“Mo Dao, come back and finish him off,” Shi Hao spoke with an air of arrogance, not giving the man a second thought.
“You—how insolent! I challenged you, why send someone else in your place?” the man roared. He wore a purple-gold crown and carried himself with an imposing demeanor, a towering young man of remarkable presence.
“A mere cultivator of two strands of immortal qi dares challenge me? Even my servant has refined three strands. If you want to fight me, go train for another five hundred years!” Shi Hao mocked.
He knew this man was likely sent by someone like Wang Xi or Lü Tuo to test him—otherwise, how would someone with only two strands of immortal qi dare to act so boldly?
A man has his pride, a tree its bark. Humiliated publicly by Shi Hao, the man’s once-jade-like face flushed crimson. Gripping a celestial halberd, he charged forward, shouting, “You coward! Hiding behind others, letting foreign powerhouses fight for you—what kind of man are you? If you have the guts, face me yourself!”
“Exactly! What kind of skill is this, tricking a servant into submission? That’s no real ability. If you have strength, fight openly—we’ll crush you!” someone else jeered from behind, clearly goading Shi Hao into action.
“A bunch of ants. How dare you bark at me? Mo Dao, what are you hesitating for? Strike them all down beneath my feet!” Shi Hao said coldly.
Unmoved by such insignificant provocation, he didn’t even twitch, leaving it to Mo Dao to act.
Mo Dao returned, emerging from the entrance of the stone furnace, standing atop the mountain—the furnace itself. His white robes fluttered, wild hair dancing like lightning in his eyes.
An overwhelming aura radiated from him, making some on the opposing side tremble in fear.
“Mo Dao, you’re a powerhouse from the foreign realm, refining three strands of immortal qi, hailed as a peerless genius. Yet you willingly serve someone weaker than you? If I were you, I’d turn around and kill him. Though I’ve heard you’re bound by some forbidden art, forced to surrender your Soul-Nourishing Demon Artifact, the Soul-Refining Tower, losing your freedom. If you’re constrained, we can help you deal with him!” The purple-gold-crowned youth spoke, raising his sharp celestial halberd.
But everyone knew his words were insincere—just a taunt to gauge reactions, testing whether Shi Hao truly had the power to slay the Three-Headed King.
**”Boom!”**
Mo Dao raised his hand, his palm glowing as dozens of ancient characters materialized, resonating like steel, radiant and brilliant. These were techniques he had comprehended from the White Jade Mountain.
In an instant, dozens of fiery phoenixes soared into the sky, the characters transforming into crimson birds with resplendent wings and long, vibrant tail feathers—beautiful yet sacred, dancing across the heavens!
Each carried wisps of immortal qi, the essence of Mo Dao’s cultivation, erupting in a single explosive moment!
**”Break!”**
The man opposite shouted, holding up a bone mirror—smooth as a silver sun, reflecting the same fiery phoenixes back at Mo Dao.
**”The Void Mirror?!”** The crowd gasped. This artifact had a legendary history, capable of absorbing an opponent’s attack and reflecting it back.
But the original was an immortal mirror, unfathomably powerful, lost to time—rumored to have shattered in the ancient Immortal War.
This was clearly a replica, yet still terrifying. How could an ordinary imitation withstand an immortal qi strike?
Mo Dao’s fiery phoenixes, formed from ancient characters, faded into nothingness, absorbed into the bone mirror before reforming within it.
**”Kill!”** The purple-gold-crowned man roared, shaking the mirror. A dazzling brilliance erupted as dozens of phoenixes surged forth, turning into crimson mist, engulfing the sky in flames as they lunged at Mo Dao.
The spectacle left everyone stunned—such a method existed!
This man, with only two strands of immortal qi, was challenging a young supreme being, holding his ground without faltering.
Shi Hao sneered. No wonder he dared provoke—he had backing. Someone had given him this mirror to test Shi Hao himself.
