Vision failed, hearing ceased. Meng Qi once again fell into that strange state akin to when he faced the Heavenly Mandate. Even his refined microcosmic perception and outward spiritual senses could not pierce the darkness.
This familiar sensation could only belong to the Wolf King!
Since their last failed attempt, Meng Qi and others had completely lost track of the Wolf King, as if he had left Yingtown and returned to the grasslands. Yet now, just after the Cloud Banquet ended and “Myth” launched a sudden attack on the Crown Prince, he had reappeared unexpectedly, seemingly waiting patiently for the right opportunity all along.
Or perhaps, he had been in contact with “Myth,” enabling him to seize this fleeting chance?
Previously, Meng Qi had relied on the “Immovable Golden Lotus,” an advanced external technique derived from the “Wutu Seal,” as well as the spiritual connection with the Wolf King, to barely enter a state of pure clarity, surpassing microcosmic perception and nearing unification. Only then had he barely managed to block the Wolf King’s storm-like assault in the darkness. But now, he was in his true form. Using techniques of the “Yuanshi Tianzun” would expose his secret!
At such a life-or-death moment, could he still afford to hesitate so much?
As these thoughts flashed through his mind, his blade “Tianzhi Shang” suddenly emitted a faint hum, lightning dancing along its edge, as he slashed instinctively toward a certain direction.
The treasure weapon was automatically protecting its master!
“Tianzhi Shang” and “Liuhuo” were relatively affordable treasure weapons, neither worth more than two thousand merit points. Unlike the Tempest Blade and the Taihua Sword from the Demon’s Grave World, they couldn’t enable him to harness their aura and power to produce miraculous effects. Nevertheless, they were still treasure weapons with a faint sentience. After prolonged companionship and spiritual resonance, they now acknowledged Meng Qi as their true master.
In times of danger, if Meng Qi did not consciously command them, they would automatically defend him.
A sudden realization struck Meng Qi, recalling the world of the Sword Emperor and Demon Queen. He extended his spiritual sense into both “Tianzhi Shang” and “Liuhuo,” not outwardly, but as extensions of his hands, eyes, and ears.
This time, his spirit intertwined and fused with the weapons’ sentience.
Wherever “Tianzhi Shang” pointed, everything within its aura gradually formed in Meng Qi’s mind, even with his eyes closed and ears shut.
The wide courtyard, the plum tree in the corner, the rain traces on the ground, the fresh air after lightning and thunder—all surfaced clearly in Meng Qi’s consciousness.
For the first time in his life, he felt completely integrated with his surroundings, becoming an inseparable whole. His spirit extended through “Tianzhi Shang” to distant places, “seeing” mountains and rivers, tides rising and falling. The sensations these weapons perceived became his own, every detail accounted for.
By leveraging the weapons’ sentience, he had forcibly reached the state of “Unity of Heaven and Man”!
Forgetting danger, forgetting victory or defeat, Meng Qi slashed effortlessly with “Tianzhi Shang,” its trajectory mysterious, slightly vibrating as if resonating with thunder, its hum echoing.
Clang!
The long blade blocked the Wolf King’s claw.
In absolute darkness, where sight and sound were impossible, the blade still perfectly intercepted the Wolf King’s strike!
Meng Qi heard the crisp impact reverberate in his mind, though in reality, no sound escaped.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Wolf King melted into the darkness, silently shifting positions, launching alternating attacks with both hands and feet like a storm.
But Meng Qi, now using the treasure weapons as his “eyes,” seemed to merge into a strange unity with “Tianzhi Shang”—the man became the blade, the blade became the man. The blade was a treasure weapon, and the man had become one with Heaven!
Whether fierce or swift as lightning, each slash Meng Qi made subtly aligned with certain cosmic principles. Every part of “Tianzhi Shang”—tip, edge, back, body, and hilt—was fully utilized, barely managing to block the Wolf King’s relentless assault.
Yet Meng Qi himself was faring poorly.
