Shen Bai's Strength

The lake water around them churned without cease.

Seeing this, Wuhua strode forward.

"Venerable Palm Envoy, it turns out there was another one. I am your opponent—do not trouble Benefactor Shen."

Golden Buddhist light rose from Wuhua's body and collided with Venerable Palm Envoy's giant palm, erupting in a thunderous boom.

The lake surface began to quake. As they exchanged blows, the water boiled like a cauldron of scalding water.

The rotund Venerable Palm Envoy wiped the water from his face and grinned savagely. "The Great Compassion Palm of Xuanxin Temple. So you are a little brat from Xuanxin Temple. It seems you truly care about the sophora tree, but today, both of you will leave your lives here."

Wuhua pressed his palms together, his expression solemn. "Two envoys from the Upper Evil Gate have come. You truly think highly of us."

Venerable Palm Envoy sneered. "The sophora tree is of great importance. Luckily, two of us came. Otherwise, we might not have been able to take you down."

The gravity on Wuhua's face deepened.

Although the Twelve Envoys of the Upper Evil Gate were merely middle-tier within their sect, they still stood among the very best in Ascending Cloud County.

Yet two had appeared in succession.

Wuhua feared things were going badly, and he was already considering whether to use the Buddhist beads.

The beads had originally been meant for dealing with the Sophora Tree Bizarre Entity, but it was too late now. At a moment when life hung by a thread, using them was only natural.

With that thought, Wuhua instinctively reached into his robes, preparing to take out the Buddhist beads.

But at that moment, a voice suddenly rang out.

"Fatty, forget that monk! Come help me!"

The two men who had been speaking froze, then turned their heads and witnessed an utterly shocking sight.

By the lake, Shen Bai held a longsword. The vast righteous energy on its blade shone like a blazing sun, illuminating the night curtain that was black as cloth.

Every sword strike radiated righteous energy; every strike carried boundless might; every strike was terrifying as a demon.

Amid the assault of Blood Sword Dance, his powerful vital energy surged and roiled, as though he could pluck stars and seize the moon.

Opera Envoy continuously raised his spear to parry, but beneath Shen Bai's longsword attacks, he could only retreat again and again.

Most notably, Opera Envoy's body was already covered in dense wounds.

Shen Bai, meanwhile, wielded his sword as though taking a leisurely stroll through a garden.

Venerable Palm Envoy was stunned and hurriedly charged toward Shen Bai.

The two knew each other inside and out. Venerable Palm Envoy had never seen Opera Envoy in such dire straits, so he wanted to rescue him first.

Wuhua came to his senses and blocked his path. "Your opponent is me, sir. Do not disturb Benefactor Shen."

As he spoke, Wuhua also cast Shen Bai an astonished glance.

He had known Shen Bai was an expert, but he had never imagined that Shen Bai could fight Opera Envoy without falling into a disadvantage.

"No, it was far more than not being at a disadvantage. He was toying with him."

The ease on Shen Bai's face could not possibly have been feigned.

"I only wanted to find a helper, but I ended up finding an expert."

Wuhua never could have imagined that in tiny Ascending Cloud County, he had latched onto such a powerful thigh.

Since that was the case, he could not allow Venerable Palm Envoy to go over and interfere.

Blocked in his path, Venerable Palm Envoy roared furiously, "Little monk, you are courting death. Killing you first makes no difference."

Red light emerged from the giant palms, wrapping both of Venerable Palm Envoy's hands.

The instant the red light appeared, Wuhua felt overwhelming pressure crash down upon him.

He had to hold back Venerable Palm Envoy and buy Shen Bai time.

But just as Wuhua was preparing to risk his life, a voice suddenly sounded.

"Let him through."

Both Wuhua and Venerable Palm Envoy turned toward Shen Bai in astonishment.

Shen Bai's expression remained calm. "Let him through."

"Why?" Wuhua asked in confusion.

