Chapter 1726: The Appearance of the Ancient Sage
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Hu!
With a light sway of the towering tree, the desert suddenly vanished from sight. Everything reverted to normal, as if what they had witnessed earlier was nothing more than a figment of their imagination.
The only difference was that the Otherworldly Demon known as Bei Feng had vanished completely from the face of the world.
“Bei Feng has died?”
“His soul aura has completely vanished without a trace. Has his body really been reduced to yellow sand? How is this possible?”
“What just happened?”
The Otherworldly Demons were utterly horrified by what they had just witnessed. It was so inconceivable that they could not help but doubt the integrity of their eyes.
In terms of fighting prowess, Bei Feng could be said to have been the strongest among them all. Yet, despite his strength, he had been reduced to yellow sand barely after the duel started. Just what in the world was that root?
How could it wield such frightening prowess?
The Otherworldly Demons were not the only ones who were appalled by this turn of events. The Xingmeng Sword Saints and the other master teachers watching the duel were dumbstruck as well.
They had thought that Zhang Xuan would have a tough battle against Bei Feng, especially since he had been forbidden from using his tamed beasts. Who could have thought that he would end the battle with even greater ease than before?
To end the battle in less than two breaths… Furthermore, it was not a simple death. Every single trace of Bei Feng’s existence had been completely erased!
“Xuan-er, this…” Sword Saint Meng murmured worriedly.
“Don’t worry, it’s nothing much. It’s one of the minor fortuitous encounters that I told you about earlier. I happened to tame this root by chance,” Zhang Xuan replied with a rea.s.suring smile.
As fearsome as the root appeared to be, it was actually extremely easy to defend against it. As long as one sealed one’s acupoints and prevent its cotton from getting into one’s body, the root would be rendered completely helpless against one. In terms of true fighting prowess, it was actually nowhere near the level of the Five Monarchs.
Sword Saint Meng felt an ache in her chest.
Minor fortuitous encounter?
Five Sempiternal realm consummation beasts and a seedling that could easily eradicate a Sempiternal realm consummation expert from the face of the world… if they are considered as minor fortuitous encounters, what do we count as then?
Aren’t we nothing at all?
“Return!” With a flick of his wrist, Zhang Xuan placed the root back into the Myriad Anthive Nest. Following which, he beckoned with his hand, and the Sacred Blood Crystal and the moon glaive flew right into his grasp.
“Since I have won the duel, I won’t stand on ceremony,” Zhang Xuan remarked.
Without paying any heed to the response from the Otherworldly Demons, he threw those two artifacts right into his storage ring.
Hong long long!
Barely after he collected those items, a fearsome aura suddenly crept across the land as if a tornado had descended upon the world. Cracks appeared all over the floor, and the Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter Pavilions began trembling nonstop. It felt as if they would succ.u.mb to the immense pressure at any moment.
“This is… the strength of an Ancient Sage?” Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes as he hurriedly raised his head to take a look.
However, the pressure seemed to be omnipresent, so he was unable to discern where it was coming from.
“While that root isn’t a beast, it does have its own life and consciousness. That should be enough for it to be deemed as a tamed beast. Yet, you speak of a fair duel?”
The domineering voice reverberated across the land.
Following which, Zhang Xuan felt his body tensing on the spot. It felt like some formidable force had locked onto him, and it was threatening to crush him to death.
Jiya! Jiya!
His bones creaked resoundingly as cold sweat poured down his head.
It was apparent that the Otherworldly Demon Ancient Sage had deemed his actions to be an infringement of the rules and had decided to make a move.
“Old Geezer Yu, didn’t you hear my descendant asking if he could use the root earlier? Your subordinate clearly agreed to his terms. Are you intending to cause trouble just because your subordinate lost the duel? If a fight is what you want, a fight is what you’ll get!”
Just as Zhang Xuan was about the reach his limits, a voice suddenly reverberated in the air as well. Following which, an energy reminiscent of a warm breeze in spring embraced his body, causing the pressure crus.h.i.+ng him to vanish.
It was just a simple clash between the two Ancient Sage experts, but the shockwave produced a crisp sound reminiscent of a river battering a boulder. It felt as if even the reinforced s.p.a.ce in the Temple of Confucius would shatter from their strength.
“The Ancient Sage of the Zhang Clan?” Knowing that the newly arrived Ancient Sage was on his side, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
From the looks of it, the old ancestor of the Zhang Clan had decided to make a move as well.
“Your descendant mentioned that the root is hard and resilient, but he never revealed that it possesses such an enigmatic ability…” The voice of the person named Old Geezer Yu echoed in the air.
“Since it’s a duel, your subordinate should have known that there was a possibility that he would be killed. How naive must your subordinate have been to expect his enemy to come clean about his trump card?” The old ancestor of the Zhang Clan harrumphed coldly. “Besides, while the root does possess enigmatic abilities, the same could be said about your subordinate’s moon glaive!
