Chapter 173: The Saint of the Great Chu Empire!
"Turning a spiritual consciousness into a sword?"
Champion Marquis felt a deadly threat surge toward him and immediately retreated at high speed.
Blood Essence Stones could temper the physical body, but they could not refine the soul. If his soul were to be destroyed, it wouldn't matter how strong his body was, even if he's ten times stronger, it wouldn't save him.
"Just a mere Profound Sun Holy Land, I refuse to believe you've cultivated a spiritual consciousness technique above Heaven level!"
Champion Marquis sneered coldly.
He crossed his hands in front of him, condensing a sigil filled with the aura of the Great Dao, and placed it in front of himself as a shield.
Zheng—!
At that moment, a blinding sword light tore through the heavens.
Invisible killing intent surged like a tsunami. The fearsome energy burst forth like a volcano, for this was a sword capable of cutting through the soul itself!
Even the distant young prodigies watching felt their hair stand on end.
"A Heaven level divine technique!"
Feng Lie cried out in shock.
Techniques that tempered spiritual consciousness were exceedingly rare. In some cases, their value could rival two techniques or cultivation methods of the same rank.
Most people—especially those in ordinary factions—had no access to such abilities.
"There are too many secrets hidden in Li Xun," the Holy Son of Heavenly Heart Sacred Holy Land said, sucking in a breath.
"First, he had a supreme-grade Dao Weapon, and now he's using a spiritual consciousness technique. Every one of these is unimaginably valuable."
He added with a heavy tone,
"Good thing we didn't act against him earlier. If he defeats Champion Marquis, there may still be room for reconciliation."
As he spoke, the sword light formed from spiritual consciousness descended from the heavens like a celestial god wielding a blade. It felt as though it could sever rivers and mountains, with an aura so oppressive it was impossible to resist.
The milky-white energy exploded like a mountain flood, resembling the sun striking the sky, forming a boundless wave that crashed down upon Champion Marquis.
"Impossible!"
Champion Marquis howled.
The sigil he'd formed in front of himself quickly cracked, covered in fine fissures after only a moment of resistance. It looked like it could shatter at any second.
The threat of death loomed heavily in his heart.
He desperately wanted to flee, but everything around him had been locked down by Li Xun's spiritual consciousness. Without Divine Palace realm strength, there was no escape.
"How much longer do you all plan to just stand there and watch? Li Xun is ruthless—if I die, he'll come after all of you next!"
Champion Marquis screamed in fury.
He hoped Feng Lie and the others would help, but upon hearing his words, not only did they not approach, they backed away even further.
They clearly had no intention of interfering.
"Damn it!"
With a furious roar, Champion Marquis could only channel his own spiritual sense to stabilize the sigil.
But to his dismay, the cracks widened even faster.
The next moment—
Crack!
With a loud snap, the sigil shattered.
The blinding sword light pierced through the air and rushed into his sea of consciousness, annihilating his divine soul.
His eyes began to dull, and light faded from them.
Thud!
His body, like a decayed piece of wood, fell lifelessly to the ground with a dull crash.
Everyone who witnessed the scene was deeply shaken.
The once unshakable Champion Marquis—arrogant and seemingly invincible—had fallen right here, before their eyes.
His soul had been destroyed.
No matter what kind of heaven-defying ability he possessed, he could no longer resurrect.
"They say if you refine enough Blood Essence Stones, your body becomes indestructible—invulnerable even to spiritual consciousness."
Feng Lie murmured,
"Looks like Champion Marquis... hadn't refined enough."
He turned his gaze to the figure standing proudly in the sky, and a faint smile appeared on his face. He walked forward with confident strides.
As he walked, he spoke aloud:
"I heard rumors that an owner of the Scarlet Flame Divine Body had appeared in the Great Zhou Empire, but until today, I never had the chance to meet him."
"Now that I have, I see the rumors didn't do you justice."
Someone muttered quietly from the side:
"Thick-skinned as ever."
The Holy Son of Heavenly Heart Sacred Holy Land and the others remained at the rear, their expressions slightly unnatural.
Now that Champion Marquis was dead, their fate essentially lay in Li Xun's hands. If he decided to kill them, not even all of them together could stop him.
Feng Lie's flattering behavior might just earn him mercy and a spared life.
But the problem was, they were not like Feng Lie.
Aside from him, the rest of them were Holy Sons and Daughters of major sects. If they were to shamelessly beg for mercy like Feng Lie and it got out, their reputation—and that of their factions—would be utterly ruined.
As they struggled to decide—
Rumble!
Black clouds rolled in from the edge of the sky, engulfing a region thousands of miles wide in the blink of an eye.
These were not heavenly tribulation clouds—they carried a suffocating, divine aura.
It was as though a celestial being was concealed within them. Even a mere wisp of its might was enough to shake the very heavens and earth.
Buzz—
A hum echoed.
From within the clouds, a phantom figure slowly condensed. Towering high above in the heavens, it radiated countless rays of sacred light, dazzling like a sun suspended in the void.
This figure was resplendent to the extreme, surrounded by flowing laws of the Great Dao, as though he were the very embodiment of Heaven's Will.
He made no movement, just standing there in silence.
And yet, everyone felt their bodies trembling uncontrollably, an almost primal urge to prostrate themselves overwhelming them.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Feng Lie and the others couldn't hold out for long.
They collapsed to the ground, all kneeling on both knees, faces filled with shock and terror.
They barely dared to look up, quickly lowering their gazes after a single glance at the sky.
Their eyes were raging seas of turmoil.
"A Saint!"
A true, genuine Saint had appeared!
Though his face was unclear, the fact that such a presence had descended left no doubt—this was a Saint of the Great Chu Empire!
But the question was...
Why? Champion Marquis wasn't a royal prince, he's just a noble under the Chu Dynasty. Why would a Saint personally descend for him?
Fortunately, this was only an external avatar, not his true body.
Even so, the terror was overwhelming.
No one present doubted that if this Saint chose to act, everyone here would die in an instant—even Li Xun included.
"This Saint… seems even stronger than the Grand Elder of my Profound Sun Holy Land," Li Xun murmured to himself.
Standing in the sky, his body groaned under tremendous pressure—his bones audibly cracking. He had no choice but to land on a mountaintop for support.
But the very next second, the mountain crumbled beneath his feet.
At that moment, It felt like entire mountain ranges were crushing him. A lesser cultivator would have been reduced to a pool of blood and flesh long ago.
Even Li Xun felt as if his bones were about to shatter.
Just when despair threatened to consume everyone, the Saint slowly lowered his gaze.
He gave Li Xun a passing glance, then turned toward the distant void, as though he had sensed something.
Without taking action, he extended a giant hand, retrieving Champion Marquis's corpse into his grasp.
Then, without a word, he stepped forward and vanished in an instant, along with the endless black clouds that had blanketed the heavens.
<+>
If you want to see more of this story and don't mind paying $5 each month to read the latest post, please go to my Patreon[1].
The current chapter in Patreon: Chapter 239: If There's a Chance, You May Try to Kill Him[2]
Link to the current chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/i-thanks-to-my-136989792[3]
https://www.patreon.com/c/HannibalNotBarca/posts?filters%5Btag%5D=I+Thanks+To+My+Unlimited[4]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/c/HannibalNotBarca/posts?filters%5Btag%5D=I+Thanks+To+My+Unlimited
[2] https://www.patreon.com/posts/i-thanks-to-my-136989792
[3] https://www.patreon.com/posts/i-thanks-to-my-136989792
[4] https://www.patreon.com/c/HannibalNotBarca/posts?filters%5Btag%5D=I+Thanks+To+My+Unlimited