Although the Wolf King’s current attacks focused on speed and stealth, each strike did not reach the level of an ordinary half-step external technique—roughly equivalent to the power of a Heaven-and-Man Unification expert like Xuan Zhen without unleashing a full-force ultimate move, or the power of Meng Qi’s own external killing techniques. Still, the Wolf King’s sheer terror approached that of a normal half-step. Could Meng Qi possibly endure such relentless attacks without strain?
Back in Jiuxiang, when Meng Qi had fought Qingxue Dragon King, an ordinary half-step expert, he had relied on evasive footwork to avoid direct confrontation, only managing to defeat him through maneuvering. Now, trapped in the darkness conjured by the Wolf King, having lost the initiative and unable to dodge, he could only block with blade techniques, his physical body, and internal energy.
Even if the Wolf King’s strikes were slightly weaker than Qingxue Dragon King’s, the difference was negligible. If not for Meng Qi’s Eight-Nine Mystical Art having opened eight acupoints, his abundant true energy, his formidable physical strength, and the Undying Seal Art’s ability to absorb and redirect force, allowing him to block so many of the Wolf King’s strikes using acupoint techniques alone, he would have suffered severe injuries long ago.
Even so, his true energy was still holding up, though its regeneration from life to death and death to life could barely keep pace, maintaining a relatively sufficient state. His internal organs, however, had already begun to tremble, his blood churning, chest tightening, right arm slightly numb, and both feet had cracked the blue bricks beneath him. He didn’t know how much longer he could endure, especially as mental fatigue gradually crept in.
Nevertheless, after blocking this round of the Wolf King’s assault, Meng Qi shook off the dazed and flustered state caused by the ambush. He began seeking an opportunity, attempting to shift from defense to offense and regain his rhythm.
He clearly understood that if he remained on the defensive, he would certainly perish at the Wolf King’s hands!
At that moment, after suppressing Meng Qi with his storm-like assault, the Wolf King seized an opening. His right hand spread wide, fingers sharpened into blades, concentrated with killing intent capable of piercing the heavens.
Silent and soundless, five “blades” shot forth like soul-harvesting messengers, lunging toward Meng Qi.
“Tianzhi Shang” vibrated slightly, and an intense sense of danger surged in Meng Qi’s mind. Without hesitation, he used the Eight-Nine Mystical Art to simulate the Purple Thunder Force!
The long blade struck nine times, purple lightning surging, air currents collapsing, thunder booming. Yet in this darkness, neither thunder nor lightning could be heard or seen.
The blade’s aura and lightning entwined into one, nine purple thunder dragons coiling together, surging forward with overwhelming force, pure yang energy sweeping away all evil.
Clang!
This time, a faint sound finally emerged from the darkness.
“Tianzhi Shang” vibrated violently, and blood spilled from Meng Qi’s mouth.
The killing intent invaded his body, making him feel as if plunged into an icy abyss, his muscles and blood vessels stiffening, his soul numbed.
Fortunately, the Eight-Nine Mystical Art remained intact. A slight circulation quickly dispelled the effect.
At the same time, Meng Qi used this momentum to retreat rapidly, trying to escape the darkness’s range.
Suddenly, “Liuhuo” unsheathed itself from his waist, and a sense of danger surged again in his mind.
No good!
Meng Qi grasped the sword with his left hand, his spirit focused, following “Liuhuo’s” sensation, stabbing backward.
The swordlight was pure and crimson, breathtakingly beautiful, like a celestial being descending from the heavens—no flourish, no change, only pure and terrifying might.
At that moment, a pale finger emerged from the darkness behind Meng Qi, its nail clean and sharp, gleaming with cold light. Strangely, just seeing it made one feel an icy chill, as if the body were being consumed by death and the soul ravaged by killing intent.
Puff! The energy burst apart, “Liuhuo” recoiled, and the Wolf King’s deadly finger strike was abruptly halted.
A suffocating pressure in Meng Qi’s chest could no longer be restrained. He opened his mouth, and blood poured out. Yet using the momentum of the recoiling blade, he slashed again, colliding directly with the Wolf King’s left hand.
