Three Eighth-Order Late-Stage Experts
Run!
Suddenly, someone let out a scream that went off in a distorted tone, and the orderly armored Battle Formation collapsed instantly.
The monks abandoned their armor and fled desperately toward the canyon exit.
Chen Fan did not give chase.
He shook the dust off his Broken Saber, sheathed it, and strode toward the iron cage at the edge of the mine.
Hundreds of ragged Mine Slaves were imprisoned in iron cages.
Chen Fan raised his hand and waved it, his fingertips flashing with energy, and the thick black iron chain snapped in two.
After comforting the wounded, Chen Fan stepped out of the cage and looked around at the chaotic mine pit.
Fragments of the destroyed Fire Crow Battle Banner lay scattered in the mud, surrounded by the remains of several War Puppets emitting black smoke.
Further away, the Black Wind Mountains stretch southeastward, with several mineral veins rich in spiritual energy appearing and disappearing deep within the mountains.
"If that bastard Dafu knew he only managed to salvage a lousy mine, he'd definitely be crying and complaining again."
Chen Fan stroked his chin and spat out the grass stem from his mouth.
"You can run away, but you can't hide. You trampled my flag, and you think you can get rid of me with this piece of junk?"
A moment later, Chen Fan leaped onto the head of a perfectly intact Dark Iron War Puppet and waved down at the wounded and disabled troops who had gathered around him.
"You few, take the wounded back to the village to report the news, and have Wang Dafu bring a large cart to haul away the ore."
"Chief, and what about you?"
An old miner asked, his voice trembling.
Chen Fan grinned and pointed towards the black fortress built against the mountain in the direction of Red Rock Main City.
"I'm going to visit my neighbor next door and collect some compensation for emotional distress while I'm at it."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stomped his foot.
With a loud bang, the War Puppet, weighing tens of tons, was stomped halfway into the ground by him, while Chen Fan's figure transformed into a gray-red streak, tearing through the rolling black wind and shooting straight towards the southeast.
Copper Furnace Fortress, southeast of the Black Wind Mountains.
As the fortress of the Red Rock Main City, located at the forefront of the border, it is backed by three high-grade copper mines and is garrisoned year-round by a large force of Eighth-Order experts.
On the city wall, two tall figures were playing chess across a stone table.
The man with a face as red as a jujube and wearing red armor was none other than Zhou Yuan, the retainer of the Iron Armor Sect who was stationed here.
The other person was thin, with a sinister and menacing aura between his brows; he was none other than Wang Qiu, a retainer of another Eighth-Order power in the Red Rock Main City.
"Brother Zhou, should things be finished at the mine by now?" Wang Qiu placed a piece on the board and sneered, " With the Black Fiend Gate destroyed and Profound Nether Main City barely able to protect itself, it's a good opportunity to push the boundary line forward by fifty miles."
Zhou Yuan stroked his beard and laughed, "A mere brat from a small tribe dares to lay a finger on the Black Wind Spirit Vein? I sent Commander Zhao with thirty War Puppets, and in less than half a day..."
Boom!
Before the words were even finished, the entire hundred-foot-tall Copper Furnace Fortress trembled violently.
Without warning, the crimson Light Screen formed by the mountain-protecting array caved in, followed by the mournful cries of countless runes struggling under the strain.
"Report--"
A sentry scrambled up the watchtower, terrified.
"Someone... someone smashed Commander Zhao against the city gate!"
Zhou Yuan and Wang Qiu's expressions changed drastically, and they both rushed to the top of the city wall.
Looking down, one could see that the seemingly indestructible gate of the Hundred-Forged Black Iron City had been smashed open with a huge hole, and the bearded commander, clad in heavy armor and already unconscious, was stuck in the center of the gate like a painting.
Amidst the smoke-filled ruins, a boy of about ten years old, dragging a Broken Saber taller than himself in one hand, nimbly traversed the shattered pass.
"Iron Armor Sect, is it?"
The boy stopped, looked up, and flashed a set of white teeth at the two Eighth-Order experts on the city wall.