**”Swoosh!”**
Mo Dao’s eyes flashed coldly as he formed hand seals, unleashing sword beams that slashed through his own manifested phoenixes, staining the sky with blood before they dissolved into runic light.
Then he lunged forward, abandoning ranged techniques for close combat.
The purple-gold-crowned man shouted, brandishing the mirror. Beams of light erupted, transforming into dozens of golden crows.
Not only could it absorb attacks, but it could also unleash its own—forged from the divine bone of a golden crow.
But limited by its material, not from a supreme-grade crow, its power was restricted, unable to harm Mo Dao.
The golden crows couldn’t even touch him. A radiant liquid-like barrier flowed around his body, shielding him effortlessly.
**”Crack!”**
At close range, Mo Dao struck with a palm wrapped in three strands of immortal qi. The man blocked with the mirror—only for it to shatter instantly.
Then, a sudden twist—a dagger shot from the broken mirror, a blinding streak aimed at Mo Dao’s throat!
Simultaneously, another struck—a bronze puppet, a war tool, lunging at Shi Hao.
Someone couldn’t resist testing Shi Hao, sending a puppet forged from divine materials instead of risking themselves.
**”Shi Hao, dare you fight?”**
Four more figures leaped out, wielding secret treasures, eager to measure his strength.
**”Snap!”**
Mo Dao, enraged by their reliance on artifacts, unleashed his full power. Gripping a weapon shaped like a dragon-serpent, he shattered the dagger and bisected the purple-gold-crowned man, painting the sky red.
Both the Void Mirror replica and the dagger were extraordinary, capable of withstanding multiple strikes from a three-strand cultivator—yet they were destroyed in one blow.
Had this not been the Heavenly Deity Academy, Mo Dao would have slain him outright.
**”Ah—!”** The man screamed, his severed body writhing in agony on the mountainside.
Mo Dao turned, charging at the bronze puppet.
**”Enough. I’ll handle it myself—otherwise, they’ll never relent,”** Shi Hao said coolly, stepping forward.
His body glowed faintly, his sole heavenly layer pressing against his skin like armor, invisible yet impenetrable.
**”Clang!”**
He punched the bronze puppet, the impact deafening. The construct, infused with traces of immortal gold, rivaled even the Diamond Bracelet in value!
The crowd gasped—this was the might of a body cultivator, clashing head-on with a war tool.
The puppet’s arm caved in, unable to withstand his physical might.
But those behind the scenes wanted to see his magical prowess. They already knew of his unparalleled physique—now they sought his techniques.
Thus, several cultivators attacked, unleashing dazzling spells and treasures bestowed by their immortal clans.
Among them were a primordial ox, a flying centipede, a three-headed lion king, and a silver tortoise—all powerful beings in human form, retaining traces of their monstrous origins.
**”Whoosh!”**
Shi Hao became a golden arrow, his speed transcendent. He struck the ox, slashed the centipede, kicked the lion king, and shattered the tortoise’s shell.
**”Crack!”**
Their treasures, despite being from immortal clans, exploded under his assault. The bronze puppet was torn apart bare-handed.
**”Terrifying… a human-shaped prehistoric beast!”** someone exclaimed.
His body alone crushed all artifacts—unstoppable.
**”Splat!”**
The ox’s neck snapped, the centipede was severed, the lion king’s body turned to pulp, and the tortoise’s shell exploded, its body riddled with holes.
The battle ended in moments.
The crowd was stunned. They had hoped to gauge his techniques, yet he resolved it purely with physical might.
The purple-gold-crowned man, barely regenerating, stood—only for Shi Hao’s foot to descend, crushing his chest. His body disintegrated into mist, leaving only a screaming head.
**”Ah—!”**
**”Using trash like this to test me? Far from enough,”** Shi Hao said coldly, scanning the opposition.
**”Brother, you are indeed formidable. With such skill, you cannot be unknown. We wish to see your true self!”**
Finally, the young supremes with three strands of immortal qi could no longer sit still. One by one, they stepped through the void, advancing toward him.
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