“A clash of pure strength, and the White Ape King actually can’t beat this fiend?”

“This fiend’s manifestation body is this fierce? What kind of divine ability is this?”

“He’s only at the early-stage Nascent Soul, yet with just his fleshly body, he wields such might. No wonder you all fear him so much!”

They watched as Lu Qing brought his golden staff down, smashing the White Ape King into the ground, breaking the earth apart.

The seven remaining five-tribulation Nascent Soul cultivators in the sky were all shaken.

None of them expected that in a contest of brute force, the White Ape King would be completely overpowered.

Seizing the momentum, Lu Qing did not relent. He flipped over, and the golden staff in his hand lengthened at lightning speed, stabbing down toward where the White Ape King had fallen.

Boom!

The staff slammed down, blasting open a massive crater. The ground rippled like waves, mountains and boulders shattering and leaping skyward as if the end of the world had come.

But Lu Qing’s strike did not land on the White Ape King.

At the last instant, the ape leapt aside, barely dodging. He appeared before Lu Qing, white staff in hand, and swung it downward.

In the next breath, the two colossal figures clashed upon the earth.

Each strike shook the space itself. Mountains collapsed around them.

In less than ten breaths, the land for a hundred miles was laid to waste.

Crags shattered, pits stamped deep into the earth.

And in this duel, the White Ape King was clearly losing ground.

With every clash of staff against staff, he was forced back step after step.

If not for his mastery over spatial laws and his more refined staff techniques, he would already be thoroughly suppressed.

“This fiend’s physical strength… even I might not be able to overpower him with flesh alone.”

Watching the fight, the Elephant King’s face grew heavy.

His words sent another shock through the other great powers.

Who didn’t know the Elephant King’s strength?

He had been at the peak of the five tribulations for centuries. His grasp over spatial force aside, the Elephant Clan was famed for their peerless flesh.

Even the Flood Dragon Clan, in terms of raw body strength, could not rival the elephants.

For the Elephant King to say even he could not suppress this fiend’s body strength was astounding.

Was this fiend truly someone who had only recently crossed his tribulation and entered the Nascent Soul Realm?

“Interesting. This fiend must harbor a great secret. Wu He, as we agreed, once he’s captured, you’ll share it with us. Otherwise, if you dare deceive us, don’t blame our demon clan for siding with the devils and turning on the humans!”

The Elephant King’s gaze burned as he watched Lu Qing battle below.

He felt it strongly: should they seize this fiend’s secret, it would be a monumental fortune for the demon clan.

The other demon kings also understood.

Even just the manifestation body he displayed—if they could gain that—would make them vastly stronger.

Their eyes all fell upon the human powers.

“I knew these fence-sitters couldn’t be trusted.”

Vice Hall Master Wu of the Tribunal Hall frowned under their pressing gazes. But he also knew this was no time for internal strife. If these demon kings turned coat, he could not shoulder that responsibility.

So, though bitter, he forced a smile. “Of course. This was our agreement, we won’t break our word. But I think we should move quickly to take this fiend down.

“The White Ape King should have vented enough by now. Without lifting the Ten Directions Pillars to free his use of spatial power, he clearly can’t subdue this fiend alone.”

“Then it’s settled,” the Elephant King smiled, preparing to send word to the White Ape King.

But at that very moment, disaster struck.

Another deafening clash resounded. Lu Qing’s golden staff forced the White Ape King back several steps. He seized the moment, staff whistling down toward the ape’s head.

The White Ape King, face grim, was about to evade when suddenly his body froze, visions flashing before his eyes.

“An illusion? Not good! Break!”

Startled, then furious, he roared, shaking his nascent soul to shatter the mirage.

But it was already too late.

Lu Qing’s Phantasm ability had trapped him for merely a tenth of a breath.

Yet at their level, even a single instant could decide life and death.

And Lu Qing had been preparing for this very moment all along.

As he unleashed Phantasm, the gray power in his dantian surged into his flesh. Nascent soul force erupted from his brow.

Flesh reinforced by both mana and soul force—his body broke past its limits. His power soared.

The golden staff accelerated to the extreme, crashing down upon the White Ape King’s skull.

By the time the ape shattered the illusion, it was too late.

He could not dodge. He could not even raise his staff to block.

Boom!

The golden staff smashed into his head, exploding it into fragments.

