Boom!
The churning sea suddenly erupted as though a meteor had struck it from below, blasting a massive column of water hundreds of yards into the air.
Amid the flying spray, Qin Chen shot skyward like a cannonball and came to a steady hover in midair.
Not a single drop of water clung to him. Dark golden true essence flowed over his body, and he radiated an indescribable composure and dominance.
By now, the air above the Blood Reef Sea had long since been sealed so tightly that not a drop could pass through.
On the left stood the Blackwater Palace forces. Three enormous black spirit ships hovered in the air, their decks packed with over a hundred cultivators in black battle armor, all at the Golden Core stage or higher. Leading them was a middle-aged man in black robes with bloodshot eyes: Yin Tianzheng, master of Blackwater Palace, whose cultivation was at the late Nascent Soul stage.
On the right stood the Heavenly Sword Sect forces. Over a hundred sword cultivators stood upon flying swords, forming a vast sword formation whose sword energy soared into the sky. Their leader was a white-bearded elder, Jian Wuji, sect master of the Heavenly Sword Sect, likewise at the late Nascent Soul stage.
The instant Qin Chen appeared, over a hundred streams of divine sense locked onto him.
"That's him! Palace Master, that's the brat who entered Blood Sea Mad Saber's cave abode!" a Blackwater Palace elder shouted, pointing at Qin Chen.
Yin Tianzheng fixed Qin Chen with a murderous stare, his eyes bulging as though they might bleed, and roared through gritted teeth, "You little beast! You killed my son, Yin Wuque? Today I'll rip out your tendons and flay your skin, then pull out your soul and burn it in a sky lantern!"
Jian Wuji also snorted coldly, staring greedily at Qin Chen. "Brat, hand over the legacy and treasures you obtained in the cave abode. I can make the decision to leave your corpse intact."
Faced with threats from these two late Nascent Soul experts and surrounded by over a hundred Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators, Qin Chen did not even raise his eyelids.
He rolled his neck, sending a series of cracks through his bones, and said flatly, "You talk too much. Since you're all here, none of you will leave."
"Arrogant!"
"You're courting death!"
Before Yin Tianzheng or Jian Wuji could speak, their subordinates erupted in fury.
On the Blackwater Palace side, over thirty late Golden Core Blackwater Blood Guards attacked immediately. Holding specially crafted black spears, they hurled them with all their strength. Over thirty spears turned into black lightning, shrieking through the air and cutting off every avenue of retreat for Qin Chen.
"That's all?"
Qin Chen sneered, showing no intention of dodging. He did not even take out a magical treasure.
He simply stepped forward, clenched his right fist, and threw a plain punch straight into the dense mass of spear shadows ahead.
Boom!
The ten motes of micro star-dust circulated within him at once, unleashing terrifying physical strength. His punch blasted the air apart, forming a visible white shock wave that swept forward like a tsunami.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The thirty-odd spears, forged from deep sea cold iron and capable of piercing a Golden Core cultivator's defenses, snapped inch by inch like brittle dried noodles the instant they touched the shock wave, exploding into a heap of scrap metal.
But it was not over yet.
Without losing momentum, the shock wave slammed into the Blackwater Blood Guards.
Bang, bang, bang, bang!
A string of sounds like bursting watermelons rang out. The dozen or so Blackwater Blood Guards at the very front did not even have time to scream. Their battle armor shattered outright, and the savage force of the punch blasted their bodies into clouds of bloody mist!
One punch had instantly killed over a dozen late Golden Core cultivators!
Dead silence fell over the entire scene.
Everyone who had been clamoring to kill Qin Chen sucked in a cold breath, their eyes nearly popping out.
"Wh... what kind of monster is this? He didn't even use true essence, just physical strength?" A Heavenly Sword Sect elder's voice trembled.
"Don't panic! He must have used some secret art that overdraws his blood and vitality! Everyone, attack together and wear him down!" Yin Tianzheng roared. Though shocked, his hatred over his son's death had robbed him of reason.
"Heavenly Sword Sect disciples, form the Heavenly Astral Sword Formation! Kill!" Jian Wuji also realized something was wrong and immediately gave the order.
In an instant, the Heavenly Sword Sect's hundred-odd sword cultivators formed sword seals in unison. Over a hundred flying swords converged in the air, transforming into a gigantic sword of light a thousand feet long. With the might to destroy heaven and earth, it cleaved down at Qin Chen's head.
At the same time, the remaining Blackwater Palace cultivators unleashed their magical treasures, sending multicolored attacks pelting toward Qin Chen like a torrential downpour.
Facing this sky-blotting barrage, Qin Chen not only stood his ground but laughed aloud. "Well met!"
Whoosh!
Qin Chen vanished from where he stood. He was so fast that even Nascent Soul cultivators could catch only an afterimage with their divine sense.
The next second, he appeared directly beneath the thousand-foot sword of light.
"Shatter!"
Qin Chen thrust both hands upward, unleashing the power of his ten motes of micro star-dust without reservation. With his bare hands, he actually caught the gigantic sword condensed by over a hundred sword cultivators!
Clang-!
A deafening clash of metal rang through the clouds.
Qin Chen's hands were as steady as Mount Tai, without so much as a scratch on his skin. The gigantic sword, by contrast, began trembling violently under his terrifying strength, and massive cracks spread across its blade.
"Impossible!" Jian Wuji shrieked in terror.
"Break!"
Qin Chen suddenly exerted his arms and tore outward.
Boom!
The thousand-foot sword shattered with a thunderous crash, scattering into specks of light across the sky. Struck by the backlash through their linked energies, the hundred-odd Heavenly Sword Sect sword cultivators all spewed blood at once and tumbled from the air like dumplings dropped into a pot.
Without pausing, Qin Chen flashed forward and charged straight into the Blackwater Palace crowd.
What followed was a one-sided slaughter.
Qin Chen was like a primordial savage beast charging into a flock of sheep. There were no flashy spells, only the purest violence.
One punch smashed an early Nascent Soul elder into pulp, magical treasure and all.
One kick snapped an enormous black spirit ship in half at its middle, and the shock killed every cultivator aboard.
He casually seized a Golden Core cultivator by the neck and hurled him at another man like a stone. The two collided, their bones and tendons snapping instantly as they died on the spot.
Too fast! Too ruthless!
Qin Chen's body was as hard as an immortal artifact. Others' magical treasures could not leave so much as a white mark on him, while even a casual touch from him left them dead or injured.
In less than half an incense stick's time, more than half of the two hundred-odd people brought by Blackwater Palace and the Heavenly Sword Sect were dead. Severed limbs littered the sea, and the water had been stained dark red.
"A devil! He's a devil!"
"Run! We can't beat him!"
The survivors broke down completely. Sect orders, vengeance-all were thrown to the backs of their minds as they fled in every direction for their lives.
"You think you can come and go as you please? Do you really think I'm made of clay?"
Before you continue