Two Wind Staff.
Liu Chengfeng let out a long howl. His staff rose like a raging gale, and he wielded it like a demon. Staff shadows layered over one another, leaving no opening untouched.
The Thunder Sound Staff stirred up gusts of sinister wind, carrying a bone-chilling cold.
Wang Jing shouted and retreated at top speed. He was as swift as the wind, his sword as quick as a leopard.
He was fast, but Liu Chengfeng was faster.
Liu Chengfeng's Wind Staff came crashing down like a torrential downpour, leaving no opening untouched. Wang Jing could barely fend it off; even his dense swordplay couldn't stop it.
His attention wavered for an instant, and the Thunder Sound Staff slammed into him. With a crack, his bones broke.
Half the bones in his body shattered beneath the Thunder Sound Staff, staining his clothes red. Wang Jing screamed in pain and retreated again.
The Wind Staff whirled, swift and relentless. The sinister wind it stirred tossed Wang Jing about, slowing him down until his body faltered.
With a bang, another staff strike landed. Wang Jing screamed and fell to the ground, his flesh mangled and his bones shattered.
"How dare you—"
Three protectors rushed forward, trying to save Wang Jing.
With a whoosh, black stones filled the sky. They cut through the air with sharp whistles, gleaming coldly as they rained down like flowers scattered by a celestial maiden, shooting toward the three protectors.
Jiang Yu was like a raging gale, kicking up sand and stones as he rushed over first to join Liu Chengfeng.
"Brother, leave them to me. Go!"
Jiang Yu darted among the three protectors with his footwork, while black stones attacked from every direction, holding them off.
Liu Chengfeng charged forward with his staff and attacked Wang Jing again. Terrified out of his wits, Wang Jing turned and fled toward Gu Yao.
How could Wang Jing's speed compare to Liu Chengfeng's? Liu Chengfeng caught up with him in just a few strides.
The Thunder Sound Staff came crashing down. Wang Jing raised his sword to meet it, but with a bang, the sword was knocked flying.
The Three Mountain Staff weighed as much as a mountain—fifty thousand jin.
"Senior Brother, save me—"
At death's door, Wang Jing screamed, but it was already too late.
The staff smashed into his head, sending blood and brains flying. No matter how strong the Treasure Mountain body was, a shattered skull meant certain death.
"You villain—"
Gu Yao was horrified. He roared in fury, having been too busy trying to manage everything at once.
Before he could stop Jiang Yu and the others, Liu Chengfeng had already killed more than twenty disciples. Even Wang Jing had met his end.
Liu Chengfeng leaped into the air like a rising immortal, soaring over the heads of the Ascending Wu Clan's experts. He rose high and fast.
The Treasure Mountain Divine Treasury allowed one to leap through the air: a hundred meters at the first rank, two hundred at the second, and three hundred at the third.
Now Liu Chengfeng had leaped nearly three hundred meters, approaching the third rank's limit.
How could the Ascending Wu Clan's experts possibly catch him?
Using the Purple Mist Flying Waterfall Technique, Liu Chengfeng skimmed over the tips of high towers, cleared half a long street, and closed in on Gu Yao.
"Die—"
Liu Chengfeng plunged downward. His three staffs formed a mountain, the staff itself like a mountain, its force overwhelming. It shattered the air and broke armor as it came crashing down on Gu Yao.
Gu Yao had never expected Liu Chengfeng to arrive so quickly. His expression changed drastically.
He let out a long howl. As his heart method circulated, his muscles and bones crackled throughout his body, and he twisted like a dragon.
The Incense Dragon Heart Method was a top-grade Human Scroll technique, powerful beyond measure. Gu Yao seemed to transform into a flood dragon, with iron bones and dragon-like sinews.
The Dragon Rising Sword in his hand shot upward, rising like a dragon lifting its head. Sword force exploded, surging furiously toward Liu Chengfeng.
