The Final Opponent! (Seeking Collection!)

The entire training ground fell into absolute silence.

On the viewing platform, True Person Muxuan's expression shifted abruptly, while Ren Baili, who had just accepted the heavy wagers, widened his eyes as he stared at the scene below.

Anyone could see the disparity in strength.

It was not as if other Xiantian Lifeforms skilled in fire manipulation hadn't tried to counter wood with fire before, but the result was always nothing more than a sound thrashing from the Vine Wood Puppet.

Yet, the massive grindstone formed by the Six Paths Water-Fire Taiji Diagram unleashed by Zhou Hao was clearly far superior in power to those of previous challengers.

"Good!"

Cao Rong was the first to cheer, and among the Xiantian Lifeforms watching from below the stage, the newcomers were the loudest in their applause.

"Those who cultivate the Chiming Nine Heavens Map are naturally adept at controlling water and fire; it's no surprise its power exceeds other techniques," Ren Baili said, glancing sideways at Cao Rong. "A Vine Wood Puppet at the Purple Mansion stage is not so easily destroyed."

Cao Rong couldn't help but roll his eyes, thinking to himself, You talk as if the Vine Wood Puppet belongs to you.

To completely destroy the Vine Wood Puppet is incredibly difficult!

On the stage, this thought flashed through Zhou Hao's mind as well.

Regardless of how many matches he had watched from below, only when facing the Vine Wood Puppet himself did he realize how hard it was to fully dismantle a puppet with a body at the Purple Mansion stage.

To the onlookers, it seemed as though the six long vines had snapped the moment the Taiji Grindstone appeared, as if it were an easy feat.

Only Zhou Hao knew that in that instant, he had pushed his divine sense to its absolute limit.

These were merely vines as thick as a child's leg; the idea of using the crushing and grinding power of the Taiji Grindstone to destroy the Vine Wood Puppet's three-meter-tall, burly frame was nothing but a delusion.

However, Zhou Hao had to destroy the Vine Wood Puppet within ten breaths.

Otherwise, as time passed, the puppet would only grow stronger and reveal more techniques, and he would be the one to lose.

Fortunately, my divine sense can pierce through your facade, Zhou Hao thought, the corners of his mouth curling up. Destroying you completely is hard, but I only need to destroy your core... that should be enough!

Whoosh!

Zhou Hao's figure suddenly moved.

Dragging the Red Gold Copper Rod along the ground, he charged toward the Vine Wood Puppet like a gale, covering nearly ten zhang in an instant.

Bang! The stage trembled, and stone and earth shattered.

Zhou Hao stomped his right leg heavily onto the ground, his internal True Yuan and divine power surging according to the 'Water-Fire Spiral' technique. A massive force erupted from the earth, traveling through his waist and abdomen into his arms.

Hoo!

He swung the Red Gold Copper Rod with his right hand; due to the sheer speed, the friction between the rod and the air caused flames to ignite on its surface. The Red Gold Copper Rod then slammed into the two thick arms the Vine Wood Puppet had raised to block.

Boom! Wood chips flew, turning to ash from the flames on the rod before they even hit the ground.

Under the combined force of Zhou Hao's True Yuan, divine power, and divine sense, the Vine Wood Puppet's arms—thicker than a grown man's waist—were like a mantis trying to stop a chariot; they shattered with a crisp crack.

Yet, the most violent surge of Zhou Hao's force had been largely dissipated by the puppet's arms.

"The little fellow is quite fierce," Ren Baili exhaled.

But before his suspended heart could settle, he saw Zhou Hao take another half-step forward, and the Red Gold Copper Rod, which had already spent its momentum, erupted with dazzling flames once more.

Rumble~~~ A sound like the earth shaking and the mountains swaying echoed out.

The Red Gold Copper Rod in Zhou Hao's hands swept across the Vine Wood Puppet's chest.

After carving a massive gash into its vine-woven torso, the rod slammed heavily into the stage.

The sturdy stage, twenty zhang in length and width and forged by True Person Muxuan using earth-type spells, was instantly half-destroyed.

The immense force transmitted downward caused the very earth beneath the stage to sink and shatter into a deep crater.

The body of the Vine Wood Puppet, woven from countless tangled vines, now revealed a gaping wound several feet wide in its chest. Amidst the broken vines, a green seed the size of a chicken egg, covered in Dao patterns, was exposed to Zhou Hao's eyes.

"That's it!" Zhou Hao's gaze sharpened. With his left hand, he executed a 'Splitting Wind and Slashing Waves' with the Red Gold Copper Rod, turning it into a streak of light that sliced through the chest wound toward the green seed.

Snap! The green seed shattered.

"Taiji Grindstone," Zhou Hao thought.

Boom! Layers of the Six Paths Water-Fire Taiji Diagram appeared out of thin air, enveloping and grinding the Vine Wood Puppet.

Having lost its core seed, the puppet's body instantly turned to rotten wood, and under the crushing force of the Taiji Grindstone, it was shredded to pieces.

The shattered, withered vines were licked by the flames within the Taiji Grindstone, erupting into a raging fire.

The entire training ground—the ten thousand soldiers of the Green Flood Dragon Army, the six hundred Xiantian Lifeforms, the two Purple Mansion lieutenants, and the one Myriad Phenomena general—all stared at Zhou Hao standing before the roaring flames, momentarily struck dumb.

He destroyed the Vine Wood Puppet in a single breath?

Everyone was stunned.

Just moments ago, some had sneered that Zhou Hao was scared witless and wouldn't last a single breath. Many hadn't even seen clearly; they only felt that Zhou Hao had smashed the puppet's arms with one strike, carved a hole in its chest, and then with another strike, caused the puppet to lose its life force before it dissolved into flames.