“A loss is a loss. If you don’t have the courage to face a loss, you should have stopped your subordinate from accepting the duel in the place! If you really want to exact vengeance for your subordinate, why don’t you stop hiding like a darned tortoise and come out to face me? Even if I suffer some injuries while doing so, I swear that I’ll bust your nuts!”
“You…” Old Geezer Yu was so furious that his voice was quivering with rage. However, it seemed like he did fear the old ancestor of the Zhang Clan quite a bit. Instead of fussing over that matter, he harrumphed. “Humph! I’ll overlook your provocations for today, but I don’t believe that you’ll be able to constantly guard this fellow! His name is Zhang Xuan, isn’t it? I’ll remember it. I’ll have plenty of opportunities to end his life once we’re out of the Temple of Confucius…
“You useless bunch of fools, stop staring with your mouths wide open. Return to the Pavilion of Irate Summer and wait patiently for the Hall of Great Accomplishment to open!”
“Yes!” Hearing the order from their old ancestor, the Otherworldly Demons hurriedly turned around and returned to the pavilion.
“Hold it a moment!”
Barely after the Otherworldly Demons started retreating toward the Pavilion of Irate Summer, they suddenly heard a loud bellow—it was from Zhang Xuan.
Seeing that Zhang Xuan was not willing to let this matter rest, the faces of the Otherworldly Demons turned livid. “Do you still intend to duel with us?”
“That’s right, I still want to continue challenging you all. Rest a.s.sured, I won’t use my tamed beasts or the root now. Is there still anyone brave enough to face me in a battle?” Zhang Xuan had never been so good-tempered as to let someone who exerted pressure and threatened him get away without paying a hefty price.
It was not as if he had never killed an Ancient Sage before!
You want to kill me? Very well… Watch helplessly as I do your subordinates in!
If you dare make an appearance, I’ll throw the Book of Heaven’s Path right at you and make my second Ancient Sage kill!
An Otherworldly Demon could not help but ask skeptically, “Are you certain?”
“If none of you have the guts to accept my duel even after I have given you so many concessions, I suggest you return to the otherworldly battlefield and never appear on the Master Teacher Continent ever again. With how cowardly you lot are, there’s no way you can ever become a threat to mankind!” Zhang Xuan harrumphed arrogantly.
“You…” The Otherworldly Demons clenched their fists tightly together upon hearing those words.
“Are you really not going to use your tamed beasts and root?” Old Geezer Yu’s voice echoed in the air.
“I’ll swear in my capacity as a master teacher that I’ll rely only on my own strength and my weapon. Surely you won’t be so frightened as to deprive a mere Aureate Body realm cultivator of his weapon, right?” Zhang Xuan raised his head proudly, devoid of the slightest fear toward Old Geezer Yu. “If you aren’t going to allow me to use my weapon, just treat it as if I did not say anything!”
“Humph! Use your weapon then!” Old Geezer Yu harrumphed coldly.
His subordinate had also used his weapon earlier. Even if Zhang Xuan had a truly powerful weapon in his grasp, due to the limitations of his cultivation, there was only so much that he would be able to do.
“Is there anyone who dares fight me?” Zhang Xuan pointed his finger forward and challenged imposingly. “If your subordinates are frightened, I don’t mind having all of them coming at me. In other words, they can fight me one after another or fight me all at once. If I, Zhang Xuan, show even the slightest frown in response, I’ll renounce myself as an offspring of the Zhang Clan!”
“Well said! You are indeed a man of our Zhang Clan!” the old ancestor of the Zhang Clan complimented with a heartened tone. Following that, he harrumphed coldly at the Otherworldly Demons. “Old Geezer Yu, my descendant has already made so many compromises. Surely you can’t still be scared of him, can you?”
“You…” Not expecting to be humiliated by a mere Aureate Body realm cultivator, Old Geezer Yu was on the verge of exploding from rage. “Very well, I’ll give you what you want. However, it won’t just be a simple duel but a life-and-death duel! In other words, the duel won’t end until either this young brat dies or my subordinates die! Do you still dare accept the challenge?”
He had really lost his temper.
Ever since he became an Ancient Sage, no one had dared talk down to him in such a manner. Yet, a young brat actually dared to taunt him again and again. This was not something that his pride would allow.
That young brat had powerful tamed beasts and a formidable root, but his cultivation was sorely lacking. The young brat might possess methods to deal with Sempiternal realm cultivators, considering how he dared to make such a challenge in the first place. However, Old Geezer Yu refused to believe that none of his subordinates would be able to stop the young brat!
Knowing that the other party was determined to use this opportunity to kill this descendant of his, the old ancestor of the Zhang Clan harrumphed coldly. “Old Geezer Yu, you sure have the cheek to talk…”
Just as he was about to reject the request, another voice interrupted him.
“Fine, I’ll accept your challenge!”