The moment those words were spoken!
The area outside Zixiao Palace instantly erupted.
Everyone who heard them felt their hearts jolt, a chill shooting up their spines. The way they looked at Qin Xuan was filled with utter disbelief.
"What? Did I hear that right? Qin Xuan actually dared to say something like that to Yuanshi?"
"He's insane! He's absolutely insane! Does he not know that Yuanshi has already broken through to the Quasi-Sage realm? That's a Quasi-Sage!"
"How presumptuous! He's just an Ancestral Witch with a somewhat stronger body. Does he really think he can contend against a Quasi-Sage?"
"Who does he think he is? The Dao Ancestor? He actually dared ask Yuanshi how he wanted to die?"
Arguments and mocking laughter rose one after another. In their eyes, no matter how strong Qin Xuan was, how could he possibly be a match for a Quasi-Sage?
This was simply the biggest joke in the world!
The black-robed man who had previously claimed that Hou Tu had gone to Yuanshi Tianzun of her own accord was now grinning broadly. Like a fawning dog, he looked at Yuanshi and harshly mocked Qin Xuan.
"Haha!"
"Qin Xuan?"
"Who the hell is he?"
"Yuanshi can crush him with a single finger!"
Qin Xuan glanced expressionlessly at the black-robed man.
Then he stepped forward, walking toward him one step at a time.
His pace was slow, yet it carried a crushing sense of pressure, as though every step landed upon everyone's hearts.
When the black-robed man saw Qin Xuan approaching, the mockery on his face instantly froze before vanishing without a trace.
A bone-chilling cold surged into his heart, and he instinctively began slowly backing away.
Suddenly, Qin Xuan vanished from where he stood.
The next moment.
A streak of golden light flashed!
Sshk!
A sharp sound rang out.
A column of blood shot into the sky!
Before the black-robed man could even react to what had happened, his head flew from his neck!
His flying head had its eyes wide open, still carrying deep terror and disbelief.
At the sight of this, the faces of the three Great Golden Immortals who had come with him turned deathly pale.
Terrified beyond measure, they did not hesitate at all. They frantically retreated, shouting incoherently as they did.
"You! You actually dare kill people outside Zixiao Palace!"
But Qin Xuan did not stop. Just as they retreated—
Sshk! Sshk! Sshk!
Three slicing sounds rang out almost simultaneously.
The bodies of the three Great Golden Immortals were severed cleanly at the waist!
Amid their dying screams, their organs and severed limbs were flung into the cold Primordial Chaos, and the stench of blood spread through the air.
The golden light on the Hongmeng Measuring Ruler trembled faintly.
Silence!
An extreme, deathly silence instantly enveloped the area outside Zixiao Palace.
The previous clamor and ridicule had vanished entirely. Everyone stood as though frozen in place, staring blankly at the bloody scene before them.
Those were three powerful figures who had listened to the Dao at Zixiao Palace!
Three genuine Great Golden Immortals!
Any one of them would have been a regional overlord in the Primordial World.
Yet in Qin Xuan's hands, they had been instantly slain in a single move!
"Insolence!"
Just as the silence settled in, an enraged roar exploded like thunder.
Immediately afterward, a Quasi-Sage aura so powerful it made hearts tremble swept forth, instantly shrouding Qin Xuan.
Under this aura, many of the observing mighty cultivators, whether early-stage or peak Great Golden Immortals—
felt an irresistible pressure. Their legs even went weak, and they could not help but want to kneel to the ground.
Qin Xuan slowly raised his head.
In the void above him, Yuanshi's face was livid. His eyes were fixed on Qin Xuan, filled with fury and killing intent.
Yuanshi was about to speak.
But Qin Xuan gave him no chance at all.
Gripping the Hongmeng Measuring Ruler tightly, he flashed upward and shot into the sky, charging directly at Yuanshi.
Yuanshi's expression abruptly changed.
He had not expected Qin Xuan to be so arrogant. Faced with his Quasi-Sage pressure, Qin Xuan not only did not retreat, but even dared to attack first.
Without time to think further, he swiftly pressed his hands together, formed a hand seal, and shouted.
"Yuqing Divine Lightning!"
