"Ha!"
Wen Zhong let out an angry roar and brought the Golden Whip in his hand crashing down. It was like a golden python opening its bloody maw, wanting to swallow the bald man standing directly before him in one bite!
The Yin-Yang Whip in Wen Zhong's hand had been bestowed by Golden Spirit Holy Mother of the Interception Sect. It was a genuine Houtian Spiritual Treasure, with the spirits of two Golden Immortal–realm demon pythons sealed within. Once activated with magical power, they could manifest, and their might was astonishing!
Just as the giant python lunged forward, the bald man—bare-chested, his entire body gleaming with golden light—suddenly turned around, revealing a smooth back tattooed with a ferocious, multicolored tiger!
A fierce wind suddenly arose. The multicolored tiger threw back its head and roared from his back, then sprang lightly off him and pounced straight at the giant python!
The tiger grew as it rode the wind. In the blink of an eye, it had transformed into a hundred-zhang giant, its entire body flashing with golden light as an aura of compassion spread in all directions. In an instant, it collided with the giant python!
"Hiss!"
"Roar!"
The giant python lunged to bite, but the tiger smacked its head away with one paw, exposing its reverse scale at the seventh inch. The tiger bit down on it!
As the giant python was sent flying backward and wailed, the savage bloodlust rooted in its demonic spirit was fully roused. Completely ignoring the grievous wound to its reverse scale, it swiftly wrapped its tail around the tiger's waist, coiling tighter and tighter. It had actually chosen to perish together with the tiger!
"You vile beast! Take another whip from this old man!"
Wen Zhong was enraged once more. His magical power surged, and his golden body blazed with radiance. The female whip in his left hand transformed into another giant python, its gaze vicious as it shook its head and lashed its tail, rolling toward the tiger!
"Sin, sin!"
"Compassion, compassion!"
Seeing Wen Zhong display his ferocity again, the two golden men at his sides—one pair with elongated arms and the other with elongated legs—crossed and echoed one another. Their light was blazing yet gentle as they once more blocked the second giant python's path!
"Roar!"
Seeing its path blocked, the female python grew frantic and actually let out a dragon's roar. Its eyes turned blood-red, while fury and baleful energy surged. In the blink of an eye, it was locked in battle with the two golden figures!
At this moment, however, Wen Zhong's face, which should have been furious, was strangely calm. The corners of his lips lifted slightly, and even his golden body dimmed considerably.
The next moment, Wen Zhong abruptly turned around. His magical power surged into the space between his brows like a rushing river. A vertical eye there radiated divine light, wondrous beyond compare!
"This is bad! Senior Brother, save me!"
With a single glance, the golden man who had originally been behind Wen Zhong was already trembling with fear. A chill rose from the depths of his heart, and his body felt as though it had fallen into an endless icy abyss, rigid and unable to move!
"Heavenly Eye, open!"
Wen Zhong's armor clanged. As he spoke, a beam of divine light shot from the Heavenly Eye. Wherever it passed, the five elements retreated and thunder suddenly appeared. Faint ripples even spread through space!
This attack already possessed a trace of Grand Luo might!
"Junior Brother Alms-Bowl!"
Seeing Alms-Bowl Arhat trapped in a life-or-death crisis, Subduing Tiger let out an angry roar. Golden light exploded from his body and poured into the tiger!
With Subduing Tiger's aid, the tiger's body swelled again. In the blink of an eye, it had pried apart the giant python's body and torn it to pieces!
"Hiss~"
The giant python's demonic spirit was damaged. Its mournful cry transformed it back into a golden whip. Just as it was about to fly back into Wen Zhong's hand, the tiger smacked it hundreds of li away with one paw, turning it into golden light that vanished beyond the battlefield!
"Wen Zhong, die!"
On the other side, Hand-Reaching Arhat and River-Crossing Arhat had instead been blocked by the female python and could not advance even a single step!
"Hmph! Too late!"
As Wen Zhong's voice fell, the divine light reached Alms-Bowl Arhat's chest. It was about to pierce his heart when a Golden Alms-Bowl suddenly appeared and blocked it!
Treasures possessed spirits. The Golden Alms-Bowl had been held and nurtured by Alms-Bowl Arhat day and night, and had long since developed a trace of spirituality, barely entering the ranks of Houtian Spiritual Treasures.
