Chapter 86: Chapter 85: Water and Fire Immortal Robe

A Body Forging Hard Skill at the Inner Refining Third Realm, the Breaking Army Armor that weighed several hundred pounds, and speed pushed to its absolute limit.

He was also empowered by the Power of Heaven and Earth.

A single palm strike could shake the heavens and the earth!

Even if a sturdy city gate stood before him, Zhu Ju was fully confident he could shatter it to pieces at this very moment.

"Hmph!"

Jiang Ke’s brows furrowed slightly as a muffled grunt escaped his lips. The aura around him also showed signs of instability.

If his strength were intact, he wouldn’t have given such an attack a second thought, but things were different now.

Even after devouring Sword Hero Xiao Gongdu’s Essence, it still wasn’t enough for him to make a full recovery.

THUD!

The two figures smashed heavily onto the ground.

Failing to land a decisive blow, Jiang Ke shifted his fingers. A cold glint appeared at their tips as sharp Sword Qi howled forth.

Profound Void Sword Point!

This was a Martial Skill that only Innate Qi Refiners could cultivate.

Innate True Essence merged with Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy, condensing into an indestructible Sword Qi comparable to a top-tier Divine Weapon.

A flick of his five fingers could tear and shred any metal, to say nothing of the flesh and blood of a mortal.

CLANG CLANG CLANG...

A series of impacts as rapid as a sudden downpour rang out.

Zhu Ju wielded his Cross and Vertical Saber, the flash of its blade dancing like a curtain that completely enveloped him, incredibly managing to block all the incoming Sword Qi.

"Not bad!"

Jiang Ke raised an eyebrow at the sight.

"Your Saber Technique is quite good!"

For an ordinary Inner Qi Martial Artist to receive a "quite good" evaluation from an Innate Qi Refiner was more than enough reason to be proud.

But...

...that was all it was!

There was an insurmountable gap between Innate True Qi and Acquired Internal Qi, to say nothing of Sword Qi condensed from that very Innate True Qi.

He could hold on for a short while, but he couldn’t last long.

Jiang Ke’s fingers moved as if plucking the strings of a zither, sending out streams of Sword Qi that were by turns fierce and forceful, or soft and insidious.

The crisscrossing, shifting Sword Qi rapidly compressed the defensive curtain of his blade, and his figure was completely suppressed.

Zhu Ju’s eyes were bloodshot. He swung his saber frantically as thoughts raced through his mind.

’This isn’t working!’

’I can’t go on like this.’

’My opponent is an Innate Qi Refiner. With every breath, he can draw upon the Heaven and Earth Qi, making his own True Qi practically endless.’

’As for me,’

’to resist the Sword Qi, my Five Elements Internal Qi is being depleted at a visible rate, with no chance to recover.’

’I don’t even have time to escape to the Otherworld.’

’I have to risk it all!’

His resolve hardening, Zhu Ju clenched his teeth. The Profound Light between his brows pulsed, and three Spirit Talismans hidden in his robes suddenly flared with light.

Divine Movement Talisman!

Vajra Talisman!

And...

The Divine Summoning Skill!

With a mere thought, the Profound Light in his Sea of Consciousness sent down a sliver of awareness, helping him suppress the chaotic thoughts clouding his mind.

SHIING!

The light from his saber suddenly converged.

Empowered by the Divine Movement Talisman and the Divine Summoning Skill, Zhu Ju’s movements became as agile as a swimming fish, allowing him to surge upstream against the torrent of incoming Sword Qi.

He weaved past the vast majority of the Sword Qi with exquisite skill.

And for the strikes he simply couldn’t dodge, the combination of his Breaking Army Armor, Thirteen Body Refinement, and the Vajra Talisman ensured he wouldn’t suffer any severe wounds.

A forward lunge, a sideways sway, a backward lean...

These many movements all happened in an instant. Saber in hand, Zhu Ju broke through the barrage of Sword Qi and came face-to-face with Jiang Ke.

Demon Saber—Shocking God!

A faint, almost imperceptible gleam of saber light appeared on the scene.

A dazed look flickered in Jiang Ke’s eyes; for a moment, he seemed to see his own confusion and helplessness from when he failed to break through to the Innate Realm.

’Hm?’

’A Spiritual Secret Technique!’

As an Innate Qi Refiner, his Physical Body had been tempered by the Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy, and his Divine Soul had been strengthened to a certain degree as well.

Moreover, Qi Refiners were not without their own Spiritual Secret Techniques. The Joyful Demoness, for example, was an expert in that very path.

