Chapter 726: Like a God!
'What a perfect opportunity!'
Hidden nearby, Ren Zhacheng's eyes flashed with predatory light as he saw Shen Anyu move a full five meters away from Ji Xiaolin. Without a moment's hesitation, he activated a Thunder Talisman. A deep, rolling boom echoed through the air as a torrent of raw lightning descended from the heavens, striking directly toward Shen Anyu.
In an instant, a five-meter radius around Shen Anyu was engulfed in a maelstrom of violent, crackling energy.
"Brother Shen!" Fury erupted in Ji Xiaolin's eyes, the whites of them turning red. She spun around and glared at Zhang Tianjiu, all reverence for the Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect completely gone. She snarled, her voice shaking with rage, "Zhang Tianjiu, how dare you lay a hand on Brother Shen?"
In her mind, there was no other possibility. Who else present, besides Zhang Tianjiu—the Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect and a cultivator at the Celestial Master Peak—could possibly command such terrifying lightning arts?
'I didn't do it! This is a setup! Don't you dare slander me!' The thoughts raced through Zhang Tianjiu's mind, a cold panic seizing him. He was just as shocked as she was. Who had unleashed such an astonishing lightning attack?
Could it be a frame job?
If the young master of Yanxia's Shen Clan were to be killed right in front of him, the Tianshi Sect would never be able to wash the stain from its reputation. They would become a thorn in the side of every major family in Yanxia, a target of public condemnation, reviled by all.
The timing was catastrophic. Just last night, the Young Sect Leader of the Tianshi Sect, Zhang Zhiyun, was the prime suspect in the annihilation of the Yu Clan. And now, Zhang Tianjiu, the Sect Master himself, was being accused of striking down the young master of the Shen Clan. What was the Tianshi Sect trying to do? Declare war on the world?
'Shen Anyu... you're not dead yet?' Ren Zhacheng's internal glee was so potent he almost laughed aloud.
But his triumph lasted only for a fleeting moment. In the next, Ren Zhacheng's jaw went slack, his mind reeling in dumbfounded shock.
He could only watch, paralyzed, as a figure stepped out from the heart of the raging electrical storm. The violent arcs of lightning parted before him as if paying homage, revealing a peerlessly handsome young master, his expression one of utter nonchalance.
Who else could it be but Shen Anyu?
He was completely, impossibly, unharmed.
And that wasn't all.
Shen Anyu casually lifted a hand. With a simple, dismissive wave, the streaks of wild lightning that filled the air converged from all directions, swirling together to form a massive, crackling Eye of the Thunderstorm in his palm. Thousands of meters high in the sky, storm clouds roiled and thunder surged in response. Great dragons formed of pure purple lightning descended, roaring as they coiled around him.
At that moment, wreathed in celestial power and commanding the very heavens, Shen Anyu was no longer a man. He was a god of thunder, magnificent and terrifying in his divine authority.
Ren Zhacheng's pupils constricted to pinpricks. A cold dread, sharp and absolute, left him speechless.
'How is this possible?!'
He had never imagined, not in his wildest nightmares, that the Thunder Talisman would fail to even singe Shen Anyu. He never conceived that the very lightning he had summoned would be gathered into his target's hand as if it were a loyal pet.
Was this truly a man he could ever hope to oppose?
[Ding! The Son of Destiny Ren Zhacheng's mind has been shaken, giving rise to fear. Plunder +66,666 destiny value!]
...
[Ding! Detected Destined Heroine Ji Xiaolin's favorability +1. Plunder +3,000 destiny value!]
Ji Xiaolin was also stunned into silence. 'Is this... is this my man?'she thought, her heart hammering against her ribs.'He's too handsome... too powerful!'
When she finally snapped out of her daze, her beautiful eyes sparkled with an endless, dazzling surprise.
"Such astonishing lightning arts..."
Zhang Tianjiu, the Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect, watched the scene unfold with a look of deep disbelief.
When it came to the mastery of lightning, if the Tianshi Sect claimed to be second, no one in the world would dare claim to be first. The sect had dominated the Yanxia cultivation world for a thousand years precisely because of its formidable and divine lightning techniques. As the Sect Master and a cultivator at the Celestial Master Peak, Zhang Tianjiu's own command of lightning was naturally extraordinary.
But now, as he faced the divine lightning crackling in Shen Anyu's hand, Zhang Tianjiu felt the skin on his scalp crawl and a chill of primal fear trace its way down his spine.
"Sect Master Zhang, you actually tried to kill me." Shen Anyu, still holding the swirling vortex of divine lightning, fixed his cold gaze on Zhang Tianjiu. "Could it be that your Tianshi Sect truly intends to eliminate all the top powers in Yanxia and reign supreme?"
His words landed like a death sentence.