Now that it sensed Alms-Bowl Arhat's life was threatened, it rushed out of his dantian without hesitation and blocked the Heavenly Eye's divine light at the critical moment.
"I—I'm saved!"
Alms-Bowl Arhat gasped heavily. Only then did his body regain a trace of mobility, and joy at surviving the disaster appeared on his face.
However, as the saying went, one must not celebrate too soon.
With a crisp crack, the Golden Alms-Bowl suddenly shattered into pieces, and the divine light once again shot toward Alms-Bowl Arhat's left chest!
"No!"
Alms-Bowl Arhat had no time to react. He was instantly sent flying by the divine light, his golden body dimming completely in an instant. A huge hole had been blasted through his chest, and through the blurred flesh, one could vaguely see his heart beating up and down!
"Not dead?"
Seeing that Alms-Bowl Arhat still showed signs of life, Wen Zhong frowned slightly. He had not expected this golden man to possess a spiritual treasure as well, actually blocking his long-planned killing blow.
Ever since he had come to pacify the rebellion in the Northern Sea, whenever Yuan Futong was about to lose, this golden man and that Daoist would come to obstruct him.
At first, there had only been those four Daoists. They would stir up wind and fog, deploy trapping formations, and impede the army. They only trapped them without killing, then released the formation once the troops were exhausted, allowing him to lead his soldiers away.
Unable to discern the enemy's methods, he naturally did not dare commit his entire army. Thus, he had been delayed again and again. A year later, when his patience finally ran out, he used the Heavenly Eye between his brows to break through the maze formation, intending to capture the ringleader first, only to be stopped by this golden man!
When one could not stop him, two appeared; when two were insufficient, three, then four! Only then had they been able to fight him to a standstill. No new enemies appeared after that, and they had remained locked in this stalemate with him.
He did not know why these people were holding him back, but he knew that the more the enemy did not want him to do something, the more determined he was to do it!
Therefore, he had plotted for a long time and deliberately concealed his true ability, all so that he could strike suddenly today and break through the predicament in one move!
But merely shattering the golden man's spiritual treasure and severely wounding his golden body was not enough. He wanted to... kill someone!
Ink Jade Qilin blocked Subduing Tiger. Wen Zhong moved and chased to Alms-Bowl Arhat's side, punching out again with his right hand. His surging vital blood, mixed with the battlefield's baleful energy, shot straight toward Alms-Bowl Arhat's beating heart!
"Kill!"
"Roar!"
Just as Wen Zhong was about to strike the fatal blow, an earth-shaking dragon's roar suddenly rang out of thin air. A golden dragon abruptly appeared from the void and charged roaring toward Wen Zhong in midair. It extended its dragon claw and effortlessly caught Wen Zhong's heavy punch!
"Compassion, compassion. Grand Tutor, how can you kill?"
The next moment, the golden dragon transformed into a human, yet it was another bald golden-bodied figure. With a push of his right hand, he sent Wen Zhong away and caught Alms-Bowl Arhat, who had already fainted.
His spiritual treasure had been destroyed, and both his golden body and nascent spirit had been heavily wounded. Wen Zhong truly was ruthless!
After sensing that Alms-Bowl Arhat's life was in danger, Dragon-Subduing first breathed a sigh of relief, then a trace of anger flashed between his brows.
"My junior brother had no intention of killing anyone. Grand Tutor, your attack was a little too vicious!"
"As expected, there are others. Vicious? I should say this old man was too lenient!
"If I had not overlooked one detail and known that he had a spiritual treasure protecting him, he would have been dead!"
Wen Zhong halted himself. He reached out and clenched his right hand in the air. A streak of golden light flew over from several hundred li away and returned to his grasp, buzzing loudly.
Wen Zhong brushed his left hand over the golden whip and frowned as well. The Golden Immortal demonic spirit had been heavily wounded, and both its spirituality and might had greatly diminished, which was quite disadvantageous for the battles to come.
On the other side, the three Arhats—Subduing Tiger, Hand-Reaching Arhat, and River-Crossing Arhat—saw Dragon-Subduing appear and each knocked back the opponent before him, allowing the golden whip and Ink Jade Qilin to return to Wen Zhong's side.
"Senior Brother, we were useless."
Before you continue