But for an Acquired Martial Artist to be able to affect the spirit of an Innate Qi Refiner was something he had never heard of.

BOOM!

Sensing that something was wrong, Jiang Ke’s eyes flew open, and a wave of Sword Qi, far more ferocious than before, howled out from him.

The saber’s light and the Sword Qi collided in midair. Instantly, the ground for dozens of feet around the two of them was plowed into deep furrows.

"To think you can actually make me feel a sense of danger."

As he shot out streams of Sword Qi from all ten of his fingers, Jiang Ke remarked with genuine feeling:

"For an Inner Qi Martial Artist, you are absolutely remarkable!"

BOOM!

Zhu Ju offered no reply to this praise, simply swinging his saber again, the light of its blade flaring.

A slash!

A palm strike!

Demon Saber—Shocking God!

Mixed Element Iron Hand—Mixed Element Without Extremity!

"It’s useless." Jiang Ke narrowed his eyes.

"The same trick won’t work a second time."

"Huh?"

"Evil Qi!"

Zhu Ju had been consuming Demon Beast Flesh for a long time and had accumulated a considerable amount of Evil Qi in his body. At this moment, he unleashed it all through his Palm Technique.

Evil Qi had a suppressive effect even on Innate Qi Refiners, especially since Jiang Ke’s body was currently in a weakened state.

His Sword Qi immediately surged.

SHINK!

In the midst of the chaos, a barely perceptible glint of green light abruptly appeared. It made an elegant, deadly turn in mid-air and shot straight for Jiang Ke’s right eye.

Even an Innate Qi Refiner would find it difficult to react to such an unexpected turn of events.

Besides,

it was too close!

The two were mere inches apart. With Zhu Ju attacking with both hands, no one would have expected a hairpin to suddenly shoot out from his flying hair.

THWIP!

The hairpin pierced his eyeball.

"AAAAH!"

Jiang Ke tilted his head back and let out a wretched scream. A trickle of blood slid from his right eye, the intense pain nearly driving him into a frenzy.

But the Physical Body of an Innate Qi Refiner was unimaginably tough. The Armor-Piercing Jade Hairpin, despite its power, only managed to pierce the eyeball before getting stuck in the flesh behind it.

"Die!"

Zhu Ju seized the opportunity to close in, swinging his saber in a vicious slash.

BOOM!

A violent wave of Qi erupted with Jiang Ke at its center, sweeping out for dozens of feet. The howling Sword Qi instantly formed a giant hand that clamped down hard on Zhu Ju, even knocking the Cross and Vertical Saber from his grasp and sending it flying.

Innate Qi Grand Capture!

"You actually dared to blind my eye?"

Jiang Ke’s body trembled. He wanted to pull the hairpin out of his eye, but he didn’t dare to act rashly.

He gritted his teeth and roared, his expression crazed:

"Damn you!"

"You deserve to die!"

Innate True Qi howled out of him. The constricting power of the giant hand grew stronger and stronger, threatening to crush Zhu Ju into a bloody pulp.

It wasn’t just a matter of strength.

The palm, formed from Innate Sword Qi, also possessed the power to grind anything to dust. Before it, the Breaking Army Armor was like rotten wood.

SHHH...

Iron filings flaked off, drifting away in the wind.

Zhu Ju’s body trembled as he pushed all of his various Methods to their absolute limit. The Profound Light between his brows shone with unprecedented brightness.

Profound Light Like a Candle!

Spurred on by this life-or-death crisis, his Magic cultivation actually took another step forward, reaching the Realm of Profound Light Like a Candle.

However, this didn’t seem to be enough to change his current predicament.

CRACK!

The Breaking Army Armor shattered.

POOF!

The effect of the Vajra Talisman also vanished without a trace.

Zhu Ju’s eyes were downcast, his expression as serene as an old monk in meditation. In the instant his Profound Light advanced, he suddenly understood.

’This battle today... I might just be able to win!’

The instant the Sword Qi reached his body, his very skin and flesh suddenly trembled.

An invisible power erupted from his body.

Gentle as water, yet fierce as fire.

The Essences converged.

"Water and Fire Immortal Robe!"

At this critical moment, the advancement of his Magic Realm caused his Divine Summoning Skill to rise from the First Realm to the Second Realm.

The First Realm of the Divine Summoning Skill allowed one to suppress distracting thoughts and perfectly unleash one’s own power.

The Second Realm...

...could awaken one’s latent potential!

Zhu Ju’s Physical Body had already reached the Inner Refining Third Realm, and the Demon Beast Flesh he consumed had the wondrous effect of nourishing and tempering the body.

