOM—!

Another deafening explosion.

A terrifying force, far exceeding his imagination and as powerful as a flash flood or a tsunami, surged through the blade of his sword.

Gao Yuanzhao’s expression changed drastically. An excruciating pain shot through his arm, feeling as if it would tear apart. The webbing between his thumb and forefinger split open, dripping blood. He was sent flying backward, completely out of control, as the Qi and blood in his body churned like a raging sea, his organs feeling as though they had been violently rearranged.

Chen Sheng’s gaze was bone-chillingly cold. Without a moment’s hesitation, his feet moved with a profound Body Technique, and he stuck to the flying Gao Yuanzhao like a shadow.

A deep, tyrannical aura erupted from his body. He clenched his right fist, and the dark-gold Nine Nether Yin Fiend swirled around it like dragons and snakes, carrying a murderous air as it shot straight for Gao Yuanzhao’s heart.

"Earth Fiend Realm?!"

Gao Yuanzhao finally sensed it clearly—an Evil Qi fluctuation that was not the least bit weaker than his own, and was in fact even purer, more vast, and more terrifying. His eyes instantly filled with boundless shock and disbelief.

This aura was clearly that of an Earth Fiend.

Realizing this, he hastily mustered a mouthful of Evil Qi. His left palm glowed with a gray light as he thrust it out in a rush, attempting to block the fatal punch.

BANG!!

The two distinctly different types of Evil Qi collided violently.

But to Gao Yuanzhao’s despair, his Gold-Splitting Evil Qi, famed for its sharpness, was as fragile as if it had met its nemesis before Chen Sheng’s Evil Qi. The moment they made contact, it rapidly dissipated like melting ice.

SPURT—!

The terrifying Fist Force, mixed with bone-chilling Yin Fiend, penetrated his body. Gao Yuanzhao felt as if he’d been struck by lightning. He violently spat out a mouthful of blood as the aura around him deflated like a punctured ball, his face turning ashen white as paper.

"Elder Liu, save me!"

Gao Yuanzhao let out a desperate roar. All thoughts of revenge were now cast aside, leaving only the most primal instinct for survival.

However, the only response was Chen Sheng’s faster, fiercer, and more merciless assault.

The light of his saber flashed again, silent and sudden, like a lightning bolt of death streaking through the dark night.

CRACK—BANG!

The gray iron longsword in Gao Yuanzhao’s hand, which he treasured as his own life, first became covered in cracks, then shattered inch by inch.

The residual Sword Qi viciously struck his already crumbling Protective True Qi, completely shattering it. He was sent flying again like a kite with a snapped string, a tragic arc of blood trailing him through the air.

Before he even hit the ground, a hand covered in a faint Golden Light, steady as a rock, shot out and accurately seized him by the throat.

A surge of bone-chilling Nine Nether Yin Fiend, carrying the deathly aura of annihilation, instantly flooded his body. Like a violent, icy tide, it destroyed all his remaining Evil Qi and the Meridians throughout his body.

"Ghk... ghk..."

Held high in the air by his throat in Chen Sheng’s one-handed grip, Gao Yuanzhao’s feet kicked feebly at the air, his eyes filled with a dazed and uncomprehending shock.

It had all happened too fast!

From the moment Gao Yuanzhao launched his surprise attack to the moment Chen Sheng had him by the throat like a helpless chick, his life in another’s hands, only three short breaths had passed.

A strange, deathly silence fell over the area around the tea stall.

Everyone was frozen as if by a spell, staring dumbfounded at the sudden reversal. Their minds went blank, almost unable to process what they were seeing.

Whether it was Xu Shenzhi and the other men of the Jingwu Bureau who had sworn to protect their leader to the death, or Elder Liu and the four Chaoyuan Realm masters who had been certain of victory, all stood frozen in place, their faces etched with disbelief.

In the air, the hem of Chen Sheng’s official robes whipped about in the turbulent currents of Qi. The vast, immense pressure of his Earth Fiend aura, infused with the essence of the Nine Nether, was no longer concealed in the slightest.

Lowering his head slightly, Chen Sheng looked down at the ashen-faced, barely breathing Gao Yuanzhao in his grasp, the corners of his mouth curling into a cold, cruel smirk.

"Make me pay with blood?"

"With your pathetic level of skill? I hear you have a treasured only son? Good. It won’t be long before he joins you down below.

Don’t worry, your Gao Family will be reunited—not a single one will be missing."

"Earth... Earth Fiend... You... you’re actually..."

Gao Yuanzhao stared intently at Chen Sheng’s face, just inches away, a strange gurgling sound escaping his throat. At this moment, his heart was filled with endless regret, venomous hatred, and utter despair.

CRACK.

Chen Sheng gave him no chance to say another word. His fingers tightened abruptly. With a crisp snap of breaking bone, Gao Yuanzhao’s head lolled lifelessly to the side, the last spark of light in his eyes extinguishing like a candle in the wind.

The pure, tyrannical Nine Nether Yin Fiend swept through him in an instant, completely erasing all traces of his life force.

He casually tossed Gao Yuanzhao’s still-warm corpse to the ground like a sack of garbage.

Chen Sheng slowly raised his head. His gaze first swept over his subordinates, who were still reeling in shock behind him, before finally locking onto Elder Liu, whose face was as pale as a ghost and who was turning to flee.

"As for your last words and unfulfilled wishes, you can take your time figuring those out on your own."

"But for now... kill them all!"

"Yes, sir!!"

After a brief, suffocating silence, a roar erupted like an avalanche or a tsunami.

Chen Sheng’s terrifying power—the way he had effortlessly crushed an Earth Fiend as if he were a god descending to the battlefield—was like a spark on dry tinder, instantly igniting the passion and fighting spirit of every Jingwu Guard to its absolute peak.

Xu Shenzhi, Li Huai Sheng, Yan Ming, and the others, their eyes bloodshot, roared as they charged toward the four Chaoyuan Realm masters.

Even Zhao Changqiu and Lu Cheng, who had hesitated earlier, now threw themselves into the fray without a second thought, driven by the ecstatic joy of this reversal of fortune and their awe of Chen Sheng.

As for Elder Liu, the moment Chen Sheng’s cold gaze swept over him, his heart and courage shattered.

With almost no thought, the Evil Qi he had painstakingly cultivated for many years began to burn wildly at an unprecedented rate. His body transformed into a blurry streak of light as he fled for his life, desperately trying to escape into the dense forest in the distance.