Invincible Stance, Ming Ku Dies!

In the perception of Elder Ming Ku and four cultivators from the Netherworld Clan at the Tai Xu Realm, the Nirvana Star God Tree in the center of the blood pool suddenly accelerated its energy absorption speed by several times!

The dark red blood pool became clear at a speed visible to the naked eye. The pure, deathly silent energy contained within surged into the Star God Tree. The small, pitch-black sapling sprouted and budded at an astonishing speed. At its tip, the rudiment of a fruit, the size of a dragon's eye, interwoven with starlight patterns and Nirvana Runes, rapidly condensed!

The maturation process of the Star God Fruit had been accelerated!

"Good! Excellent!" Elder Ming Ku was stunned at first, then ecstatic. An unnatural flush appeared on his withered face. "Heaven aids me! It must be that the death energy accumulated here for ten thousand years, and the foundation far exceeds our estimations, has actually self-accelerated the catalysis process! Quickly! Quickly throw in all the backup sacrifices to help the Star God Fruit reach complete perfection!"

Although he had a trace of doubt, the "facts" before him outweighed everything. His fanaticism for the Netherworld Clan's great cause overwhelmed his vigilance towards subtle anomalies. The other four cultivators were also greatly invigorated and hastily threw their precious core beast cores and magic artifacts into the blood pool.

The rudiment of the Star God Fruit became more solid, and the energy fluctuations it emitted caused the entire underground cavity to tremble.

In the shadows, Xuanyuan Che's lips curved into a playful smile.

The illusion created by the Void Mirage Pearl had perfectly deceived their senses. In reality, the blood pool's energy was not being absorbed at an accelerated rate by the Star God Tree. Instead, it was being stealthily guided by the Mirage Pearl and diverted into a jade bottle in his hand. This jade bottle was called the Essence Gathering Bottle, containing its own universe, capable of holding all rivers and storing all kinds of energy.

The true maturity of the Star God Fruit was far from the level that Ming Ku and the others "saw." However, the extra nutrients they had invested were genuinely accepted by Xuanyuan Che with a smile. Although these energies were of an yin-evil nature, after being refined by his Chaos Body, they were all beneficial supplements.

"Junior disciple, you... you're practically a bandit," Thunder Roar Ravine said, dumbfounded, his tone full of admiration.

"How can the affairs of cultivators be called stealing?" Xuanyuan Che replied earnestly. "This is called optimizing resource allocation. They are not blessed to enjoy it, so I am keeping it on their behalf. It is reasonable and fair."

Yun Mengyao and Mu Qingxue couldn't help but stifle their laughter. They were already accustomed to their junior disciple's mischievous methods.

Time ticked by. Under the excited and expectant gaze of Ming Ku and the others, the Star God Fruit finally "matured" completely! The fruit was plump, the starlight brilliant, emitting an alluring Dao rhythm.

"It's done! Quickly retrieve the fruit!" Elder Ming Ku roared, his voice trembling with excitement.

A Tai Xu Realm cultivator who was closest immediately reached out to grab the "Star God Fruit."

The moment his fingers were about to touch the fruit, the Star God Fruit before his eyes suddenly dissipated! Immediately after, the entire scene of the blood pool violently fluctuated like a mirage, and finally shattered with a bang!

The illusion disappeared!

What greeted their eyes was still the main body of the Nirvana Star God Tree, which was far from mature.

And the large amount of precious sacrifices they had just invested had long since vanished!

"Illusion?! Who is it?!" Elder Ming Ku fell from heaven to hell, but his reaction was extremely fast. The terrifying aura of a Saint at the mid-stage erupted, and his withered hand fiercely grabbed at the void.

The other four Tai Xu Realm cultivators instantly formed a battle formation back-to-back, scanning their surroundings with shock and anger.

"Tsk tsk tsk, after all that effort, it turns out you were making wedding clothes for others. Truly touching." A voice with a lazy chuckle rang out.

Xuanyuan Che and the other three removed their disguises, revealing their figures, standing not far from them.

"It's you?!" Elder Ming Ku's pupils contracted. He recognized Xuanyuan Che as the monstrous young man who had punched the Saint Corpse Bone Demon's arm off upstairs! His heart churned like stormy waves. How did this person sneak in here, bypassing his senses? And what level was that illusion? It could perfectly deceive a Saint's spiritual sense!

"The Netherworld Clan's reach is truly long. Aren't you afraid of having your hands chopped off?" Xuanyuan Che said to him with a smile.