It was just that his Cultivation had progressed too quickly over the past few months, leaving him no time to solidify his foundation. As a result, much of his potential had remained dormant.

But now...

...the Second Realm of the Divine Summoning Skill completely unleashed the latent power within his body, allowing him to instantly reach the pinnacle of his Hard Skill.

Water and Fire Immortal Robe!

BOOM!

A visible Qi Force erupted from his body, meeting the incoming Sword Qi head-on.

Zhu Ju’s eyes flew wide. He suddenly took a step forward and struck out with his palm, sending a howling blast of Powerful Qi straight toward the Jade Hairpin.

SQUELCH!

The Jade Hairpin, still embedded in his right eye, trembled violently and pushed another inch inward, making Jiang Ke scream in agony.

SWOOSH!

Zhu Ju shattered the Sword Qi around him and rushed in front of Jiang Ke, chopping viciously at his Adam’s apple with a hand-blade.

CRACK!

The Sword Qi reversed its course, slamming into Zhu Ju’s body.

Gritting his teeth, Zhu Ju slammed his elbow into the end of the hairpin.

Jiang Ke screamed, his hands flailing wildly. The Sword Qi became like a millstone that could grind anything to dust, tightly enveloping them both.

BAM!

BOOM!

The two grappling figures rolled back and forth through the ruins, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.

「After a long while.」

"Haa... haa..."

Zhu Ju braced his hands on his knees, gasping for breath. His body was shaking uncontrollably. He glanced down at the mangled corpse beneath him and shook his head, speechless.

’The Physical Body of an Innate Qi Refiner is simply inhuman. No wonder Wan Shuai said these people aren’t even the same species as ordinary folk.’

’Fortunately...’

’I won!’

He took a deep breath, quickly looted everything from Jiang Ke’s body, and then staggered off into the distance.

He had to find a safe place, to go to the Otherworld and lay low for a while.

For a good long while,

he was absolutely not coming back!

*

*

*

Several figures appeared amidst the ruins. One of them nudged Jiang Ke’s corpse on the ground with their foot.

"Tsk, tsk..."

"Battered and bruised, blinded in one eye... To think an Innate Qi Refiner who had broken two Acupoints would die such a miserable death."

Gently shaking her head, the Demoness Qii Yao rubbed her smooth chin, a flicker of confusion in her eyes.

"This shouldn’t have been possible."

"Yuann Tong."

"Yes." Zhou Yuantong’s face was deathly pale as she stepped forward.

"Take a look." Qii Yao waved her sleeve, and an invisible force rolled a shattered piece of iron to her feet.

"Do you recognize this?"

’A fragment of armor?’

’Although the surface has been worn down by Sword Qi and isn’t very clear, the design is familiar. I just saw it not long ago.’

Zhou Yuantong’s lovely eyes shifted slightly, and then she shook her head.

"I don’t recognize it."

"Hee hee..." Qii Yao’s lithe body spun around. She pinched Zhou Yuantong’s tense cheek, leaned in close, and giggled.

"You really don’t recognize it?"

"..." Fear filled Zhou Yuantong’s eyes as she stammered:

"Senior, I... I really don’t know what it is."

"Forget it."

Qii Yao waved her hand, apparently not intending to bully the girl any further. She clasped her hands behind her back and began to pace around the area.

"I know of him. Aside from other Innate Qi Refiners, he’s the first person to be unaffected by my Bewitching Technique."

"It was also him who killed two of my subordinates who had achieved Qi Circulation."

"If a person like that is just some Noble Young Master with no Talent for Martial Arts, then that’s the biggest joke in the world."

Zhou Yuantong lowered her head, remaining silent.

She, too, had once thought that man ignorant and unskilled, his only real talent being his excellent storytelling. She never imagined...

"His name is Zhu Ju, isn’t it?" Qii Yao frowned.

"Killing two of my men is one thing; after all, they were trying to keep you—a Cultivation Saint Body with the Outer Saint Inner Charm—for themselves. But killing Jiang Ke..."

"That’s a different matter entirely!"

Jiang Ke was an Innate Qi Refiner who had broken two Acupoints. Even gravely injured, his strength would not have fallen below the Innate Realm.

In other words,

Zhu Ju killed an Innate!

How was that possible?

"Forget it." If she couldn’t figure it out, she simply wouldn’t think about it.

"It’s a shame about the second Corpse Yin Breaking Acupoint Pill, but at least I’ve acquired a Cultivation Saint Body. The Sect certainly won’t be stingy with its rewards."

"Let’s go!"