Saints Beg Me Not to Show Off

He put away the Innate Spiritual Treasure before him, then solemnly took out that top-grade Innate Spiritual Root—the Five Elements Pine Needle Tree!

As soon as this tree appeared, the entire valley was instantly filled with dense Innate Five Elements Essence Qi!

The verdant trunk and five-colored pine needles all radiated vibrant vitality and a harmonious Dao resonance.

Ao Chen did not refine it; instead, he directly planted it beside the spiritual spring at his side.

The Five Elements Pine Needle Tree immediately took root in the earth, connecting with the local spiritual veins, and began to devour vast amounts of Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth, converting it into the purest Innate Five Elements Origin Qi to nourish the entire valley.

Ao Chen opened his mouth and inhaled like a whale swallowing the sea. The vast Innate Five Elements Origin Qi, mixed with the dense Innate Spiritual Qi of the valley and the insights of Pangu's Dao he had accumulated earlier, was all swallowed into his belly!

The Star River Dragon Palace within him roared into motion, and the foundation of the Mythical Heavenly Immortal was thoroughly ignited at this moment!

He operated his mystic art according to the methods of the Mythical Heavenly Immortal, while simultaneously drawing on the concepts of immortality and independence from the just-perfected True Immortal Chapter, guiding this immense energy to wash over his body and elevate his foundation.

His aura began to climb steadily!

"Sublimating through the ages, Eternal Uniqueness..." The characteristics of the Heavenly Immortal Realm, supported by the vast energy and guided by the principles of the True Immortal Chapter, grew even more profound!

He felt his connection to the River of Time become subtler, the imprint of his own uniqueness more solid, as if his presence in the endless years was becoming more prominent!

"Time is My Sole Proof, there is no second..." His mastery over his own Dao was also rapidly improving, and his ability to "preserve his own Dao" within the dimensions of time and space grew increasingly stable!

Rumble!

It was as if some invisible barrier had been shattered!

The Star River Dragon Palace within Ao Chen suddenly expanded a full circle, its stars brighter and its operation more mysterious.

A powerful aura, far surpassing what came before, erupted from him!

Mythical Heavenly Immortal Middle Stage—achieved!

Ao Chen slowly opened his eyes, and within his pupils seemed to flow billions of stars, or perhaps scenes of chaos splitting open and epochs being born and dying.

Feeling the surging power within him and the now-perfected Mythical True Immortal Chapter, a faint smile of satisfaction finally appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Chapter Twenty-Five: The Intruding Zhu Rong, One Finger Suppresses the Ancestor Witch

Inside the hidden valley, spiritual energy swirled thickly, and the Five Elements Pine Needle Tree swayed gently, exuding vibrant life.

On the green stone platform, the vast aura of Ao Chen, who had just broken through to Mythical Heavenly Immortal Middle Stage, had completely converged, sinking into his limbs and bones without leaking a trace.

This seclusion had yielded great gains: perfected techniques and a breakthrough in realm.

Feeling the surging power within him and the clear path ahead, Ao Chen's heart was serene, and he felt the future was bright.

However, just as he was about to stabilize his realm further—

"Hm?"

Ao Chen's eyes snapped open, a cold, sharp light flashing in their depths.

The multiple layers of concealment and warning formations he had set up were being triggered from the outside by an extremely domineering and violent force!

Moreover, this force was charging into the valley with astonishing speed, brutally breaking through!

"Such a strong aura... Could it be the Wu Clan?"

Ao Chen instantly sensed the undisguised, thick, and tangible Sha Qi on the newcomer, as well as a violent law fluctuation that seemed to burn everything to ashes and destroy all things!

This aura, he had only recently "observed" from afar—the first battle of Wu Yao!

"I have no grievances with the Wu Clan. How did they find this place?"

Ao Chen slowly stood up, his expression calm, but deep in his eyes was full of confusion.

He had chosen this place for seclusion precisely because of its seclusion and the protection of its natural formations, plus his own formations. Even an ordinary Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal would find it hard to detect or break in easily.

Without time to think further, Ao Chen's figure flickered and vanished from the spot.

The next second, Ao Chen appeared outside.

Immediately after, a burly figure bathed in blazing flames came into view.

The newcomer had disheveled red hair, a resolute face, and muscles knotted all over his body, bursting with explosive power.

Flames rose around him, laws automatically swirled, and faint silhouettes of fire snakes and fire dragons coiled at his feet and ears. He was none other than the Southern Flame Ancestor Witch—Zhu Rong!

Zhu Rong had been drawn by the Mythical Dao resonance and energy fluctuations that Ao Chen had briefly failed to fully conceal when breaking through to Heavenly Immortal Middle Stage.