With a thunderous crash, Gu Yao blocked Liu Chengfeng's staff strike. The roof beneath his feet shattered, and he rolled over, landing in the street.
Liu Chengfeng raced after him.
"Hand over your life—"
Gu Yao was Ascending Wu Rong's direct disciple and the Ascending Wu Clan's senior brother. Among the younger generation, he was exceptionally powerful.
Faced with Liu Chengfeng's ferocity, he showed no fear. His fighting spirit soared.
He let out a long howl like a dragon's roar. Dragon patterns appeared across his Treasure Mountain body, as if he were about to transform into a horned dragon. Every inch of his muscles unleashed ten thousand jin of force.
The Dragon Rising Sword in his hand rang and quivered, brimming with a dragon's sharpness.
The sword was forged from high-grade Colored Copper, making it on par with the Thunder Sound Staff in Liu Chengfeng's hands.
His sword rose like burning incense, and a dragon shape appeared among its shadows.
The Incense Burning Three Dragon Sword, a high-grade Human Scroll technique.
As Gu Yao slashed at Liu Chengfeng, the Sword Qi he unleashed carved cracks into the stone pavement.
One sword strike carried eighty thousand jin of force. Its edge was sharp, its power explosively strong.
This single strike could cleave through thick, towering city walls.
"Good! Bring it on—"
Liu Chengfeng shouted and swung his staff at Gu Yao. It was still the Mountain Staff.
His blood energy erupted. The staff weighed as much as a mountain, its mountain-like momentum crashing down as its force burst through the air.
With a bang, Liu Chengfeng took Gu Yao's eighty-thousand-jin sword strike head-on. His shoulders swayed slightly.
Gu Yao was stunned. He stared at Liu Chengfeng in disbelief.
At the third rank of Treasure Mountain, one's strength could reach a limit of a hundred thousand jin. His eighty thousand jin made him one of the best among those at the same rank.
Yet Liu Chengfeng, only at the first rank of Treasure Mountain, had withstood it. It was absurd.
"I've decided you're going to die."
Liu Chengfeng stared at Gu Yao, a vicious glint in his eyes.
Gu Yao had led men to burn down Wu Dao Sect. Liu Chengfeng was determined to kill him.
"I'll take your dog's life—"
Gu Yao's killing intent surged. As a third-rank Treasure Mountain expert, he refused to believe he couldn't kill a first-rank Treasure Mountain enemy.
His heart method circulated, his blood energy surged, and dragon roars rang out. The dragon patterns on his body gleamed as he raised the Dragon Rising Sword and unleashed the Incense Burning Three Dragon Sword.
His Sword Qi took the shape of a dragon, twenty to thirty meters long and incomparably sharp.
"What a fine heart method."
Seeing dragon patterns emerge on Gu Yao's body and his mortal flesh unleash power like a True Dragon's, Liu Chengfeng couldn't help coveting it. He wanted to seize the heart method.
A top-grade Human Scroll heart method was already the highest-ranking technique the Ascending Wu Clan possessed.
"Take another staff strike!"
Liu Chengfeng surged forward like a man possessed. The Purple Mist Flying Waterfall Technique erupted, turning him into a shooting star as his staff burst through the air.
Four Thunder Staff.
The staff crashed down like a thunderclap. The Thunder Sound Staff rang out with wave after wave of thunder, each one louder than the last.
The staff was like a thunderbolt, its rumble shaking the soul. Combined with the Purple Mist Flying Waterfall Technique, Liu Chengfeng's strike also surpassed eighty thousand jin of force.
Gu Yao's expression changed. He let out a long howl, his blood energy surging like a dragon as his sword light slashed upward. The Dragon Radiance Sword Stance swelled in power, cleaving the stone pavement open for thirty meters.
Sword and staff collided with a bang, evenly matched.
Gu Yao was shaken too. He had never imagined that someone at the first rank of Treasure Mountain could fight him to a standstill.
