Chapter Sixteen: The King of Shadows
“Boy, hand over the spiritual artifact and I may spare your life,” declared one of the elders in the Core Formation stage, stepping forward.
Chen Xiang gripped the Clear Wind Sword for support, trembling as he raised a hand to scratch his ear. His pallid face twisted in disdain as he sneered, “Hmph, you old... you old mongrel, I've... I've heard that line so many times today my ears are about to... grow calluses. If you want my Mountain-Crushing Sea-Turning Seal, come and get it!”
He finished his words only after several labored breaths, the weakness in his voice palpable. If anyone knew his true condition, they’d call him a master actor without hesitation.
Indeed, the crowd saw how he struggled just to speak, and assumed he was on the verge of collapse, barely holding on.
“Hmph, since you refuse to cooperate, I’ll find the artifact on your corpse!” the Core Formation elder threatened.
Turning, he clasped his hands toward the other Core Formation cultivators. “Fellow Daoists, may I take it upon myself to kill this boy and retrieve the artifact, after which we can negotiate its distribution?”
But the other cultivators frowned. Whoever subdued the boy first would certainly have an advantage in the ensuing struggle for the artifact, and none wished to act rashly.
Suddenly, another elder spoke up after a moment’s thought, “How about this: let him subdue the boy first. The kid is at his limits anyway, and once the artifact is found, we can make further decisions.”
“That’s reasonable.”
“I agree.”
…
Several Core Formation elders voiced their approval.
The elder who had first threatened Chen Xiang’s life scowled, snorting in displeasure but saying no more.
“Then I shall take the lead in subduing this boy,” he declared.
Without waiting for the others to respond, he charged forward, casting a spell whose power made it clear he had no intention of capturing Chen Xiang alive.
Chen Xiang sneered. Yet another fool rushing to his death—perfect, he could finally test his strength against a Core Formation cultivator head-on.
The elder’s spell surged toward him, and Chen Xiang unleashed his prepared Mountain-Crushing Seal.
“Mountain-Crushing Seal!”
Boom!
A tremendous crash echoed as a colossal energy seal, over ten meters across, materialized, sending a figure flying.
The Core Formation elder landed heavily, clutching his chest and spitting blood.
Chen Xiang only staggered back a few steps, feeling a bit disappointed.
He had expected to kill him outright, but instead only managed to gravely wound him. It seemed that even with preparation, the Mountain-Crushing Seal struggled to kill Core Formation cultivators in one blow.
The crowd gasped. This boy was so powerful—he could seriously injure a Core Formation elder in a direct confrontation. Was Elder Zhang truly…
At that moment, a series of system notifications rang in Chen Xiang’s mind.
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has inspired fear among cultivators and earned thirty reputation points.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has inspired fear among cultivators and earned twenty reputation points.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has inspired fear among cultivators and earned forty reputation points.”
…
Ha! Another windfall. Chen Xiang glanced at the group of cultivators in appreciation. Well done!
The cultivators, seeing Chen Xiang’s gaze, paled and took several steps back.
“Ahem, that’s not a terrestrial spiritual artifact, it’s a terrestrial... martial technique!” the wounded elder coughed, blood staining his lips, his expression shocked.
“Terrestrial martial technique?! No wonder he’s so formidable!”
“That’s even more precious than a terrestrial spiritual artifact!”
“To think this boy possesses a terrestrial martial technique... There’s no need to argue, let’s join forces, force him to reveal the technique, then each of us can make a copy,” a Core Formation elder said, his eyes gleaming with greed.
“Agreed. Together, then.” The elders reached a consensus. Obtaining a terrestrial martial technique would be a great achievement, and they could all learn it themselves.
Ignoring their wounded comrade, all seven or eight Core Formation cultivators surged forward, unleashing their most powerful spells at Chen Xiang.
They weren’t worried about killing him outright. Once his body died, they could collect his soul together and perform a soul search, though it would be troublesome. But for a terrestrial martial technique, all effort was worthwhile.
Chen Xiang stood fearless as the spells thundered toward him.
“Sea-Turning Seal!”
With a roar, he formed the seal. A palm-sized crystalline imprint floated forward.
His face blanched for real this time—the Sea-Turning Seal demanded an astonishing amount of spiritual power. One Mountain-Crushing Seal consumed a quarter of his energy, but the Sea-Turning Seal drained three-quarters. If the system hadn’t automatically activated the recovery function, he would have been drained dry by the crystal seal.
He immediately spent some reputation points to restore his physical state.
The cultivators were startled by the palm-sized crystalline seal, sensing its terrifying power.
“Retreat! Don’t try to withstand it!” a Core Formation cultivator shouted.
But it was too late. Though the crystal seal seemed slow, it was actually fast, and in an instant collided with their spells.
Boom!
A deafening explosion rocked the battlefield as the Sea-Turning Seal and the spells from seven or eight Core Formation cultivators clashed, energy waves rippling outward. Chen Xiang instantly activated the Three Thousand Thunder Motion, escaping the blast radius in a flash. But the Core Formation cultivators weren’t so lucky, nor were some bystanders who stood too close.
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a first-layer Core Formation cultivator, earning ten thousand experience points and a storage pouch.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a second-layer Core Formation cultivator, earning ten thousand experience points and a storage pouch.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a third-layer Core Formation cultivator, earning ten thousand experience points and a storage pouch.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a sixth-layer Foundation Establishment cultivator, earning two thousand experience points and a storage pouch.”
…
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a Core Formation cultivator and received a Golden Core.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a Core Formation cultivator and received a Golden Core.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has slain a Core Formation cultivator and received a Golden Core.”
…
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has leveled up. Current realm: Foundation Establishment, sixth layer.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has leveled up. Current realm: Foundation Establishment, seventh layer.”
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has leveled up. Current realm: Foundation Establishment, eighth layer.”
…
“Ding! Congratulations, host ‘Chen Xiang’ has leveled up. Current realm: Foundation Establishment, tenth layer, perfect. Since the host’s cultivation method is only at the first volume and does not meet the requirements for advancing to Core Formation, excess experience has been stored in the experience pool. Please purchase the second volume as soon as possible.”
“Damn! I’m about to reach the Core Formation stage? This upgrade is faster than a rocket—I really am a cultivation prodigy, a genius unseen in ten thousand years! Hahahaha!” Chen Xiang laughed shamelessly.
He opened his personal status screen.
“Host: Chen Xiang
Realm: Foundation Establishment, tenth layer, perfect (conduit fused)
Experience: 34,007/10,000
Reputation: 258
Mastery: 137
Cultivation Method: ‘Chaos Formula’ (first volume)
Martial Techniques: ‘Imperial Seal Formula’ (current progress 20%, second seal mastered), ‘Three Thousand Thunder Motion’ (perfect)
Profession: Cultivator
…”
“Haha, I’m about to break through!” Chen Xiang laughed aloud.
“To be continued…”