"Rumble!"
In an instant, the winds and clouds above the nine heavens changed color.
A thunder dragon as thick as a water barrel roared down from the sky, carrying an aura capable of destroying everything as it struck straight at Qin Xuan!
Yet Qin Xuan seemed not to see Yuanshi's furious attack at all and continued charging directly toward him.
The next moment.
Boom!
With a deafening blast, the massive thunder dragon struck Qin Xuan squarely. Violent lightning instantly swallowed his entire figure!
When the smoke and dust dispersed, Qin Xuan's figure appeared before everyone once more.
His Daoist robe was now badly torn and scorched in many places, exposing the explosive muscles beneath.
As though he could not feel any pain at all, he continued advancing toward Yuanshi one step at a time.
Yuanshi's pupils suddenly contracted, and extreme horror appeared in his eyes.
Seeing Qin Xuan nearly unscathed, the scene from countless years ago on Buzhou Mountain, when Qin Xuan had beaten him mercilessly, involuntarily surfaced in his mind.
That bone-deep fear and humiliation instantly flooded his heart.
Seeing fear appear on Yuanshi's face, Taiqing immediately flashed to his side.
He brought forth the Heaven and Earth Exquisite Pagoda, which poured down countless streams of Mysterious Yellow merit energy, forming an indestructible barrier of light around him.
In the distance.
The Ancestral Witches exchanged glances.
Then, apart from Xuan Ming, who remained behind to protect the injured Zhurong and Hou Tu—
Dijiang, Zhu Jiuyin, Qiang Liang, and the other Ancestral Witches flashed forward, turning into streaks of light as they charged at Taiqing.
The next moment.
The enraged Ancestral Witches all pulled out bricks and smashed them wildly against the Heaven and Earth Exquisite Pagoda's defensive barrier like a rainstorm.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Heavy, thunderous impacts rang out without end.
Driven mad by rage, the Ancestral Witches pushed their physical strength to its absolute limit.
The Mysterious Yellow Pagoda's defensive barrier began trembling violently beneath the savage assault.
At this moment, Yuanshi Tianzun watched Qin Xuan steadily close in, then glanced at Tongtian, who was coldly observing from afar. Anxiety filled his heart.
He could not help shouting loudly.
"Third Brother! Are you still not coming to help?!"
Hearing this, Tongtian merely cast Yuanshi a faint glance. A hint of mockery curled at the corner of his lips, but he neither spoke nor showed any intention of acting.
Thinking of Yuanshi's shameless conduct, if Yuanshi had not been his second brother, Tongtian would have wanted to go over and slap him twice.
Seeing Tongtian remain unmoved, Yuanshi shot him a resentful glare before turning to Qin Xuan.
"Since you seek death!"
"Then I'll show you the true strength of a Quasi-Sage!"
As soon as his words fell.
A figure suddenly appeared at Yuanshi's side.
That figure resembled him by seventy percent. His expression was serene, and he held the Central Wuji Apricot Yellow Flag. He was Yuanshi's severed Good Corpse.
Then Yuanshi's true body wielded the Three Treasures Jade Ruyi. Together with his Good Corpse, he activated their mana, combining two powerful Quasi-Sage forces as they attacked Qin Xuan from both sides.
Qin Xuan remained expressionless, and his advancing steps did not pause in the slightest.
He poured the immense Law of Strength within him, along with the terrifying power of a peak early-stage Primordial Origin Golden Immortal, entirely into the Hongmeng Measuring Ruler in his hand.
He ignored Yuanshi's true body entirely. Holding the Measuring Ruler horizontally, he swung it fiercely forward at Yuanshi Tianzun's Good Corpse!
Sshraaak!
A grating slicing sound suddenly rang out.
Before everyone's horrified eyes—
Yuanshi's Good Corpse had its head instantly severed from its neck, and it rolled downward!
For a moment, the area outside Zixiao Palace fell utterly silent!
Everyone stared blankly at the scene.
That was the Good Corpse of a Quasi-Sage!
Yet Qin Xuan had slain it so cleanly and decisively in a single move?!
Qin Xuan... just what cultivation realm was he in?!
Before you continue