A wave of deep injustice washed over Zhang Tianjiu. He was speechless, utterly flummoxed. He swept his spiritual sense across the area again, but he could find no trace of any other powerful cultivator. Who in the hells had unleashed that magnificent heavenly thunder just now?
"Young Master Shen, it was not this old Daoist who attacked. This is a misunderstanding. It must be a misunderstanding," Zhang Tianjiu explained, his voice aggrieved as he slightly bowed his head.
Had he, the dignified Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect, a figure of immense power and prestige, ever felt so wronged in his entire life?
But he had no choice. The suspicion surrounding his disciple, Zhang Zhiyun, and the annihilation of Yanxia's Yu Clan had not yet been cleared. If word got out now that he had attacked the young master of Yanxia's Shen Clan, the Tianshi Sect would instantly become a public enemy.
Shen Anyu's accusation was a mountain pressing down on him. How could the Tianshi Sect possibly bear the weight of such an ambition?
"Heh heh... a misunderstanding?" Shen Anyu chuckled, but his eyes were glacial and menacing. "In that case, if I strike you down, that will also be a misunderstanding!"
As the words left his lips, the divine lightning in his hand condensed, solidifying into a long spear shaped like a writhing purple serpent. The lead crackled with terrifying electrical power, looking like a divine weapon plucked from the hand of an ancient thunder god, radiating an aura of majestic and ferocious might.
'Is he even human?' Hidden not far away, Ren Zhacheng felt his scalp go numb. He held his breath, terrified of making the slightest sound.
The man he had dismissed as a rich, pretty-boy freeloader actually possessed such terrifying strength? At this moment, Ren Zhacheng was petrified of being discovered. If Shen Anyu found him, he was dead.
And standing directly in the path of that purple lightning snake spear, the Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect, Zhang Tianjiu, wore an expression of utmost gravity.
A token appeared, hovering before him and emitting a shimmering, protective light. It was the symbol of his office.
The power contained within that spear could likely kill a Celestial-level cultivator outright. The rumors of Shen Anyu killing Qin Haitian were not exaggerated in the slightest.
"If you survive my strike, then it's a misunderstanding," Shen Anyu said casually, and with a flick of his wrist, he tossed the purple lightning snake spear.
The air tore with a deafening crackle. The purple spear was impossibly swift and violent. One moment it was resting in Shen Anyu's palm; the next, it had crossed the distance and was inches from Zhang Tianjiu's chest.
The shimmering shield of light surrounding Zhang Tianjiu shattered without resistance, popping like a soap bubble.
Clang!
At the last possible second, the Sect Master's token shot forward, blocking the spear's path to Zhang Tianjiu's heart. If not for that intervention, the purple lightning snake spear would have undoubtedly pierced through him, killing him on the spot.
But even though he escaped death, the terrifying impact was unstoppable. The force blasted Zhang Tianjiu downward, smashing him through the concrete floor, through the underground parking garage below, and burying him deep within the earth for an unknown number of meters.
A moment later, a figure shot up from the crater and into the sky, a strained voice trailing behind him.
"Young Master Shen, with your strike, the misunderstanding is resolved. The Tianshi Sect and the Shen Clan will not interfere with each other. This old Daoist was reckless this time."
The voice stretched out, growing fainter and fainter as it faded into the distance.
The Sect Master of the Tianshi Sect, Zhang Tianjiu, had fled.
If any outsider had seen his state at that moment, they would have found it utterly unbelievable. The highly respected and powerful Sect Master now had blood staining his beard and matting his hair. His robes were tattered, his face was ashen, and his entire body was in a sorry state.
Even the token in his hand, the very symbol of his authority, now bore a thin, spiderweb crack across its surface.
A pang of extreme heartache shot through Zhang Tianjiu. The Sect Master's token was the most important treasure of the Tianshi Sect, and now it was damaged to such a degree.
"How can the young master of the Shen Clan be so powerful?"
Zhang Tianjiu was deeply shaken. He had always thought his disciple, Zhang Zhiyun, was a monstrous talent, the most outstanding successor the Tianshi Sect had seen in a thousand years. But compared to Shen Anyu, he was nothing.
"Zhang Zhiyun, oh, Zhang Zhiyun," Zhang Tianjiu sighed, a headache blooming behind his eyes. "Was it to defeat a monster like Shen Anyu that you fell to the Demonic Path and annihilated the entire Yu Clan?"
...
'The thousand-year-old Tianshi Sect does have some foundation. That token can barely be considered a High-Grade Magical Artifact.'Shen Anyu's eyes flickered with analytical coldness. Spiritual Artifacts were for cultivators at the Foundation Establishment Stage, so the token naturally didn't reach that level. But as a High-Grade Magical Artifact, it was an exceedingly precious treasure in the secular world.'Once Zhang Zhiyun sends it over...' he thought, a faint, predatory smile touching his lips.
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