Who Won in the End?

"I, Xie Xun, am someone of standing in the outer sect, and I still intend to enter the inner sect. You can rest assured."

A smile rested on Xie Xun's face.

He reached out, took out a bulging bag of spirit stones, and tossed it onto the table.

"The spirit stones are right here. Take your time choosing the conditions."

Having said that, he gave a low shout, and his body suddenly began to swell.

The surrounding spectators immediately grew excited at the sight.

"It's coming, it's coming—this is the Blood-Melting Art!"

Listening to the discussions around him, Ye Xiu also learned of the Blood-Melting Art's origins.

It was said that the Blood-Melting Art was a secret legacy passed down by a mighty elder of the inner sect. It was a technique that refined the blood and flesh of other beings, assimilating them into one's own body to evolve it.

The more flesh and blood from other creatures one assimilated, the more terrifying the enhancement to one's physique became.

Cultivators had always focused on accumulating spiritual consciousness and spiritual power; the physique itself was their weak point.

If not for that, high-level cultivators would not be able to settle battles in an instant;

the higher one's cultivation realm, the more methods one had to kill others.

Thus, when higher-level cultivators fought, aside from the lengthy gathering of information and probing of each other's true strength, the real killing move was often decided in that single instant.

This technique could greatly strengthen a cultivator's physique, so its power naturally went without saying.

More importantly, it was a true art of both offense and defense.

Not only could it turn the blood and flesh of others into protection for oneself, it could even command the vengeful souls within to attack.

Relying on this, Xie Xun had swept across the outer sect, unrivaled among those of the same realm. He even had a record of defeating opponents above his realm.

One could say that aside from consuming an excessive amount of resources to cultivate, having an abysmally low success rate, and accumulating far too much karmic retribution, it had almost no drawbacks.

Hearing this, Ye Xiu suddenly became interested.

This technique sounded exceptionally suited to him instead.

His body had already become powerful due to his awakened ability.

With a powerful body came naturally sufficient endurance. As for the blood of other mutated beasts and demons, could he not obtain that stuff whenever he wanted in the Apocalypse World?

If he lacked anything, the Starfire Organization could acquire it for him.

It's decided. I'll find a way to get my hands on this thing later.

Ye Xiu silently made up his mind. During that interval, Xie Xun before him had also basically finished preparing.

His already tall body had swelled to more than twice its original size under the Blood-Melting Art's enhancement.

Like a small mountain, he blocked Ye Xiu's path.

The vicious ghosts swirling around him let out piercing howls that sent chills down one's spine.

"Come. I'm ready."

With the technique pushed to its limit, Xie Xun's voice had become somewhat muffled.

Ye Xiu did not care about any of that. He nodded rather casually and gave him a once-over.

"If you're scared, it's not too late to admit defeat. I won't take advantage of you either. You only need to tell me where that thing came from..."

Before Xie Xun could finish speaking, Ye Xiu suddenly raised the gun in his hand.

Bang!

A flash of fire streaked past.

Before anyone even had time to cry out, the ghosts shielding Xie Xun let out shrill screams and scattered in every direction.

A hole appeared in Xie Xun's chest, burrowing deep into his body.

"You've got to be kidding. You think this young master would be afraid of you?"

Ye Xiu's still-arrogant voice rang out. He stared at Xie Xun with disdain in his eyes.

"Could it be... could it be that he really couldn't block even a single move?"

At the sight, everyone present was clearly thrown into a panic.

No one had expected Xie Xun to truly be unable to withstand even one shot.

Yet judging from the current situation, it seemed that Ye Xiu, that arrogant fellow, was really going to win.

"Cough, cough..."

But after swaying a few times, Xie Xun did not collapse outright.

Splat.

Amid the sound of blood surging out, the crowd saw Xie Xun's formerly towering body shrink down in an instant.

Then, Xie Xun, restored to his original form, knelt halfway to the ground, his face pale.

"That move of yours really was formidable."

Xie Xun spoke with a light cough, but the crowd erupted in cheers.

Because Ye Xiu's earlier wager had been that Xie Xun could not withstand a single move from him. Now that Xie Xun could still speak, how could anyone say he had failed to block that move?

"What?"

Ye Xiu was clearly stunned by the sight before him. His eyes widened as he stared at Xie Xun, his face full of disbelief.

"How could you possibly withstand that move? In my perception, you had already..."

"Already lost the ability to resist, right?"

Xie Xun gazed deeply at Ye Xiu, then closed his eyes as though struggling with something. After a long while, he slowly opened them and let out a breath.

"You're right about that."

At those words, the crowd burst into an uproar. In their spiritual power perception, although Xie Xun looked somewhat weak,

he had undoubtedly not suffered much injury.

The hole left behind by that attack had also begun to gradually heal.

After letting out a long sigh, determination flashed through Xie Xun's eyes.

"This is a secret volume of the Blood-Melting Art: Rebirth from Death."

Seeing the confusion in everyone's eyes, Xie Xun began explaining bit by bit.

"Through the effect of Rebirth from Death, at the instant my defenses are broken and I can no longer endure the limit, I can draw upon the power I have accumulated over time to immediately return to my peak state for a short while."

"Doesn't that mean you get an extra life for free? The Blood-Melting Art is actually this terrifying?"

Upon hearing the explanation, someone in the crowd immediately cried out in shock. Everyone was frightened by the power of this move.

Just imagine it: in the midst of a fierce battle, you exhaust every effort and finally break through a powerful enemy's defenses. Just as your prepared killing move is about to send him on his way, you suddenly discover that the fellow before you has instantly returned to normal.

If this happened several times, never mind whether you could win—being scared alone would nearly scare you to death.

Thinking of this, everyone looked at Xie Xun with even greater wariness. Those at the ninth level of Qi Condensation who were preparing to participate in the advancement competition etched this detail deeply into their minds.

Xie Xun sighed. He knew that once he revealed this, he would surely draw the vigilance of others.

But if he did not say it, he had no confidence in persuading Ye Xiu before him.

"So what you mean is, you didn't block that move at first, but after using this secret art, you blocked it again?"

Ye Xiu looked at Xie Xun, a rare trace of astonishment appearing on his face.

"That's right. That's what I mean."

Xie Xun nodded, and silence fell between the two.

"But if we count it that way, who exactly won this wager?"

Someone suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence. Only then did everyone come to their senses. Yes—by that logic, who had actually won the wager?

Both sides now had their own reasoning.

On one side was Xie Xun. Through his own methods, he had indeed blocked that move.

But Ye Xiu could also say that the other party had not blocked the move in the first place—otherwise, why not fire another shot?

This kind of "every man has his reason, every woman has hers" argument gave everyone a headache.

Amid that awkward atmosphere, Ye Xiu was seen scratching his head in irritation.

"Fine, fine. Hah, call it my bad luck. Let's leave it at that. I have a proposal—how about we each take a step back?"