“Alright!” Finally, the Martial Venerable elder nodded. Though irritated, these people’s lives were insignificant— the Junzang map and key were what mattered most.
Lin Xiao glanced at Hu Yue, sending a discreet message via spiritual transmission, then swept his gaze over Qingyun and the others, saying, “You lot go first!”
The group exchanged odd looks, glancing at one another, then without further ado, they dispersed in all directions.
They all knew the Junzang map and key in Lin Xiao’s hands were fake.
“Be careful!” Qingyun warned before retreating swiftly, Hu Yue following suit.
Once the group had departed, one of the Martial King elders, growing impatient, spoke up, “Now, is that enough?”
“Wait a moment,” Lin Xiao replied, remarkably calm, his demeanour growing steadier by the second.
“Hmph, let’s see how calm you stay soon!” the Martial King elder sneered inwardly, his resentment towards Lin Xiao deepening.
The onlookers couldn’t help but marvel silently. This youth was impressively composed, though they were curious to see how his fate would unfold.
“I wonder if this lad is wise or foolish— provoking Martial Kings and a Martial Venerable like this can’t end well,” someone mused to themselves.
After another hundred breaths, even the Martial Venerable elder grew restless, his voice low and stern, “Now, can you hand it over?”
“Alright!” Lin Xiao flashed a smile, then tossed the box forward, shouting, “Here you go!”
At the same time, he pointed a finger ahead. A tiny speck of light shot from his fingertip, radiating an aura of boundless ferocity and chaos. The speck seemed imbued with overwhelming power, as if it could shatter the heavens and obliterate the earth, making the entire world tremble.
In that instant, everyone’s hearts quaked involuntarily, gripped by dread.
The Martial Venerable elder and the four Martial Kings were stunned— they all sensed a genuine threat.
They couldn’t fathom how a Heavenly Martial youth could unleash such an attack.
Even at their level, they instinctively wanted to retreat.
“Trouble!” The Martial Venerable elder’s expression shifted drastically. He lunged forward to seize the box, his body surging with the strongest protective primal energy.
The other four Martial Kings pulled back, but the speck of light was too fast, striking the elder’s protective barrier in a flash.
“Boom!”
A deafening explosion shook the earth. The speck detonated, erupting into a blinding light brighter than the sun. A torrent of energy surged outward, carrying terrifying fluctuations that swept across all directions.
The heavens and earth were consumed by light and power, ravaged in its wake.
Before this, Lin Xiao had already bolted outward at top speed.
He was certain at least one of the four Martial Kings would be gravely injured. The Martial Venerable, desperate to protect the box, would likely be forced to cough up blood.
After all, this was his trump card— the Devouring Heaven Spirit-Gathering Finger— a fusion of his eighth-rank Heavenly Martial primal energy and spiritual energy.
Still, truly crippling a Martial Venerable was beyond him. Amid the explosion, he heard the elder’s furious roar.
But by then, Hu Yue had stayed in place, grabbing him and concealing his body from sight. She activated her Ten Shadows Flash, sending ten bursts of aura scattering in all directions.
Even as the thunderously enraged Martial Venerable charged forward, he couldn’t pinpoint their location.
“Brat, I’ll tear you to pieces!” the elder’s roar thundered, his fearsome aura sweeping everywhere.
The other four Martial Kings were livid, practically spitting blood. They’d been injured by a mere junior— and not lightly either. One second-rank Martial King was on the brink of death, an outcome they could scarcely believe or accept.
The surrounding crowd suffered heavy casualties too, but Lin Xiao couldn’t concern himself with that— he was already fleeing into the distance.
Had these people not been driven by greed, they wouldn’t have rushed to spectate so quickly. Their deaths weren’t entirely undeserved.
Qingyun and the Tianmen disciples who’d left earlier were stunned. They hadn’t realised Lin Xiao had held back such a move during his clashes with Peng Du and Master Yuling. To cause such a commotion was simply staggering.
This Lin Xiao was no pushover— he’d even dared to trick a Martial Venerable.
Dozens of miles away, Lin Xiao and Hu Yue’s figures reappeared. Given the five’s condition, they wouldn’t pursue far— if at all.
Even if the Martial Venerable was unscathed, the Martial Kings were surely in trouble and would need immediate aid.
And even if they gave chase, they wouldn’t know which way to look.
Searching in all directions would give Lin Xiao and Hu Yue ample time to get far ahead.
At worst, Hu Yue could use her stealth mirage again. With her improved strength, she could now sustain it longer.
Thus, Lin Xiao wasn’t worried about pursuit.
As for Qingyun and the other Tianmen disciples, he wasn’t concerned either. They’d scattered in all directions and wouldn’t easily fall into the five’s hands.
The other Tianmen team— led by Wang Long to rescue Qingyun’s father from the original Dragon-Tiger Sect— hadn’t been present. With Wang Long’s shrewdness, he wouldn’t let himself stumble into danger.
By now, he’d likely rescued Qingyun’s father.
However, the others wouldn’t have the fortune to seek the Junzang. At this point, the Tianmen forces had no choice but to split up.
Lin Xiao’s next plan was to find the Junzang.
“Let’s check the Junzang’s location!” Lin Xiao thought gleefully. But just as he prepared to retrieve the map, an ominous sense of danger crept into his heart.
He immediately stopped himself from taking it out.
“Whoosh!” “Whoosh!” “Whoosh!”…
From ahead, powerful auras approached. Moments later, four figures appeared in Lin Xiao’s sight, flying on primal energy wings with the same hurried look as the previous five— the Martial Venerable and Martial Kings who’d tried to seize the prize.
Their auras were similar: one Martial Venerable and three Martial Kings, all elders. The leading Martial Venerable had a head full of white hair.
“Someone’s there?” As they flew closer, the Martial Venerable sharply detected Lin Xiao and Hu Yue on the ground. He halted, asking, “Is Blackwind City ahead?”
The other three Martial Kings stopped too, eyeing Lin Xiao and Hu Yue with unfriendly gazes.
Lin Xiao’s brows furrowed. Another Martial Venerable— and they’d run right into them.
But his mind raced, and he quickly adopted a look of abject fear, saying, “Senior, ahead is indeed Blackwind City. The Junzang map and key appeared there, snatched by a Martial Venerable and four Martial Kings. To suppress the news, they’re slaughtering everyone!”