"Kid, no matter what trick you used, daring to ruin my Netherworld Clan's great undertaking today will surely result in your soul being extracted and your spirit refined, leaving you unable to reincarnate for eternity!" Elder Ming Ku shouted, ceasing his nonsense. The pressure of his Saint domain, like a tangible great mountain, pressed down on Xuanyuan Che and the other three! Simultaneously, he shook his White Bone Banner, and countless ferocious ghost shadows roared out.

The four Tai Xu Realm cultivators also attacked at the same time. Netherworld death energy transformed into chains, poisonous mist, and soul blades, attacking from all directions. Their coordination was seamless, and their attacks were vicious!

"You have the realm, but unfortunately, your power is too scattered and of poor quality."

Xuanyuan Che whispered. He didn't even use any divine abilities, merely raising his right hand, spreading his five fingers, and then pressing down gently.

An invisible yet indescribably vast pressure of Chaos spread out from him!

There were no earth-shattering sounds, no dazzling brilliance.

But under this light and effortless press, Elder Ming Ku's magnificent Saint domain collapsed and disintegrated like a bubble!

The spiritual energy that roared towards them dissolved and annihilated the moment it came into contact with the pressure of Chaos, without even stirring a ripple!

"Pfft!"

Elder Ming Ku spat out a mouthful of black blood as if struck by a heavy blow. His eyes were filled with horror, and he staggered backward, almost dropping his White Bone Banner!

The four Tai Xu Realm cultivators fared even worse. They couldn't even let out a scream before instantly exploding into four masses of bloody mist.

Silence!

Deathly silence!

Only the sound of the blood pool bubbling and Elder Ming Ku's heavy, terrified breaths remained.

One move!

No, it wasn't even a move. It was just a simple action, casually suppressing a Saint domain, annihilating all attacks, and instantly killing four peak Tai Xu Realm cultivators!

What kind of strength was this?!

Elder Ming Ku's body turned cold. He finally understood that the Saint Corpse Bone Demon's arm being blown off upstairs was by no means accidental! This young man before him was not at the Xing Yuan Realm, nor was he an ordinary Saint Realm expert! His true combat power had likely reached a level he could not comprehend! It was possibly a Saint King, or even... higher?!

"You... Who exactly are you?!" Elder Ming Ku's voice was dry and hoarse, filled with despair.

Even his young master was far inferior.

"The one who will kill you." Xuanyuan Che's tone was flat. He took a step forward, instantly crossing space, and appeared before Elder Ming Ku.

Elder Ming Ku's soul was in utter terror. He burned his Essence Blood and frantically activated the White Bone Banner, wanting to make one last desperate struggle: "Netherworld Descent, Ten Thousand Souls..."

"Noisy."

Xuanyuan Che formed a sword with his two fingers. A faint wisp of Chaos sword energy coiled around his fingertip. He casually pointed it out.

Elder Ming Ku's defenses, the power he had exchanged for by burning his Essence Blood, the White Bone Banner, a Saint artifact... before this finger, they were like paper, easily pierced!

His fingertip touched his brow.

Elder Ming Ku froze instantly, the light in his eyes rapidly dimming. A tiny red dot appeared on his brow, and all the life force, soul, and even the Dao principles he had cultivated within his body were utterly annihilated by the Chaos Sword Qi in an instant.

Netherworld Clan Elder, Saint stage mid-phase expert, Ming Ku, deceased!

Xuanyuan Che flicked his finger and reached out, collecting Elder Ming Ku's bone banner and storage ring into his possession.

"All done. Now, this fruit and the sapling belong to us."

Lei Mingjian and the others snapped out of their shock. Although it wasn't the first time they had witnessed Xuanyuan Che's terrifying power, seeing him so effortlessly crush powerful enemies still left them awestruck every time.

There was no greater display of invincibility than this!

"The energy contained within this Annihilation Star God Fruit is extremely vast and unique. Senior Sister Mu's Guixu Sword Body is compatible with it. If she can absorb it, her sword soul should be able to advance further, and she might even be able to condense an Annihilation Sword Heart," Xuanyuan Che analyzed. "As for this sapling, we'll take it back and plant it on Xuanqing Peak. Nurturing it with Chaos Qi, it might become a guardian spirit root in the future."

He walked to the edge of the blood pool and looked at the Star God Fruit that had not yet matured. Although unripe, its foundation had been built up extremely robustly by the Netherworld Clan with vast resources.

"Let me give you a hand." Xuanyuan Che rummaged through his storage ring, throwing in all sorts of divine soul artifacts with powerful auras as if they were free.

The blood pool surged, and the stellar patterns and Annihilation Runes on the surface of the Star God Fruit instantly lit up, reaching perfection at an astonishing speed!