This was Lu Qing’s most powerful strike since attaining Nascent Soul. To empower it fully, he had even summoned the Li Huo Cauldron, its mountainous phantom looming behind him.

Such force, even a five-tribulation king could not withstand.

The White Ape King’s head burst apart. His body, under the lingering shockwave, followed suit—blown into nothingness.

With one strike, Lu Qing’s scheme bore fruit. The White Ape King was obliterated.

At that instant, the Li Huo Cauldron flared, swelling vast and ancient. Its maw opened wide, swallowing all fragments of the White Ape King’s body and blood.

“What!”

The change came too swiftly. The seven powers watching above had no time to react before Lu Qing’s staff ended the White Ape King. Then, before their eyes, the cauldron consumed the remains.

They were stunned.

Not until the cauldron shrank back into Lu Qing’s hand did they awaken.

“Damn it! Move! Save the White Ape King!”

“How could this fiend still have a hidden trump?”

“Enough talk—strike together! Suppress him!”

Fury and fear drove them.

The Elephant King struck first. A colossal divine elephant shadow appeared behind him, trunk sweeping down toward Lu Qing. Space warped as it descended.

The others followed. A Daoist wove seals, locking the space around Lu Qing like iron.

Vice Hall Master Wu unleashed a peerless flying sword, slashing down.

The Flood Dragon King bellowed a soul shock that tore at the mind.

…

In an instant, seven mighty attacks fell from the heavens.

The Ten Directions Pillars trembled, unable to stabilize the collapsing void. Spatial storms raged as if the world itself were ending.

Even before they struck, Lu Qing felt the breath of death upon him. He knew: should he take this head-on, even his True Witch body would be destroyed.

But instead of fear, his face lit with a radiant smile.

For when he consumed the White Ape King’s blood and flesh, his mind had already reached out to the ancient stone tablet within his Heaven and Earth One Qi Bag.

A power beyond words now shrouded him. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

“Why is that fiend… smiling?”

The great powers faltered.

Then, to their horror, their attacks—divine abilities, treasures, innate techniques—vanished upon nearing Lu Qing.

That was the only word for it: vanished.

Like illusions breaking apart, all their might dissolved into nothing.

Even the void storms parted harmlessly around him.

“This… impossible!”

They stared wide-eyed in disbelief.

“Hahahahaha!”

Lu Qing threw back his head and laughed at the sight of their faces.

“Friends, I will remember this siege. One day, I will return to the Tianyuan Great World.

“When that day comes, I’ll repay this kindness tenfold. None of you will escape!”

As his words fell, his vast figure began to fade, like mist dissolving.

“Not good! Stop him!”

Vice Hall Master Wu roared. The Daoist controlling the Ten Directions Pillars frantically urged space to bind him.

But his face soon darkened. “It’s useless! Space itself can’t touch him!”

“What!”

The others blanched.

They watched as the near-transparent Lu Qing cast forth the ancient stone tablet. It glowed softly, wrapping him fully before he became a streak of light that pierced the void and vanished.

No matter what they did, they could not stop him.

The rift closed slowly, sealing away all trace.

Silence fell.

They stared at the healed void, still unable to believe it.

At length, the Elephant King rasped, “That tablet… what treasure was that, to nullify our every attack and defy spatial law itself?”

“Unknown. But without doubt, a peerless treasure. He held it back until the last moment for good reason.”

The Daoist with the pillars shook his head.

“The White Ape King was taken… I fear his fate will not be good,” the Horse King muttered darkly.

The silence deepened.

They all knew: in the fiend’s hands, with his cunning and sinister means, the gravely wounded White Ape King was as good as dead.

Eight five-tribulation Nascent Souls had mobilized, laying traps and sealing space.

Yet the result was a heavy loss and their quarry’s escape.

How could they accept it?

“Flood Dragon King, can you still sense the little white flood dragon’s location?”

The Elephant King asked suddenly.

“No.” The dragon shook his head. “Since earlier, I’ve used my bloodline secret arts, but it’s as if the wretch left this realm altogether. I can no longer sense him.”

With their last hope dashed, their faces grew darker still.

What a chapter! Lu Qing really pulled the rug out from under them—first blasting apart the White Ape King, then walking away unscathed with that mysterious tablet. I’m loving how cunning he is. If you’re enjoying these twists, please take a moment to rate the novel on NovelUpdates—it helps more readers stumble upon this wild ride!

Next Chapter >>>