Huang Sha's face alternated between green and red. It was practically unbearable to look at.
Fury churned inside him, and he wished he could hammer Ye Xuan to death immediately.
He had originally stepped forward intending to force Ye Xuan to fight, then beat him to death.
Instead, Ye Xuan had turned the tables on him, leaving him riding a tiger with no way to get off.
Fighting someone at the ninth level of Golden Core was far less pressure than fighting someone at the fifth level of Nascent Soul, but wouldn't the result be the same?
When that ninth-level Golden Core cultivator said he could kill him within ten moves, he really could.
Even though Huang Sha possessed monstrous talent, was deeply bloodthirsty, and had endured the tempering of blood and fire on the Asura Battlefield.
The gap between their cultivation realms was still something he could not bridge.
If he dared fight that ninth-level Golden Core cultivator, the man really could kill him. There was no doubt about it.
Seeing Huang Sha remain silent, Ye Xuan sneered. "You don't dare do this, and you don't dare do that. What can you even do? You really are trash, an utter waste."
"When you said all that earlier, I thought you were strong. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect you to be so disappointing."
"But you were right about one thing. Those disciples of your Carefree Holy Land are all weaklings."
"Every last one of them was so weak, yet so arrogant, aggressively demanding a fight to the death with this Holy Son. And what happened? They were all dead before I'd even properly warmed up."
Countless people stared wide-eyed, utterly stunned.
Holy shit, this Holy Son was so arrogant!
You're slapping the Carefree Holy Land in the face like this. Aren't you fucking afraid they'll fly into a rage and cut you down?
Fine, this is the Ancient Desolate Holy Land. Maybe they can't kill you here, or don't dare to, but are you never going outside again?
The Holy Lord of the Carefree Holy Land might not act personally, but what about those elders? They would absolutely come to kill you themselves.
Ye Xuan did not care. He continued, "How about this, then? At the sixth level of Essence Condensation, I challenge every Carefree Holy Land disciple here in the Meridian Opening and Essence Condensation Realms. What do you say?"
"I'll fight all of you alone, and it'll be a fight to the death. If you can kill me, I'll deserve it. It'll mean I wasn't strong enough and didn't deserve to be the Holy Son. I guarantee the Ancient Desolate Holy Land won't make trouble over it."
The entire crowd erupted again.
Arrogant as those words were, the proposal was feasible.
If the Carefree Holy Land sent enough Essence Condensation cultivators to surround and kill Ye Xuan, they stood a very real chance of succeeding.
Of course, the price would certainly be steep. A whole heap of deaths would be inevitable.
As for Meridian Opening cultivators, forget it. Before Ye Xuan, they did not even qualify as cannon fodder. They could barely deplete his Spiritual Qi, so there was little point.
But would the Carefree Holy Land accept?
If they did, it meant they would have to prepare to throw lives into the pit.
If they refused, it would be even more humiliating.
Their Wheel Sea peak cultivator had challenged someone at the sixth level of Essence Condensation to a one-on-one death match, and he had shown no fear.
Now, with his Essence Condensation cultivation, he was challenging all their Meridian Opening and Essence Condensation disciples. There was nothing wrong with that, was there?
Arrogant!
Ye Xuan really was arrogant!
"The Holy Son is so handsome!"
"Have you noticed? The Holy Son really is getting more and more charming. I like him so much."
"If I could marry such a monstrously talented, domineering, and handsome young hero, I'd gladly give up a hundred years of my life."
Countless women wore lovestruck expressions. From the looks they gave Ye Xuan, they practically wished they could pull him into their arms.
If Ye Xuan had possessed no strength, no halo, and no talent, saying such things would have been shameless and arrogant.
But he possessed the Chaos Sacred Body, his talents were countless, and he was the Holy Son formally invested by the Ancient Desolate Holy Land.
Not only that, Ye Xuan had slain opponents above his cultivation realm before the eyes of the world, crushing them decisively and proving his strength.
That being the case, these words were no longer arrogance, but confidence and masculine charm.
At least, that was what those lovestruck women thought.
Looking at the expressions of those lovestruck women below, Ye Xuan could not help twitching the corner of his mouth.
Did I say something wrong? What are those looks supposed to mean? Sigh, this damned charm of mine.
Meanwhile, the powerful figures of the Carefree Holy Land, their faces livid, had begun rapidly exchanging voice transmissions.
They were considering the feasibility of this matter.
With a crowd of Essence Condensation cultivators fighting Ye Xuan, they could still kill him, provided there were enough of them.
After all, Ye Xuan was human, not a god. His Spiritual Qi was limited, and so was his stamina. Neither was inexhaustible.
But they would certainly pay a terrible price. Was it worth it?
The powerful figures of the Carefree Holy Land conferred through voice transmissions and soon reached a decision.
They would accept the challenge!
Since Ye Xuan had not accepted Huang Sha's challenge, they could only kill him another way.
The Chaos Sacred Body was simply too monstrous, and Ye Xuan had already proven just how monstrous he was.
Once someone like him grew into his strength, the Ancient Desolate Holy Land would probably stand supreme over the entire Eastern Wasteland.
No one wanted to see this fallen imperial sect rise again.
Now that they had an opportunity to kill Ye Xuan openly and legitimately, they were still willing to pay the price.
But their faction alone would not do. They had to join forces with other factions.
The rise of the Ancient Desolate Holy Land would benefit none of them. There was no reason for the Carefree Holy Land alone to pay the price.
Han Bingning and the several ancestors naturally noticed this subtle development as well.
Their hearts could not help growing heavy.
They inwardly cursed Ye Xuan for being far too arrogant, far too lawless.
There, happy now? Those people really are going to throw lives at you to kill you. Enjoying yourself?
But though they were worried, they could not say anything.
The Holy Son's status was still very high.
Ye Xuan had only just been invested as Holy Son, and before everyone's eyes at that. Now that he himself had issued such a challenge, what could they do?
Ye Xuan also noticed the voice transmissions between the powerful figures below. He was a little taken aback, but did not take it to heart.
Damn, they'd even accept this? He was utterly speechless too.
His original plan had been to slap the Carefree Holy Land in the face for a while, then accept Huang Sha's challenge and kill him.
He believed that once he killed Huang Sha, today's investiture ceremony would draw to a complete close, and he would achieve godlike fame in a single battle, making his name known throughout the Eastern Wasteland.
He had never expected that, after his offhand remark, the other side would actually decide to throw lives at him to kill him.
Just how much hatred and resentment did this take?
Ye Xuan grumbled inwardly, but of course, he was not afraid.
He was the Holy Son of the Ancient Desolate Holy Land. Both Han Bingning and the twelve ancestors had given him plenty of resources.
Besides, he was a man with a system, and he had obtained plenty of good things from signing in during this time.
These people wanted to bury him beneath a pile of lives? He only wanted to say that they were dreaming.
Soon, the Carefree Holy Land reached its decision.
The elder who had wanted to kill Ye Xuan from the very beginning said, "Very well. Since the Holy Son has made such a request, our Carefree Holy Land naturally cannot refuse."
"But I wonder whether the Holy Son can truly speak for the holy land. If the Holy Son dies on the martial arena and the Ancient Desolate Holy Land makes trouble, what then?"
As the elder spoke, his gaze had already landed on Han Bingning and the several ancestors nearby.
Clearly, he wanted an answer.
This was no joke. They had to give their assent.
Otherwise, if Han Bingning and the others intervened to stop them after they had suffered many casualties and were just about to wear Ye Xuan down to death, wouldn't they suffer an enormous loss?