Taking Action

What do you call that? You call that "handling it"? That's practically digging up my ancestors' graves!

Patriarch Styx, despite being directly accused by Zhunti, surprisingly didn't get angry.

He merely looked coldly at Zhunti. "This is a karmic entanglement between him and me. Zhunti, do you truly intend to interfere?"

"I'm not interfering, I'm upholding justice!" Zhunti declared righteously. "My junior nephew carries immeasurable Merit, a chosen one of the Heavenly Dao. Do you not fear the backlash of the Heavenly Dao if you harm him?"

"Furthermore, he is the beloved disciple of Senior Brother Yuanshi. If you dare to lay a single hair on him today, Senior Brother Yuanshi might just bring the Pangu Banner to visit your Sea of Blood someday. Whether your Sea of Blood can remain intact then is another matter entirely."

Zhunti's words were a mix of threats and enticements.

Patriarch Styx fell silent.

He didn't care about the backlash of the Heavenly Dao. He cultivated the Path of Slaughter, burdened by karma; too many lice don't itch.

But Yuanshi Tianzun, he had to be wary of.

That was the true lineage of Pangu, one of the Three Pure Ones, a supreme being wielding the Pangu Banner, an innate supreme treasure. If he were to attack, even though his Sea of Blood was said to be eternal and Minghe immortal, it would still be severely weakened if turned upside down.

Was it worth it for a mere Golden Immortal junior?

Minghe was weighing his options.

Xuanqing stood by, watching this confrontation between a future Saint and a top-tier mighty being, filled with emotion.

So, this was the true benefit of having powerful backing.

Before he could even speak, someone was already stepping forward to defend him.

However, he didn't believe Zhunti was genuinely helping him.

This leader of the Western Sect never acted without reason. His performance today must have some other motive.

As expected, seeing Minghe waver, Zhunti immediately changed his tune.

"Of course, Daoist Minghe, we are not unreasonable people."

"My junior nephew purified your demonic weapons, causing losses to your Sea of Blood, that is a fact. We should offer some compensation."

As he spoke, his hand flashed, and a golden, shining branch appeared in his hand.

Upon the branch, seven treasures flowed, radiating divine light. It was Zhunti's treasure of enlightenment, the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree.

"How about this, I have a trace of Primordial Purple Qi here..."

Before Zhunti could finish speaking, Minghe, Jieyin, and even Xuanqing's eyes widened.

Primordial Purple Qi? The foundation for sainthood? Is Zhunti crazy?

Even the usually worried Jieyin couldn't help but tug on Zhunti's sleeve. "Junior Brother, be careful with your words!"

Zhunti waved him off and continued, "...a wisp of its aura. I will infuse this wisp of aura into your unworthy subordinate's body, helping him regrow his arm and even improving his cultivation. Are you satisfied with this compensation, Daoist?"

"..."

Minghe's face turned so dark it looked like it could drip water.

This wasn't compensation, it was humiliation!

Xuanqing, watching from the side, was amazed.

This Saint Zhunti's thick skin had completely redefined his understanding.

"Zhunti!"

Patriarch Styx roared, and the boundless Sea of Blood instantly churned with waves ten thousand feet high.

"You are courting death!"

Terrifying killing intent surged, no longer targeting only Xuanqing, but also engulfing Zhunti and Jieyin.

Zhunti's expression remained unchanged. He lightly swept the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree in his hand.

A stream of multicolored divine light flew out, instantly brushing away the monstrous killing intent without a trace.

Jieyin sighed from the side. Above his head, a twelve-grade golden lotus slowly emerged, casting down golden rays of light that protected the three of them.

It was the supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure, the Twelve Grade Merit Golden Lotus.

Mighty beings rarely fought each other directly.

Because at their level, every move affected the laws of heaven and earth. Once a true fight broke out, the area of effect would be too wide, and the karma generated would be too great.