This time, the Wolf King did not use an ultimate external technique. His body flickered, launching another storm-like assault.
His injuries had not fully healed—perhaps he could only unleash two ultimate external techniques at most in one breath? Meng Qi suddenly realized.
He Jiu’s injuries had been lighter, and he had only recovered two days ago. For the Wolf King, with such severe injuries, reaching his current state was already a testament to the effectiveness of miraculous pills!
Meng Qi wasn’t even sure if the Great Rejuvenation Pill could achieve similar results, since He Jiu’s invisible sword qi had entangled both his energy and body, making it difficult to remove. Without the right treatment, the effect remained uncertain.
Palm, finger, fist, and claw attacks came unceasingly. The Wolf King maneuvered through the darkness, seemingly trying to exhaust Meng Qi to death or waiting for him to weaken before launching consecutive ultimate external techniques.
At this rate, Meng Qi seemed doomed!
Compared to last time, without the “Immovable Golden Lotus,” Meng Qi was at an even greater disadvantage, already sustaining serious injuries.
Yet his expression remained calm as he alternated between sword and blade, blocking the Wolf King’s attacks.
As the Wolf King’s right palm struck, “Liuhuo” moved instinctively, intercepting precisely, its sharp edge aiming for the palm’s center.
Puff! “Liuhuo” looked sharp on the outside but was powerless within, easily swatted aside by the Wolf King’s palm.
Bang! The Wolf King’s palm slammed into Meng Qi’s left chest, the golden glow dimming, cracks forming inch by inch, the palm imprint sinking deep, ribs snapping.
Using his chest to trap the Wolf King’s right palm, Meng Qi spat out a mouthful of blood, then roared:
“Die!”
His voice thundered, rolling outward.
With his right hand, “Tianzhi Shang” slashed down like a whip strike, fierce and brutal.
Last time, Meng Qi had needed Jiesha’s help to find an opening for counterattack and escape the Wolf King’s “darkness.” This time, no such assistance was needed!
Because last time, he couldn’t use his true form techniques.
With the Eight-Nine Mystical Art and the Golden Bell Armor active, he could afford to take injuries to seize the enemy’s life, grasping the opportunity to turn defeat into victory!
This was a one-time chance—he had to give it his all.
“Die!”
With the roar, lightning blazed, piercing the darkness.
Meng Qi’s aura surged, his muscles bulging, clothes straining outward, his presence vast as the heavens. The long blade transformed into thunder itself, swift, heavy, and fierce, descending with majestic might.
Everyone who had ever faced thunder knew that in that instant, the world seemed to slow, with only lightning piercing through the stillness.
Boom!
Dark clouds gathered once more in the sky, as countless silver serpents darted through the gloom, swiftly converging into a single, cyan-tinged lightning bolt.
Boom!
Five thick cyan lightning bolts, each as thick as a water barrel, struck down one after another, seamlessly merging with the descending blade to execute divine punishment.
Heaven was wrathful—five thunderbolts struck from above!
Meng Qi had activated the Sacrificial Soul Technique, activated “Tianzhi Shang,” and unleashed a Dharma Body technique!
There were no high-level experts here, and the darkness obscured everything. Only the Wolf King could perceive the true nature of this move.
As for others, he had always been rumored to possess the ability to summon heavenly thunder!
The darkness was dispelled, lightning illuminating the scene. For the first time, Meng Qi saw the Wolf King’s true face—his features were not prominent, his face slightly flat, typical of a grassland tribesman, his eyes cold and merciless like a beast.
The killing intent surged into Meng Qi’s chest, but in such a short moment, how could it possibly break through the Eight-Nine Mystical Art? The Wolf King’s pupils constricted. No longer attempting to kill, he raised his left hand, dozens of acupoints across his body glowing with eerie, dark light, connecting with each other and extending toward his left hand.
He seemed to transform into a long sword brimming with killing intent, his left hand the sword tip, each acupoint a different section of the blade—dark, deep, and sinister.
His left hand slashed forward, meeting the descending blade head-on.
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