Miao Zhicheng felt a violent tremor run up his arm. The Power from Chen Qing’s spear was as immense as a mountain and as fierce as a thunderclap, jarring him so badly his qi and blood churned. He was forced back again and again, each step gouging a deep crater in the earth.

"Impossible!"

Miao Zhicheng fiercely bit the tip of his tongue and spat a mouthful of Essence Blood onto his Curved Saber. The blade’s hum instantly became shrill and piercing as a far more sinister, violent aura burst forth!

"SHRIEEEK—!"

The Soul Shriek erupted once more! This time, however, it wasn’t formless or intangible. It was accompanied by a visible, dark golden Sound Wave that rushed madly toward Chen Qing like ripples on water.

Simultaneously, his Saber Momentum shifted. Man and saber moved as one as the Curved Saber carved an incredibly strange, dark arc, silently slicing toward Chen Qing’s neck!

Golden Soul Shattering! Netherworld Break!

This technique, which integrated Sound Attack Overawes the Gods, was his true all-or-nothing move. Its power was immense, but it placed an extremely heavy burden on his body!

Chen Qing’s gaze hardened. He pushed his Eight Extremes Vajra Body to its absolute limit. The qi and blood coursing through him roared like great beasts as he forcibly withstood the Sound Wave.

The Cloud-Coiling Spear spun, its shaft lashing out like a black dragon’s tail, intercepting the dark gleam of the saber with perfect precision!

CLANG—!!!

A deafening explosion of sound erupted once more!

Miao Zhicheng felt an irresistible force surge through his blade. The webbing of his hand split wide open, dripping blood, and the Curved Saber was nearly torn from his grasp!

He used the momentum to leap backward, the True Qi inside him thrown into chaos. His face instantly turned deathly pale.

’Flee! I have to flee!’

’This man is too strong to fight head-on!’

The moment the thought surfaced, all of Miao Zhicheng’s fighting spirit vanished. He shot backward, simultaneously flinging out several dark, foul-smelling pellets—the Poisonous Demon Thunder, a secret weapon of Golden Sand Castle!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

A poisonous mist instantly billowed out, obscuring all vision, the highly corrosive gas hissing as it spread.

Miao Zhicheng seized the opportunity, pouring what little True Qi he had left into his legs. He executed his Qinggong and fled for his life deep into the dense forest.

However, just as he burst out of the poison mist, his vision blurred. Chen Qing’s figure had appeared in front and to his side, as inescapable as a shadow.

Chen Qing’s left hand shot out like lightning. Pinched between his fingers were several needles as fine as hairs, glinting with a faint, blue starlight—the Nine Luminaries Starlight Needle!

Floating Light and Shadow Hand!

The technique was profound and impossibly fast. All that could be seen was a flicker of faint blue starlight, gone in an instant!

Miao Zhicheng felt a sharp, numbing pain in several major acupoints across his body, as if he had been pierced by needles of extreme Cold Ice!

His rampaging True Qi instantly dispersed, and the speed he had just mustered plummeted!

Utter terror flashed in his eyes. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Chen Qing’s eyes were ice-cold. Without the slightest pause, the Cloud-Coiling Spear in his hand silently pierced through Miao Zhicheng’s throat.

Miao Zhicheng’s body went rigid. The light in his eyes swiftly faded, then vanished completely.

’Just passing by?’

With a flick of his wrist, Chen Qing flung the corpse from the tip of his spear. He stared coldly at Miao Zhicheng’s body on the ground. "That gets you killed all the same!"

’Miao Zhicheng just happened to be "passing by" this very spot?’

’There’s no such thing as that kind of coincidence!’

’The auction was at its climax, with everyone fighting fiercely over the Cangming Shuangyao. If he wasn’t plotting something, why would he show up on this deserted back road at this exact moment?’

’He must have been following me. When he realized the situation wasn’t what he expected, he immediately changed his story.’

Chen Qing moved as swiftly as the wind, bending down to quickly search the still-warm corpses.

Silver notes, Elixirs, a few scattered gold leaves... he tucked them all away.

As for the Weapons and Inner Armor clearly marked with a Sect’s insignia, he didn’t take a single piece.

Those items were hot potatoes; keeping them would only bring trouble.

He took out a small vial of specially made Corpse-Dissolving Powder and carefully poured it over the bodies.

Pungent white smoke rose with a strange SIZZLING sound. Flesh and bone rapidly dissolved, along with the bloodstains on the ground. In a matter of moments, all that remained were a few patches of slightly darker, scorched earth.

Having done all this, Chen Qing’s figure flickered. Like a wisp of smoke, he darted into the dense forest beside the road and sped off toward Yunlin Prefecture.

....

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