At this moment, Chu Feng wasn’t pretending.
Even the golden flames around him weren’t dispelled by his will; their time limit had expired, and they faded on their own.
Now, Chu Feng was suffering from the backlash.
Yet, despite this, he forced himself to stay conscious.
With a threatening gaze, he stared at Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted.
“You should honor your promise,” Chu Feng said to him.
“Rest assured, I, Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted, am a man of my word,” Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted replied. “Since I said I’d let them go if you retracted your power, I’ll keep my word. Not only will I let them go, but I won’t trouble you either. Our accounts are settled.”
His words were pleasant, and he seemed to follow through.
With a wave of his sleeve, blood sprayed, and the Sacred Cave Saints let out pained screams.
Though it looked gruesome, the blood-red ropes binding them did indeed withdraw from their bodies.
As the ropes receded, the pain on their faces lessened significantly.
“Brother Xiu Luo.”
The Sacred Cave Saints, covered in wounds, didn’t flee after being freed. Instead, they moved towards Chu Feng, wanting to heal him.
Whoosh—
But before they could reach him, a powerful force bound them all.
It was the Wind-Thunder Sword Sect Leader and the Nine-Star Heavenly Mountain Leader.
Though Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted had freed the Sacred Cave Saints, these two had seized them.
“This isn’t me breaking my word. Their capturing the Sacred Cave Saints has nothing to do with me,” Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted said, spreading his hands and shrugging.
Clearly, he had anticipated that no one here would let the Sacred Cave Saints leave safely.
Nor would they let Chu Feng go.
His so-called promise was merely a shameless act.
“You…”
Seeing this, Chu Feng’s face filled with rage, but he was helpless.
He had considered this possibility.
But when the Sacred Cave Saints were captured, he knew he was in a completely passive position.
Even though he had foreseen this, Chu Feng still felt intense anger.
Being toyed with like this was something he despised most.
“Wind-Thunder Sword Sect, Nine-Star Heavenly Mountain, remember what you’ve done today,” Chu Feng said, his gaze brimming with killing intent as he stared at their leaders.
“Young friend, you can barely protect yourself, yet you still threaten us?” the Wind-Thunder Sword Sect Leader said. “No need for harsh words. Since we’ve made this choice, we’re not afraid of your retaliation. Hand over the treasure you got from the Stone Box World, and we’ll let you and your friends go. Otherwise, don’t blame us for being merciless.”
As he spoke, his oppressive aura twisted, beginning to pressure the Sacred Cave Saints.
“I’m the one who took your treasure. Come at me if you dare,” Chu Feng roared angrily.
His roar was loud, but it only highlighted his current powerlessness.
Everyone could see that the two sect leaders had seized Chu Feng’s weakness.
No matter how capable he was, he was helpless now.
He would have to compromise.
But what they didn’t know was that if the treasure were still in his possession, Chu Feng would indeed compromise.
Unfortunately, the treasure had already merged into his dantian.
Even if he wanted to hand it over, he couldn’t.
Crackle—
At that moment, a streak of light shot from the distant sky.
As it appeared, the heavens collapsed, and all things shattered. The void turned chaotic, dark, and terrifying, with only a blood-red light speeding towards them.
It was a blood-red sword.
Its might was truly world-destroying.
Even the Wind-Thunder Sword Sect Leader and the Nine-Star Heavenly Mountain Leader paled at the sight, sensing an immense threat.
But the blood-red sword wasn’t aimed at them—it was heading straight for Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted.
“How foolish,” Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted said, showing no fear but instead sneering mockingly.
He raised his arm, and with a shake of his palm towards the blood-red sword—
Buzz—
The thousand-meter-long sword, which shattered everything in its path, froze in mid-air.
Despite its violent trembling and roaring like billions of beasts, it couldn’t move forward.
It was as if an invisible wall of iron blocked its path.
“What’s going on?”
“Could it be Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted’s doing?”
People were puzzled, watching the unstoppable blood-red sword halted in its tracks.
Their gazes turned to Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted.
Though no aura or cultivation emanated from him, his action suggested he was the one stopping the sword.
Of course, they could only guess, as no power radiated from him.
“Break!” Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted suddenly shouted.
His robes fluttered, and a powerful aura swept the heavens.
Now, everyone could sense his cultivation.
Fourth-rank Supreme Exalted. Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted was also a Fourth-rank Supreme Exalted.
More importantly, with his shout, not only did his aura burst forth, but the blood-red sword began to crack.
In the blink of an eye, the once-mighty sword shattered into countless blood-red fragments, scattering in the sky.
Even the shattered space returned to normal.
“This old man…”
Seeing Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted’s display, even the strongest leaders of the Wind-Thunder Sword Sect, Nine-Star Heavenly Mountain, Blazing Academy, Miao Clan, and Dragon-Phoenix Immortal Pavilion showed complex expressions.
As fellow Fourth-rank Supreme Exalts, they could sense the blood-red sword’s power.
Even they found it daunting, yet Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted had shattered it effortlessly.
This made them realize that, despite sharing the same rank, his combat strength surpassed theirs.
“I was going to let you live,” Bloodmist Heavenly Exalted muttered to himself. “But you didn’t cherish it. Since that’s the case, don’t think you can leave unscathed.”
As the crowd marveled at his power, he flicked his sleeve, releasing a tremendous suction force.
The suction stirred wild winds, pulling in not just dust and stones but even vast clouds into his sleeve.
Notably, while the suction was immense, it didn’t affect those present.
Yet, in the distant sky, two figures appeared.
They seemed caught by the suction, struggling in vain as they were dragged towards the crowd at incredible speed.
Those two were none other than Zhao Hong and Han Xiu, who had just left.