Patriarch Styx looked at the Twelve Grade Merit Golden Lotus above Zhunti's head, then at the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree that brushed away all laws in his hand. The blood-red color in his eyes surged even more intensely.

Two supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Treasures, one for offense and one for defense.

If a real fight broke out, even if he could gain an advantage, he would definitely not come out unscathed. Moreover, the Dao Ancestor stood behind these two.

This calculation was a loss no matter how he looked at it.

Minghe was not a brute. He cultivated the Path of Slaughter, not the Path of Foolishness.

"Good, very good."

Minghe's voice became exceptionally calm.

His massive head slowly tilted back, and a terrifying aura that could tear the heavens and earth apart surged upwards.

"Zunti, Jieyin. For the sake of the Dao Ancestor, I can overlook this matter."

"For the sake of fellow Daoist Yuanshi, I can also spare this junior."

His tone shifted, and his icy gaze locked onto Zunti.

"However, the honor of my Sea of Blood cannot be lost just like this!"

"If you can withstand one strike from me, today's affair will be settled. You may leave, and this karma will be wiped clean!"

Upon these words, the world fell into a deathly silence.

This was a formal challenge from a top-tier Quasi-Saint.

Before Hongjun the Dao Ancestor had preached, the strength of Zunti and Jieyin was not considered top-tier among the great powers of Honghuang; they were even slightly inferior to Patriarch Styx.

Now, although the two had obtained the Primordial Purple Qi and their cultivation realms had caught up, no one knew how much they had truly improved.

Patriarch Styx's move was both to regain face and an undisguised probe.

He wanted to personally gauge the true capabilities of these two future Saints!

The smile on Zunti's face remained unchanged, as if he had expected this.

"Since fellow Daoist is in such a mood, this humble one shall naturally oblige."

He agreed nonchalantly.

Beside him, Jieyin still wore a troubled expression, merely sighing softly without voicing any objection.

Xuanqing, standing behind them, felt his heart pound uncontrollably.

This was a clash between Quasi-Saints! Such an event was rarely seen in Honghuang, occurring perhaps once in countless millennia.

Today, not only was he witnessing it, but he was also in the front-row seats.

"Good!"

Patriarch Styx roared.

"Boom!"

The entire Nether Blood Sea erupted.

All the blood water defied the natural order of heaven and earth, surging upwards.

Pillars of bloody water shot into the sky, intertwining and converging to form a blood-red canopy that covered the entire firmament.

Filth, evil, and slaughter, along with various negative energies, churned wildly within it.

Immediately after, Patriarch Styx opened his massive maw.

He uttered no sound, yet profound true words transformed into bloody runes, flying from his mouth and imprinting themselves onto the blood-red canopy above.

With each added rune, the canopy's color deepened, and the pressure it exuded grew more terrifying.

In the center of the canopy, a colossal vortex slowly took shape.

At the vortex's core, a speck of blood-red light was born.

Initially, the light was no larger than a grain of rice, but in an instant, it bloomed, transforming into an alluring, blood-red lotus.

The lotus had twelve petals, and each petal seemed to carry a world of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, where countless beings wailed and sank.

The Karma Red Lotus!

No, this was not the Body of the Karma Red Lotus.

This was Patriarch Styx's ultimate strike, condensed by using his supreme magical power to mobilize the origin of the entire Blood Sea, simulating the killing The Great Dao of the Karma Red Lotus!

This "blood lotus" had surpassed the scope of ordinary divine abilities, touching upon the level of laws.

The moment the blood lotus took form, Zunti moved.

He turned his head and gave Xuanqing a slight smile.

Then, he extended a finger and gently tapped Xuanqing.

Xuanqing felt a gentle force envelop him, and in the next instant, he was propelled backward uncontrollably, landing steadily beside Jieyin.

"Nephew, stand back and watch carefully,"

Zunti's voice echoed in his ear, "Such a spectacle will be of great benefit to your future cultivation."