His heart method, sword technique, and weapon were all united in the Dragon Radiance Sword Stance. Among those at the same rank, he was nearly invincible.
Now a first-rank Treasure Mountain enemy had stopped him. It was beyond belief.
Liu Chengfeng's heart method and movement technique were innate, and his staff technique was top-grade. He fought above his rank, overpowering a third-rank Treasure Mountain expert, growing more valiant with every exchange.
Gu Yao also howled without pause. His sword moved with a dragon's momentum, his body like a dragon's, his blood energy powerful and overbearing, and dragon patterns protected him like dragon scales.
This made Liu Chengfeng covet the technique all the more. If he seized this heart method and merged it with his Gold Knot Heart Method, transforming it into an innate method, it would become even more subtle and substantial, and its power would grow stronger.
"Get back!"
On the other side, the Fourth Elder was also slaughtering his way through the enemy ranks, carving out a path of blood until he reached Liu Chengfeng.
The Fourth Elder cultivated a Sage Scroll technique and heart method, both lower-grade. The Ascending Wu Clan's experts, by contrast, cultivated only Human Scroll techniques.
The Fourth Elder was practically invincible among those of the same rank. Even the Wu Clan's Second Elder was no match for him.
The Fourth Elder swung down with all his might, sending the Wu Clan's Second Elder flying.
He raced after him and brought the Crescent Moon Spade down, aiming to take the Wu Clan's Second Elder's head.
"Don't you dare!"
A furious shout rang out, and a surge of Witch Qi swept in like raging waves, forcing the Fourth Elder back.
"Ascending Wu Rong—"
The Ascending Wu Clan's patriarch had arrived to save the day. The Fourth Elder's expression changed drastically, but he still swung the Crescent Moon Spade and hacked at him furiously.
Ascending Wu Rong snorted coldly. His hand came down like a hammer, striking straight at the Fourth Elder with the domineering force of an Earth Splitting blow.
The Fourth Elder let out a long howl. Origin Mud protected him as City Guard Armor appeared and covered his body, allowing him to take Ascending Wu Rong's strike head-on.
At the fourth rank of the Treasure Mountain Divine Treasury, one fused with Origin Mud to shape the body.
True blood strengthened one's blood energy, while Origin Mud protected the body.
The Fourth Elder's Origin Mud was Imperial City Temple Mud. When it appeared, it manifested as Imperial City Temple Armor, protecting him.
With a thunderous crash, the Fourth Elder actually blocked Ascending Wu Rong's strike.
"Fine Origin Mud!"
Ascending Wu Rong couldn't help but envy it when his own strike was blocked.
Imperial City Temple Mud was high-grade City Mud, bestowed by the imperial family.
As the head of his clan, Ascending Wu Rong had already entered the Reception Divine Treasury, yet his Origin Mud was only middle-grade City Mud.
Although the Fourth Elder's Imperial City Temple Armor blocked the force of the strike, Ascending Wu Rong's Witch Fire surged into him right afterward, blasting him away. He spat out a mouthful of blood.
That was the difference between the Reception Divine Treasury and the Treasure Mountain Divine Treasury.
The Reception Divine Treasury could draw upon the natural power of heaven and earth, surpassing physical harm.
The Fourth Elder's City Guard Armor could block force, but it couldn't block Ascending Wu Rong's Witch Fire.
"Elder!"
Liu Chengfeng immediately leaped out of the fight and retreated to the Fourth Elder's side.
Jiang Yu and the other disciples also withdrew, gathering around the Fourth Elder and forming a battle circle.
Ascending Wu Rong personally led several hundred experts from the Ascending Rong Clan as they surrounded them, sealing off every escape route for the Cloud Rising Sect disciples.
"The Cloud Rising Sect is asking for death. You should have handed over that Liu boy from the start, and none of this would have happened."
