Sword Sovereign of the Celestial Emperor

A cool sensation spread through his hand as he grasped the Black Nether Stone and stowed it in his Storage Ring. Chu Ming then headed out of the auction house.

By now, most of the martial artists had already left the auction, heading in droves towards Longhua Mountain. Black Mountain City was in chaos, and every few steps, martial artists were discussing the matter of the Dark Tomb.

"Hmm?"

After walking barely a hundred meters, Chu Ming keenly sensed two presences trailing closely behind him. He sneered and then, in a flash, his figure shot forward, swiftly fleeing towards the outskirts of Black Mountain City.

"Let's see who can save you this time!"

With a sinister expression, the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue watched Chu Ming dart away, snorted derisively, and then threw a cautious glance towards a corner, a hint of wariness flickering in his eyes.

Whoosh!

A blood-red shadow, even faster than the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue, pursued Chu Ming, leaving only a whistling sound in the air.

That was Blood Asura Zong Ze!

Certainly, with the Black Nether Stone in his possession, Chu Ming naturally attracted many eyes, but the appearance of the Dark Tomb diverted some of that attention.

Thus, everyone else headed towards the Dark Tomb, leaving Blood Asura Zong Ze alone to pursue him.

Whoosh!

Chu Ming sped away swiftly, the blurred scenery on both sides retreating behind him. In mere moments, he reached the outskirts of Black Mountain City.

In front of him lay a vast wilderness, stretching endlessly, its bounds unseen.

Whoosh!

Chu Ming halted his rapid flight, his indifferent gaze fixed on a certain spot of space behind him.

"Come out!"

Chu Ming said with a calm demeanor.

"Hand over the Black Nether Stone and I'll let you leave!"

A chilling voice rang out, the space rippling, and a crimson figure emerged from concealment.

"Blood Asura Zong Ze?"

Chu Ming's eyes flickered, his face showing a slight surprise. Two presences had followed him — one was Blood Asura Zong Ze, the other must be the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue, who was likely hidden in the shadows now.

"Since you know my name, you should understand the huge gap between us!"

Blood Asura Zong Ze's face was cold.

"Trying to scare me off with your name alone? You're lacking!"

Shhhh!

Chu Ming's right hand touched his sword, its shine flashing before he gripped it tightly. His sword momentum surged, transforming into formless swords that bore down on Blood Asura Zong Ze.

"I'll show you the gap between us now!"

Blood Asura Zong Ze's face turned slightly angry. He shifted slightly, spreading his blood-tainted aura around, then reappeared three meters from Chu Ming. His right hand tightened into a claw, Gang Qi exploding outwards, aiming to violently grab Chu Ming. The air around them cracked and burst into white waves.

Clink!

Immortal Sword Intent, eruption!

Slaughter Sword Intent, eruption!

Void Sword Intent, eruption!

Golden, green, and red rays interwove within Chu Ming's sword, violently surging to meet Blood Asura Zong Ze's claw head-on.

Crunch!

Sword light and Gang Yuan shattered, forcing Chu Ming back three steps from Blood Asura Zong Ze's strike, while Zong Ze himself paused, stepping back two paces, his face showing surprise.

"No wonder you dared speak to me like that; you have some skill!"

Blood Asura Zong Ze said coldly, a flash of light appearing in his right hand as a blood-red long saber materialized. Originally a Blade Master, he had intended to take down Chu Ming in one move, but now saw fit to use his blade.

Whoosh!

This time, Chu Ming initiated the attack, a faint gleam suddenly brightening amidst a heavy wave of air, appearing abruptly before Blood Asura Zong Ze.

Clink!

Zong Ze's sword technique was extremely brilliant, his blood-red long saber spinning in the air, transforming into a Blood Oath Wheel that deflected Chu Ming's sword. A blood blade then burst forth from the long saber, slashing towards Chu Ming's chest.

"Flowing Clouds Like Water!"

Chu Ming leapt back, his eyes flickering with Sword Dao Aurora. A faint cloud of qi seeped down from overhead, making the space suddenly dense and sticky.

Whoosh!

Chu Ming swung his sword, as if slicing through the final boundary of darkness. Heaven and Earth split.

Boom!

The blood-red sword aura and sword light collided, stirring an astonishing white wave. Fragments shattered and scattered in all directions, within a hundred meters, sword and blade shadows crowded.

Step, step, step!

Chu Ming involuntarily retreated several steps. Though he could contend with Guiyuan Realm Fourth Layer experts when in True Dao Seventh Heaven, now being at True Dao Realm Eighth Layer, few in Guiyuan Realm Fourth Layer could withstand a single strike from him.

But facing Guiyuan Realm Fifth Layer was a different story; the gap between Guiyuan Realm Fourth and Fifth Layer was substantial. Not only does a Guiyuan Realm Fifth Layer expert have several times the Spiritual Power of a Fourth Layer, their understanding of Intent is also far superior.

If Chu Ming guessed correctly, Blood Asura Zong Ze's Sword Intent had reached Tier Five; one strike produced countless blade shadows, amplifying the Sword Dao to an horrifying level. This explained why he could break Chu Ming's "Flowing Clouds Like Water" with one move.

Whoosh!

Blood Asura Zong Ze's saber had barely fallen when another strike burst out, filling the entire space with sharp, piercing sword light.

Clink, clink, clink…

Sword and blade clashed, sparks flying from the collision in all directions, appearing exceedingly terrifying. Chu Ming remained calm. Though Blood Asura was stronger, his strength had its limits; defeating him in under a thousand moves was impossible.

In an instant, a hundred moves, two hundred, five hundred…

Clink!

A metallic sound rang out; using the force of the recoil, Chu Ming retreated swiftly, his eyes flashing cold before he could even stabilize himself.

A blood-red sword aura chopped towards him from another direction, the air distorted, compressing into two turbulent streams sweeping outward.

The Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue had made his move!

"Broken Dream!"

Chu Ming spun and leapt, his hair standing on end, a milky white glow flashing from his body as he infused Sword Essence Power into the Conjugate Sword. Its edge gleamed, dreamlike but real, and the sword light surged forward a thousand miles.

Crunch!

Thump, thump, thump…

Infused with Sword Essence Power, the Broken Dream sword technique was extremely powerful. Its mere burst nearly shattered the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue's sword aura; as the sword light erupted, the sword aura fragmented completely.

Every flash of sword light brought a bloom of blood on the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue's body, the sword light's swift speed almost instantly rendering him a bloody mess, blood flying in the air.

Whoosh!

The Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue retreated hastily, his eyes filled with terror. For a moment, he thought he would die; the aura was excessively horrifying.

Yet, despite surviving, he lost his fighting strength, weakly putting a Healing Elixir in his mouth. Watching Chu Ming, he seemed to be seeing a ghost.

Even Blood Asura Zong Ze was stunned; none had expected the Murderous Eagle Hawk Xue to end up in such a dire state from his sneak attack.