Shen Bai thought for a moment, then said, "Not enough kick."

Venerable Palm Envoy: "?"

Wuhua: "?"

Expressions of bewilderment were written plainly across both their faces.

Shen Bai, however, did not seem to care.

Since obtaining the Cheat System, Shen Bai had needed someone to test what he had learned against.

He urgently needed to know exactly how strong he truly was.

Before him, the qi within Opera Envoy's body moved as easily as an arm or finger. He was clearly also in the Three Treasures Realm.

But to Shen Bai, that was far from enough.

He wanted to see whether, with another Three Treasures Realm expert like Venerable Palm Envoy added in, he could still handle them.

All of this rested upon the foundation of safety.

If he could not, Wuhua could hold Venerable Palm Envoy back while Shen Bai swiftly killed Opera Envoy.

Shen Bai did not wish to let such a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity for verification slip away.

Venerable Palm Envoy sneered. "Boy, arrogance will get you killed."

Holding up his giant palm, he struck at Shen Bai.

The red light on the giant palm flickered with dangerous brilliance.

Wuhua wanted to stop him, but recalling Shen Bai's words, he suppressed the thought.

Even so, Wuhua remained extremely vigilant. The instant something went wrong, he would intervene.

With Venerable Palm Envoy joining the battle, Shen Bai's pressure abruptly soared.

Two Three Treasures Realm experts were no joke, and enraged by Shen Bai's humiliating treatment, their attacks became even swifter.

"Then take a sword strike from me first."

Shen Bai circulated his qi and unleashed a sword strike with all his strength.

With this strike, his vital energy was like a dragon, and his righteous energy like the sun.

Boom!

The explosions rang out without end.

Venerable Palm Envoy and Opera Envoy joined forces and received Shen Bai's sword strike.

Both spat blood, terror already written across their faces.

"Is this man... a monster?"

The thought arose in both their hearts at once, and they had already begun to consider retreating.

But Shen Bai's words were terrifyingly strange.

"Good thing I pulled the sword back at the end, or it would not have been fun. Let's try a fist technique instead."

Golden Buddhist light covered Shen Bai's fists as he unleashed a Vajra Demon-Subduing Fist.

The golden light was holy yet carried a killing intent. Like a Buddha descending into the world, it slew demons and exterminated evil.

Bang!

Opera Envoy's spear snapped in response. Shen Bai's fist blasted into Opera Envoy's body, leaving a horrifying bloody hole in his chest.

That blow was enough to be fatal.

With only one punch, Opera Envoy let out a scream, and his life force began to plummet rapidly.

Under the effects of Shen Bai's qi, his head exploded into a spray of blood that scattered across the clear lake surface.

The corpse sank into the lake and swiftly settled at the bottom.

"Ah!"

At the sight, Venerable Palm Envoy was scared out of his wits and gritted his teeth.

"So he really was using us to test his methods."

"I will stake my life on this!"

The red light around Venerable Palm Envoy's palms intensified. The fat on his body rapidly shrank, while the might of those giant palms continued to climb.

"A finishing move?" Shen Bai murmured thoughtfully.

"Die beneath this palm strike, and you may close your eyes in peace."

Venerable Palm Envoy struck Shen Bai with one palm.

This time, its power doubled.

But Venerable Palm Envoy suddenly discovered that Shen Bai had seemingly not moved at all in the face of this strike.

A white radiance, like lustrous jade, illuminated the lake surface.

Venerable Palm Envoy's giant palm landed on Shen Bai's body, and his expression froze.

A feeling of sharing the same root and origin flowed from the white light on Shen Bai's body.

Starting from Venerable Palm Envoy's palms, cracks spread inch by inch across his entire body.

"This is... a defensive technique? It can even rebound attacks?"

Blood poured from the cracks. That was Venerable Palm Envoy's final thought.

"If this boy is not eliminated, the Upper Evil Gate is in grave danger."