There is a saying in Jianghu: "When masters clash, the world pays the price."
Because of their immense power, the empire made a pact with martial Supremes that when they fight, they should be in secluded areas.
Bang!
Violent winds howled from the north, ripping through the city like invisible blades.
Tang!
Old Fu's fingers plucked the strings of his guzheng, and the notes leapt into the air—solidifying into streaks of killing intent that shot toward Cheng Hong.
Cheng roared and raised his Qiang, attempting to block.
But the attack slipped through.
It bypassed the spear.
Boom!
Cheng Hong's chest was torn open midair.
Before the echo could fade, Old Fu plucked again.
Tang! Tang! Tang!
Each note detonated like divine thunder. Explosions rippled outward, and everything not protected by the blood formation was obliterated. Mountains collapsed, clouds, and the ground screamed.
Old Fu hovered in the sky, his robes fluttering wildly, his gaze locked onto Cheng.
Sizzle—
White smoke hissed where Cheng Hong stood.
The upper half of his body was gone.
For a heartbeat, there was only silence.
Then—
Bubble. Bubble.
From the ruin of flesh, blood churned unnaturally. Bone knitted itself together. Organs reformed. Skin crawled back into place.
Cheng Hong stepped forward, cracking his neck as though stretching after a nap.
"So…" he laughed hoarsely,
"I really do have an immortal body, huh? Just like they told me."
His eyes burned crimson.
"Void-Piercing Blood!"
He roared, thrusting his Qiang forward.
From its tip erupted a shark-thin ray of light, spiralling violently through the air, shredding space itself as it lunged toward Old Fu.
But before it could strike—
"Melody of Huang."
Master Fu murmured.
His fingers danced across the strings.
A translucent barrier bloomed before him, shimmering like water under moonlight. The blood ray slammed into it—and rebounded.
The attack twisted midair and pierced Wang Gu's arm, tearing through flesh, but before the hand could fall to the ground, he caught it, reattaching it.
Tang! Tang! Tang!
Old Fu struck the strings rapidly now, each note sharper than the last.
Golden Qi surged from him, swirling into the shapes of divine cloud dogs, their bodies as pale as they were forged from light.
With a final note—
They charged.
Straight at Cheng Hong.
Lian's eyes were glued to their every movement.
Each move they make stirs the heavens… so this is the power of a Supreme, he thought, barely managing to block another attack that whistled toward him.
"Oh? You still have time to observe?" Wu Hei mocked.
He leapt into the air—and vanished.
Before Lian could react, Wu Hei reappeared beneath his feet.
Too fast—
Wu's fingers flashed.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
He struck the left side of Lian's arm with surgical precision.
Clang!
Lian's sword slipped from his grasp and fell, spinning, into the chaos below.
He twisted midair and drifted backwards, landing roughly on the shattered ground.
"Damn it…" Lian thought, staring at his arm.
It hung limp at his side.
"He hit all my pressure points at once."
There was no pain—only dead weight.
Lian clenched his jaw and condensed Qi into his fingers. Mimicking Wu Hei's exact motion, he struck his own arm at the same points.
Tud, Tud, Tud,
A sharp sting shot through him.
Sensation flooded back.
"Tch…" Lian flexed his fingers. "Still numb… even after releasing it."
Wu Hei raised an eyebrow, interest flickering in his eyes.
"Oh?" He chuckled softly. "Full of surprises, aren't you? You understand the body quite well."
Wu Hei slowly removed the gloves from his hands.
His palms darkened, veins crawling beneath the skin like insects were living within them.
"I keep on going easy on you," he said calmly.
"But if you don't focus now—"
He reached behind his back.
Shing—
Two crescent-shaped blades, curved like half-moons, slid into his hands, their edges humming with killing intent.
"You will die."
Wu raised his blades high into the air.
They shimmered with cold light.
"Shuang Yue." He smiled faintly. "Have you heard of them?"
He flicked his wrists.
The twin crescent blades spun upward—and multiplied, dozens of pale arcs forming behind him, hovering like tilted moons at his back.
"They are the speciality weapons of Tang Lu, a poison practitioner from the Tang family," Wu continued calmly. "A clan famous for poisons… and assassination. Most people know them as Poisoners, but that's only one branch. The other is far more refined."
Lian frowned.
"What the hell is he talking about?"
"The Tang are a brutal family," Wu said, his voice carrying oddly, as if muffled by distance. "From the age of five, their children are taught to assassinate one another. Only by killing the other discreetly can they earn a place within the family."
He tilted his head.
"Murder is illegal, of course. But assassination?" Wu chuckled softly. "If you kill without witnesses, without evidence… then legally, it never happened."
The air felt heavier.
"You're wondering why I'm telling you this," Wu said, his voice now strangely distorted in Lian's ears.
Lian tried to focus—but Wu's figure wavered.
"It should be taking effect now," Wu continued. "The poison I injected into you earlier."
"Injected—?"
Lian's vision blurred violently.
The world stretched, bent, and smeared as if painted on water. Sounds dulled, then echoed unnaturally. His footing faltered.
"Shit…" Lian muttered, staggering.
"He got me—but when?"
He blinked hard.
Nothing sharpened.
"I can't see properly… I can't even hear…"
Wu's voice seemed to come from everywhere—and nowhere.
"If he attacks now, I'm finished," Lian thought grimly.
Gritting his teeth, he extended his Martial Will, forcing it outward—reaching, searching—trying to grasp reality itself before it slipped completely from his hands.
"Don't struggle," Wu Hei said calmly. "False Martial intent like that is meaningless when you haven't even stepped into the Martial Sovereign realm."
The shadows behind him surged outward, spreading like ink spilt across the ground.
They swallowed Lian's Martial Will Qi whole.
The moment his Will touched the darkness, it began to erode.
"Damn it—"
Lian's pupils shrank.
"Has he deployed his Martial Domain?"
He could feel it clearly now—Wu Hei's Martial intent pressing down on him, devouring his Will Qi layer by layer, leaving nothing but pressure and fear in its wake.
Cold sweat dampened Lian's back.
"Shit, I might be f*cked this time around"
Not far away, Wang Li chuckled lightly.
"Looks like Wu Hei isn't holding back," he said lazily, folding his fan as he struck forward.
Bang!
His palm collided with Wang Gu's chest, energies twisting violently as the Ying–Yang Technique erupted.
Wang Gu was sent skidding backwards through the air, his feet carving deep scars into the ground before he managed to stabilise himself.
"Tch—" Wang Gu spat, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth.
Wang Li watched him with mild amusement.