"You just dirtied my shoes, so this place is mine now."
"Arrogant brat!" Zhou Yuan laughed in fury, his Eighth-Order True Qi erupting like a volcano. "Activate the Blazing Fire Heaven-Burning Formation! Today, I'll make sure you're reduced to nothing but dust!"
Crimson array patterns spread wildly across the land, and rolling fire transformed into several hundred-foot-long fire dragons, roaring as they rose from the ground, turning the entire fortress into a lava hell.
The raging heat distorted space, and even the air was sucked away in an instant.
However, Chen Fan, who was at the core of the formation, simply shook his head.
"Playing with fire?"
He took a step forward.
Behind him, a colossal, sky-covering, gray-red Millstone phantom suddenly appeared, with the Dao Principles of Life and Death, water and fire endlessly revolving around Millstone.
"Collect it for me."
Chen Fan pressed forward with one hand.
The massive fire dragons swooping down from the sky seemed to be under the absolute suppression of some supreme being. Their forms suddenly froze, and then they transformed into streams of extremely pure crimson Stream of Light, which were forcibly sucked into the illusory Millstone like whales swallowing dragons!
The once-raging formation instantly became dim and lifeless.
"What... what kind of evil technique is this?!"
Wang Qiu, standing atop the city wall, turned deathly pale and screamed.
"Evil martial arts?"
Chen Fan's figure suddenly left a blur in place, and in the next instant, he appeared high above the two of them.
The power of water and fire condensed on the Broken Saber, and a hundred-foot -Blade Aura fell vertically from the heavens, like a meteorite crashing Beyond the Heavens the earth.
Boom!
The fortress's thick walls crumbled like mud before the blade's edge, the Formation Disk shattered, and dust billowed into the sky. Zhou Yuan and Wang Qiu, two Eighth-Order experts, were thrown back by the violent shockwave before they could even fully activate their protective true qi, spitting blood as they flew into the depths of the ruined fortress.
Amidst the desolate ruins, the boy landed steadily.
He swung a blood-stained black Fire Crow Battle Banner and planted it heavily into the ruins of the collapsed Council Hall of Copper Furnace Fortress.
Battle flags fluttered in the wind, their menacing aura soaring to the heavens.
Almost at the same moment the battle flag was lowered.
Hundreds of miles away, deep within the Fire God Great Hall in the center of the Red Rock Main City, three enormous Divine Thoughts, almost tangible, suddenly awakened.
The once clear sky was torn apart by three blinding beams of light. Three violent streams of air—crimson, earthy yellow, and cyan—whirled and intertwined, transforming into a vast expanse of clouds that stretched across hundreds of miles of wilderness, rolling down toward Copper Furnace Fortress.
Along the way, beasts lay prostrate and howled in agony, and birds were pulverized into mincemeat by the violent spiritual pressure before they even reached mid-air.
"Red Rock City... the three patriarchs have emerged from seclusion!"
Amidst the ruins, Zhou Yuan, his mouth slurred with blood, was awakened by the overwhelming pressure, as heavy as a mountain. Sensing the familiar aura, his cloudy eyes suddenly burst forth with a light of wild joy.
Wang Qiu, standing nearby, also struggled to get out of the pile of rubble using both hands and feet, screaming wildly at the sky.
"You little beast! You're doomed! The Ancestor Red Fire will surely skin you alive and refine you into a living soul..."
Bang!
A small foot wearing coarse cloth shoes kicked out casually, hitting Wang Qiu squarely in the face.
His sinister face immediately caved in, the dull thud of his front teeth shattering mixed with the dirt, and Wang Qiu flew backward like a tattered sack, crashing headfirst into a pile of rubble, sobbing and unable to utter another coherent word.
Chen Fan withdrew his foot and remained lazily reclining on the half-collapsed battlement of the city gate.
He picked up a fresh blade of grass and chewed on it, looking up at the overwhelming tricolor celestial phenomenon looming overhead, even raising his hand to shield his eyes from the glaring sunlight.