Bloodfire Dagger

This had been destined to be a crushing defeat. No matter how much stronger Li Tianming had once been, after three wasted years, his cultivation had regressed to the extreme.

A First-Order Companion Beast could not change anything at all.

No one believed Li Tianming would have the slightest ability to fight back.

Today, he was destined to be a tragic figure, ultimately dragged away as he watched Li Zifeng become the heir and obtain the Yanhuang Order!

"Watch closely." Li Tianming's speed suddenly surged. In the blink of an eye, his legs became like phantoms, so fast that they gave Li Zifeng the feeling of ghosts clinging to him.

This was the high-grade beast-level battle art—Ghost Shadow Step. It was practically one of the finest movement techniques among beast-level battle arts, and Li Tianming had trained in it for nearly half a year.

A ghostly shadow flashed past, as though a nightmare followed in its wake.

Buzz!

Just as Li Zifeng's scalp went numb, Li Tianming abruptly appeared before him.

Dragon-Elephant Heavy Fist!

This fist battle art could be called Li Tianming's signature. His former companion beast had been the metal-aspected Four-Winged Golden-Winged Roc, possessing terrifying speed and strength. This high-grade beast-level battle art, Dragon-Elephant Heavy Fist, had been an extreme fist technique designed specifically for him.

With this punch, it was as though dragons and elephants possessed his body, allowing him to unleash the most terrifying force. It also carried high-frequency vibrations. It was said that once this heavy fist landed, it could directly shatter a person's internal organs.

The current Li Tianming no longer possessed the strength of dragons and elephants, but he possessed the power of the Primordial Chaos Giant Beast, far more terrifying than dragons and elephants!

Most crucially, this punch came from his dark arm clad in a glove. As the fist force vibrated, it felt far fiercer than before!

Peerless speed and heaven-defying heavy fists converged at this moment. It was swift and unyielding, and the punch exploded forth straight at Li Zifeng!

Li Zifeng had already sensed the power of this punch. Narrowing his eyes, he calmly unleashed a high-grade beast-level battle art, Flame Cloud Palm, to meet it head-on.

This Flame Cloud Palm was quite formidable. Between its palm shadows formed a layer of flaming clouds, capable of defense, deception, and suppression. Within those fiery clouds lurked the power of a palm strike, and once it erupted, it could shake mountains and rivers.

"A dying flash of light, a wild dog's struggle—nothing but making yourself a laughingstock!" Li Zifeng showed no fear. He had absolute confidence in his abundant Beast Essence.

Boom!

The next instant, fist and palm collided!

Everyone heard a dull thud, then a crack, and finally a scream. When they looked closely, Li Zifeng had been sent flying!

"Damn, that's a little terrifying." Even Li Tianming had not expected the Primordial Chaos Giant Beast bloodline's transformation to be this powerful. His ability to suppress Li Zifeng so thoroughly this time also had a great deal to do with his strength.

This scene directly sent an earthquake through the entire City Lord's Mansion!

Up in the Wind-Listening Tower, many of those who had been seated rose in uproar. They stared wide-eyed at the Wind-Listening Platform, their faces filled with disbelief.

Clearly, in this exchange, Li Zifeng possessed nothing but vast Beast Essence, yet he had actually been suppressed by Li Tianming. His Flame Cloud Palm was indeed impressive, but when Li Tianming's punch blasted through, it destroyed everything in its path, seemingly completely unaffected by the flames' searing power!

"How is that possible? Wasn't Li Tianming's Beast Essence supposed to have nearly drained away?"

"It's been three years already. Any beastmaster would have been completely crippled!"

"Zifeng is at the Seventh Layer of Beast Pulse Realm."

"Could Li Tianming have used some underhanded method?" Lady Mo's expression was extremely ugly. This was simply unimaginable, yet it had happened before her eyes.

The man regarded as Lihuo City's stain, the man everyone believed was about to vanish without a trace and disappear like smoke and ashes, had actually returned. Moreover, he had truly displayed the strength to contend with Li Zifeng!

So he really had not stepped onto the stage today as a joke!

Perhaps only Lady Huang curled her lips, because she had witnessed Li Tianming's earlier outburst.

Li Xuejiao was equally dumbfounded. She had wanted to use her second brother's hand to teach Li Tianming a lesson, but now who was teaching whom a lesson?

"Brother Feng, how interesting. He probably recovered long ago and endured humiliation while bearing a heavy burden?" Liu Qing wore a sweet smile as she watched with great interest.

"He should have found a new companion beast long ago and stopped the loss of Beast Essence. But unfortunately, it is the lowest-grade First-Order Companion Beast. He will be stuck at the Beast Pulse Realm for life, so it is of no use." The sight just now had made Li Yanfeng's pupils contract, but he quickly found an explanation.

If Li Tianming had used the Blood God Contract to find a companion beast as soon as he returned to Lihuo City, stopping the depletion of Beast Essence, then he could barely preserve part of his cultivation.

It was simply that no one else saw things as clearly as he did, so they remained utterly stunned, especially the citizens of Lihuo City. Their eyes were wide, and for a moment, they could not recover their senses.

As the one being suppressed, Li Zifeng was nearly driven mad by this outcome.

He had suffered only a light injury from that heavy blow, but that was also because he had underestimated his opponent. Now, when he looked up, everyone was staring at Li Tianming in shock, as though Li Tianming were the true protagonist of the day.

And at this moment, Li Tianming was still looking at him with a smile.

"You really think you're my older brother, teaching me a lesson and teaching me what rules are?" Li Zifeng's voice was cold as ice.

"Not just that. I'll also teach you how to be a person." Li Tianming said.