Buzhou Mountain was the sacred land of the Wu Clan, and any powerful energy anomaly could attract their attention.

He strode into the valley, and his gaze immediately locked onto Ao Chen, who was sitting cross-legged on the green stone.

"Hm?" Zhu Rong raised a rugged eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

He had thought he had found some Innate Spiritual Treasure emerging, or some reckless Demon God cultivating here, but instead, he saw a dragon!

And this dragon's aura was very peculiar!

His realm seemed to be only Heavenly Immortal Middle Stage, but the feeling he gave off was exceptionally solid and profound, even faintly carrying a transcendent Dao resonance that made even him, an Ancestor Witch, feel a slight tremor.

"An odd dragon."

Zhu Rong raised an eyebrow, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth. There was little malice in his eyes, but instead, a strong interest and blazing battle intent!

The Wu Clan were naturally warlike, especially an Ancestor Witch like Zhu Rong, who controlled destructive power. When encountering an opponent who seemed "decent," his first thought was often not to drive them away or kill them, but—fight first, talk later!

In his view, whether it was the Dragon Clan or some other race, anything that could stir up such a commotion and actually catch his interest was worth Zhu Rong personally testing out!

"Hahaha! Interesting! Truly interesting!"

As if he had discovered some novel toy, Zhu Rong sized up Ao Chen from head to toe, his battle intent surging.

"This dragon of yours is quite amusing—your cultivation and Dao resonance are remarkably peculiar. A mere Celestial Immortal, yet you can trigger such fluctuations here on Buzhou Mountain."

Ao Chen looked at the Zhu Rong before him, his brow slightly furrowed.

This kind of behavior from the Wu Clan might not be outright malicious, but it was genuinely irritating.

In the Primordial Wilderness, cultivators stood everywhere.

In most cases, when a formation surrounded an area and energy leaked out, it signified that the place had an owner, and one would not casually provoke it.

After all, provoking someone meant forming a karmic bond, and doing so without any benefit was clearly not worthwhile.

But now, Zhu Rong's actions were blatantly forging a karmic tie with him. Yet Zhu Rong wore an utterly indifferent expression, which truly rubbed him the wrong way.

Still, since things had come to this, continuing in seclusion was clearly no longer possible.

"Forget it, it's time to leave."

"The True Immortal chapter is complete; the next key is to accumulate cultivation. Further enlightenment on Buzhou Mountain is useless now."

Ao Chen shook his head slightly, then turned to leave.

However, though he wanted to go, Zhu Rong had no intention of letting him.

The Wu Clan was naturally warlike, and encountering such a peculiar existence as Ao Chen, he could no longer hold back.

"Dragon brat, fight me!"

He cared nothing for whether Ao Chen was willing. The laws of flame around him instantly condensed into a razor-sharp, crimson fist aura, carrying a wild and unmatched momentum as it blasted straight toward Ao Chen!

This punch held no Killing Intent—only the pure, unadulterated will to compete!

Faced with this sudden "challenge," a flicker of annoyance passed through Ao Chen's eyes, then hardened into an icy sharpness.

He had wanted to cultivate peacefully. Being disturbed by Zhu Rong was bad enough, but now the other party refused to let it go.

"Utterly senseless."

Ao Chen snorted coldly, pointing a single finger forward.

The fingertip and the fist edge, in a wildly disproportionate scale, gently touched.

There was no earth-shattering explosion.

No roaring clash of opposing laws.

Not even a ripple of energy.

Time itself seemed to freeze in that instant.

The wildness on Zhu Rong's face instantly solidified!

In his massive, flame-burning eyes, disbelief and shock appeared for the first time!

His innate divine fire, capable of boiling seas and melting mountains, of fusing divine metals, the moment it touched the faint starlight at Ao Chen's fingertip, extinguished like snow under a scorching sun!

Then, an indescribable, incomprehensible terror—a power that seemed to transcend all laws—surged along his fist, rampaging through his arm with devastating force!

Crack! Crack! Boom!!

His Ancestor Witch arm, harder than Divine Metal and strong enough to shake mountains, shattered inch by inch starting from the fist!

Bones, meridians, flesh, and even the flame laws within—all were utterly and mercilessly erased before that speck of starlight!

"Pfft—!"

The immense force struck, and Zhu Rong's colossal body, as if rammed head-on by a Primordial Divine Mountain, spewed a torrent of witch blood rich with origin power. He flew backward uncontrollably, slamming violently into the cliff face at the end of the valley!

"Oh?"

Ao Chen looked at the sent-flying Zhu Rong, a hint of surprise flashing across his face.