Ascending Wu Rong was certain of victory. He intended not only to kill Liu Chengfeng, but to wipe out the Fourth Elder and the others as well.
"Let's fight them to the death!"
The Cloud Rising Sect had nowhere left to retreat, but not a single disciple was afraid. Every one of them was ready to die.
Liu Chengfeng drew a deep breath. The World Tree unfurled, and the Blood Sea churned.
When it came time to risk his life, who had he ever feared? If he steeled his heart, he could drain the spiritual energy from the entire Great Meng Mountain.
Just as they were about to fight to the death, a thunderous cry rang out. A powerful cavalry unit charged over, unstoppable as an iron sword thrusting straight into the fray.
They forcibly split apart the several hundred experts from the Cloud Rising Sect and the Ascending Wu Clan.
Among the cavalry, a man sat atop a tall Dragon Elephant, looking down at everyone.
He wore Ding Armor. Broad-waisted and tall, he had a tiger's head, a swallow's forehead, round eyes, and thick lips. His presence loomed like a range of peaks, oppressive in the extreme, and a cold, murderous aura radiated from him.
Su Youqian stood beside him, winking at Liu Chengfeng.
"Who gave you the nerve to slaughter people in Great Meng City?"
"City Lord Chen!"
Seeing the man, Ascending Wu Meng's expression changed drastically.
City Lord Chen—Chen Bao of the Great Meng Chen Family, and a member of Qiuchi Kingdom's imperial family—was the ruler of Great Meng City.
The Great Meng Chen Family had once been a minor Aristocratic Clan. But after Lady Chen married into the imperial family, she gained access to resources and cultivated the Great Dao.
She became one of the three strongest experts in Qiuchi Kingdom. The Chen Family leaped from obscurity to prominence and made its name known far and wide.
Lady Chen was Su Youqian's ancestor, and she was also the Old Matriarch of the Su Family.
Su Youqian valued loyalty. At the critical moment, he had brought reinforcements to the Cloud Rising Sect.
"Who gave you Ascending Wu Clan dogs the nerve to slaughter people on my turf?"
Chen Bao looked down at Ascending Wu Rong. His presence pressed down on the experts present until they could barely breathe.
There was no doubt that Chen Bao was siding with the Fourth Elder. The Fourth Elder belonged to the imperial family; even if he was from a collateral branch, he was still part of the Su Family—one of their own.
Ascending Wu Rong's expression shifted. Chen Bao wasn't relying on his status to bully others; he was a powerful expert at the fourth rank of the Reception Divine Treasury.
Ascending Wu Rong was only at the second rank of the Reception Divine Treasury. He was no match for Chen Bao.
"City Lord, this boy committed murder. He killed Young Master Zhao's father. Young Master Zhao joined the Divine Dynasty and was appointed a Heavenly God. The Ancient Li Royal Court wants this boy's life in payment."
Ascending Wu Rong could only invoke the power behind him.
"Don't wave a chicken feather around as if it were an imperial edict. Great Meng City hasn't received any orders from the Ancient Li Royal Court, and neither has Qiuchi Kingdom."
Chen Bao's expression turned cold as he stared at Ascending Wu Rong.
Ascending Wu Rong was left awkwardly speechless.
The Ancient Li Royal Court had issued no orders, but surely those below knew what to do.
Zhao Jinnian had been killed at their hands. Even if they hadn't yet been reprimanded by their superiors, they still had to capture the killer and provide an explanation.
This wasn't just the Ascending Wu Clan's intention; it was also the Dragon Ascending Holy Sect's.
The Dragon Ascending Holy Sect wanted to curry favor with the Ancient Li Royal Court, and the Ascending Wu Clan wanted to curry favor with the Dragon Ascending Holy Sect.
"Path Clearing Envoy, get out of Great Meng City. Otherwise, don't blame me if no one leaves alive."
Chen Bao roared, his manner utterly domineering as he ordered them out from across the street.
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