He had waited a long time for this day.

Wrongly accused, silent for three years—over those three years, he had endured countless rumors and slanders!

For three years, people had treated him like a rat crossing the street, and even the younger brother before him had done the same.

On this day, people should have forgotten him. He should have been like dust, fit only to be a joke. Yet at such a moment, he had returned.

This furious punch was teaching Li Zifeng a lesson, but it had also struck the faces of everyone who had once looked down on him, telling them that Li Tianming was not dead yet!

Li Tianming took in those astonished gazes, and to be honest, it felt damn good!

In life, one had to pursue this kind of exhilaration, this kind of joyous settling of grudges!

And since it felt good, he would make it feel good to the very end!

This battle was not over yet. His opponent's true methods had not even been displayed so far, but would Li Tianming be afraid?

Under the eyes of the crowd, Li Zifeng, his gaze savage, had already drawn a sword.

It was a grimly cold Greensteel Sword, a "Beast Weapon" forged from top-grade Spirit Ore combined with companion beast blood. It was far more powerful than ordinary weapons. With a Beast Weapon in hand, a beastmaster's lethality could be greatly increased.

There was also resonance between a Beast Weapon and a companion beast.

"This Greensteel Sword has never yet drunk your blood." Li Zifeng raised his longsword and pointed it at Li Tianming.

"My Bloodfire Dagger was never meant to drink a brother's blood, but today I'll make an exception."

A streak of blood-red light suddenly shot from Li Tianming's sleeve. It was a dagger barely over half a foot long, its blade only the length of a finger, crimson all over like a venomous snake's fang.

In terms of Beast Weapon grade, the Bloodfire Dagger was no inferior to the Greensteel Sword. This was Li Tianming's long-famous weapon, formless and traceless, killing in an instant.

This was now real blades and real weapons, bloodshed and killing, brothers turning on each other—far more explosive!

"Why come out and make a fool of yourself? Even with that First-Order Companion Beast, you'll still be a Beast Pulse Realm cripple for life. Once I obtain the Yanhuang Order, I'll soar straight into the azure clouds. Within three years, you'll only be able to look up at me from hell!"

As Li Zifeng spoke, he danced the Greensteel Sword in his hand. It was as if wind blew beneath his feet, and his speed abruptly increased.

This was the mid-grade beast-level battle art, Windwalk Step. With Windwalk Step, his figure became exceptionally agile.

But what was even more formidable was the sword art in his hand. As his sword momentum unfolded, it was clear that this was the City Lord's Mansion's Tornado Flame Sword Art, a high-grade beast-level battle art comparable to Dragon-Elephant Heavy Fist!

Under the Tornado Flame Sword Art, wild winds howled. Sword momentum, sword shadows, and sword qi hid within the storm as they swept toward Li Tianming.

At the same time, the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird unleashed the beast art within Tornado Flame Sword Art, Tornado Flame Heavenly Wings. The Tornado Flame Heavenly Wings whipped up a terrifying storm. Its wings were like two enormous blades, appearing on either side of Little Yellow Chick as they launched a killing assault!

The battlefield split into two parts, but both were equally spectacular!

"Die!" With Tornado Flame Sword Art combined with Windwalk Step, Li Zifeng felt that he could take down Li Tianming!

His sword moves shifted in a thousand ways, raising a flaming storm. For a moment, it was as though a tornado of fire swept around Li Tianming. Within the flames, countless sword qi tore toward him.

This overwhelming offensive displayed Li Zifeng's true strength. Below the Seventh Layer of Beast Pulse Realm, no one could block this move!

Just the searing heat of that purple flaming tornado was more than most people could withstand.

"Are you dead yet? You should have died long ago, yet you still haunt me like a lingering ghost!" Li Zifeng was somewhat hysterical.

At this moment, the awe he had once felt for Li Tianming actually surfaced in his heart. It was simply unforgivable. Just days ago, outside Jadeite Tower, Li Tianming had still been an ant before his eyes.

When his Tornado Flame Sword Art completely swallowed Li Tianming, he had initially been full of confidence. But the next instant, fear gripped him.

Where was Li Tianming?

"That's right. I am a lingering ghost."

When those words rang beside his ear, Li Zifeng immediately felt his entire body turn cold.

From head to tailbone.

At some unknown moment, a streak of blood-red light had appeared at his throat, while behind him surged scorching waves of fire!

Everyone clearly saw Li Tianming appear behind Li Zifeng. The Bloodfire Dagger in his hand was already pressed against Li Zifeng's throat. If he had not stopped, Li Zifeng would already be dead!

In truth, he had not achieved this through movement technique alone. What truly gave Li Tianming control over Li Zifeng's life and death was a top-tier beast-level battle art.

That was—Transcendent Beast-level Battle Art!

This was the strongest battle art Li Tianming had ever cultivated, designed specifically to be used with the Bloodfire Dagger. It stood at the pinnacle of beast-level battle arts, and few people could cultivate it successfully.

This was not an offensive battle art, but a complete set of movement and killing techniques. It emphasized speed, ruthlessness, and precision—using the strongest burst of power in an instant to kill an enemy immediately.

It looked simple, but when Li Tianming had trained it in the past, he practiced it thousands of times every day, achieving the effect of a single fatal strike.

"Pfft!" Li Tianming did not kill Li Zifeng with the Bloodfire Dagger. After all, Li Zifeng was his blood-related younger brother. But with his next slash, he cut directly across Li Zifeng's arm. With a tearing sound, blood spilled out.

"Aaah!" Li Zifeng trembled all over, drenched in sweat, his entire mind already blank.