"Brother Zhou Hao..." Zhao Hu looked at Zhou Hao on the stage, his body trembling uncontrollably. "He's even fiercer than when he fought me!"

Boom~~~~

Uproar!

The entire training ground erupted into a commotion!

"Incredible! Brother Zhou Hao is too incredible!" Shangguan Yun clapped his fan-sized palms together with a thunderous sound, shouting, "From now on, I don't submit to anyone but Brother Zhou Hao!"

"This guy..." Shangguan Yu was dumbstruck, no longer caring whether her brother's loud shouting was embarrassing or not.

"Amazing!"

"This brother is too fierce!"

"He's a monster! Who would dare spar with him now? After smashing the Vine Wood Puppet, the residual force even destroyed the arena floor."

On the stage, Zhou Hao felt great hearing the cheers from all around and smiled, offering a slight bow to the crowd.

Sixty High-Grade Origin Stones were in the bag!

...In the spectator stands.

Cao Rong's face was flushed with excitement, while Yang Yun beside him wore a look of shock, her beautiful eyes fixed intently on Zhou Hao on the stage.

Even on the other side, Li Zhan, who had been sitting with his eyes closed in bitter cultivation, had opened his eyes and was watching Zhou Hao from afar.

"Truly impressive. Does the fourth level of the Chiming Nine Heavens Map really possess such power?" The silver-haired elder looked down at the arena, his eyes filled with pleasant surprise. "General, what do you think?"

"The fourth level of the Chiming Nine Heavens Map shouldn't have such strength." True Person Muxuan shook his head. "That Zhou Hao must know a secret technique that can multiply his strength without causing much damage to his body."

"But how did he find the core of the Vine Wood Puppet so quickly?" Ren Baili frowned as he watched Zhou Hao, his heart full of confusion.

To destroy a Vine Wood Puppet, having great strength and the ability to damage its body was only one aspect; the most critical part was finding the seed core first.

The puppet seed, only the size of a chicken egg, could be anywhere inside the three-meter-tall Vine Wood Puppet.

Trying to destroy the puppet's body to find the seed was undoubtedly an extremely difficult task.

Even if Zhou Hao possessed a secret technique and his attack power was sufficient to destroy the Vine Wood Puppet, Ren Baili could not fathom how he had managed to strike with such precision that the puppet seed was exposed in a single blow.

Even if he were to step onto the stage himself to destroy the Vine Wood Puppet, he wouldn't have done it more cleanly than Zhou Hao.

"What a monster!" Unable to figure it out, Ren Baili stopped thinking about it.

He was a monster, after all! It was only normal for him to do what others could not.

"It's just that today's betting pool was a waste of effort; it won't even be enough to pay this kid."

...In front of the main spectator stand.

Zhou Hao, Hu Yong, and three others stood in a line, positioned in front of all the other Xiantian Lifeforms.

"The first round of trials is over. Ranked by endurance time: Hu Yong, thirty breaths; Yang Qiong, twenty breaths; Xi Qianshui, nineteen breaths; Nan Ming, nineteen breaths." The silver-haired elder's gaze swept over the five of them before landing on Zhou Hao. "And... Zhou Hao, who destroyed the Vine Wood Puppet."

Shock, awe, admiration...

Feeling the various gazes cast by the four people beside him, Zhou Hao nodded slightly to them and smiled at Yang Qiong.

Both Yang Qiong and Miao Ying had participated in the competition for the new commander. Miao Ying specialized in blade techniques and gu insects, and her strength was severely restricted against the Vine Wood Puppet; she hadn't even lasted ten breaths.

Yang Qiong, on the other hand, was most skilled in formations. He had relied on setting up various defensive arrays on the stage, dragging the fight out for twenty breaths before the Vine Wood Puppet's outburst shattered his formations and knocked him off the stage.

"Next, it will be one-on-one duels. The final winner will be the new commander," the silver-haired elder announced. "Let me state the order of the matches..."

"Sir, I forfeit," Yang Qiong suddenly spoke up.

"Forfeit?" The silver-haired elder paused. "Are you sure?"

"Having seen Brother Zhou Hao's strength, I know I am inferior. Since I'm going to lose anyway, I might as well forfeit," Yang Qiong said respectfully.

Such a ferocious powerhouse—only a fool would fight him.

I'm not like Er Hu, who can survive being split in two.

"Sir, I also forfeit."

"I forfeit."

Seeing Yang Qiong forfeit, Xi Qianshui and Nan Ming immediately followed suit.

"You are all forfeiting?" The silver-haired elder nodded and looked toward Hu Yong.

He understood that although five people had passed the first round of trials, the gap in strength between them was indeed vast; the strongest among them were undoubtedly Hu Yong and Zhou Hao.

"Brother Zhou Hao," Hu Yong said, looking at Zhou Hao beside him. "I didn't think much of it when I saw you with Boss Cao and the others yesterday, but your performance today has truly surprised me."

"You flatter me," Zhou Hao said softly. "Brother Hu Yong's movement technique is also something I find breathtaking."

"I have recently mastered my movement technique, and I am confident that I fear no one in the Xiantian Battalion. Although Brother Zhou Hao is strong, I must try you out to be convinced." A smile appeared on Hu Yong's face.

"I was just hoping to learn from Brother Hu Yong's movement technique," Zhou Hao's eyes lit up, and he smiled in agreement.

He had been wondering where to learn a movement technique; sparring with Hu Yong, who had already grasped a trace of the True Meaning of the Dao, should yield some gains.

Making up for the missed update from the day before yesterday; yes, one more chapter to go.

Thank you all for your concern; my wife has been admitted to the hospital.

I will continue writing; there is much to do tomorrow.

I'll try to get more done and keep the updates at the normal time.