Chapter 1052 - Fourth-Level Spirit Profound Realm

After a brief round of greetings, the Heavenly Dao Society wasted no time springing into action.

The commanders ordered ordinary disciples to retreat to the rear and mobilized those above the fifth-level True Profound Realm for battle. In total, over two hundred elite disciples stepped forward, each ready to give their lives if needed.

Such a force would have been unstoppable in the Southern Province. But in the Central Plains, this was barely enough to be noticed.

"Junior Brother, we finally get to fight side by side," said Jiang Le with a smile. Yu Zhibai and Shen Rong stood nearby, their eyes gleaming with anticipation.

Liu Wuxie gave a slight nod. His three senior brothers had made all the difference, helping him narrow the gap between the Heavenly Dao Society and the three great clans.

Suddenly, a deep buzzing sound rose from the sky in the distance, like a storm of falcons diving through the clouds. People packed the streets around the Heavenly Dao Society, and now silhouettes filled even the skies.

"The three clans have arrived..." someone whispered.

A suffocating aura surged in from afar, vast and crushing, sweeping toward the Society like a tidal wave.

From the shadows of the crowd, sects like the Profound Cloud Sect, the Nine Profound Sect, and the Scarlet Dragon Cult remained hidden. They hadn't left after the trade fair. They had stayed behind, lurking and observing silently.

Each wanted to see how the Heavenly Dao Society would face this looming catastrophe.

"Senior Brother Liu, I hope we're not too late," a familiar voice called out.

Zhao Chao strode forward, flanked by three elders from the Nine Profound Sect.

Liu Wuxie gave him a calm look. "Thank your father for me."

He had always known Zhao Chao would come.

The Nine Profound Sect had been at odds with the Profound Cloud Sect for years, so when the Profound Cloud Sect opposed the Heavenly Dao Society, the enemy of an enemy naturally became an ally.

Besides, Zhao Chao was a friend. His presence here was no surprise.

Liu Wuxie, on the other hand, was fully aware that the Scarlet Dragon Cult and the Profound Cloud Sect had secretly sent manpower to the three clans, hoping to crush the Society without lifting a finger in public.

"Senior Brother Liu," Zhao Chao said in a low voice, "I don't mean to dampen morale, but with just our forces... it'll be hard to resist all three clans."

He didn't mean to discourage anyone. He simply spoke the truth: the disparity in strength was painfully clear.

Even with the arrival of reinforcements, their overall strength remained limited. The Heavenly Dao Society had only a handful of Earth Profound Realm experts, far too few to contend evenly with the combined might of the three clans.

"It's not about numbers," Liu Wuxie said calmly. "It's about quality. Today, everyone will witness the true strength of the Heavenly Dao Society."

He understood that Zhao Chao meant no harm.

A heavy silence settled over the base, thick with tension. The air felt like it could snap at any moment.

"Master, we've brought everything," Bi Gongyu, Lan Yu, and Song Ling reported as they arrived.

"Distribute them," Liu Wuxie ordered without delay.

The disciples handed out the pouches quickly to every expert in the Earth Profound Realm.

Zhao Chao reached out with his divine sense to inspect the contents and immediately broke into a grin.

He chuckled. "These will catch the enemy off guard. This is going to be fun."

The others soon followed suit. As they examined the contents of the pouches, excitement sparked in their eyes. Dozens of Earth Profound Realm cultivators, many of whom had arrived as external reinforcements, now stood visibly more confident.

"Activate the defensive barrier!" Liu Wuxie ordered next.

As the spiritual array lit up, layers of defensive light rippled outward, enveloping the Society's territory in a protective dome.

Once it was secure, Liu Wuxie stepped outside the array, leading everyone to face the battlefield head-on.

Before moving out, his gaze lingered on Xu Lingxue and the three other women.

"Be careful," he said softly. "Protect yourselves well."

"Got it!" they replied in unison, nodding firmly.

They had waited long enough for this moment to fight side by side with Liu Wuxie, not as followers but as warriors standing on equal ground.

"Liu Wuxie, die!"

A thunderous roar erupted from the far end of the street as Yuan Huaiguang surged forward, leading an entire army behind him. At his sides marched Wang Yuanhou and Patriarch Liao, each exuding murderous intent.

Their combined forces had swelled to over a thousand cultivators, with more than a hundred at the Earth Profound Realm. Among them were several experts at the higher levels of that realm.

In contrast, the Heavenly Dao Society lacked such high-tier experts. Their strongest cultivators had only reached the fifth level of the Earth Profound Realm. The power gap was undeniable.

"I've been waiting for you," Liu Wuxie said, stepping forward with his force of two hundred. Despite their smaller numbers, his side radiated unwavering momentum, showing not the slightest hint of fear.

Amid the onlookers, four black-robed figures melted into the throng. They were assassins led by Ruan Ying, whom Liu Wuxie had recalled in advance.

All four had recently broken into the Earth Profound Realm, their strength now more deadly than ever. As assassins, they specialized in eliminating targets several levels above their cultivation.

More critically, Liu Wuxie had passed down to them the Ancient Breath-Concealing Art. With it, they could completely suppress their presence and hide in plain sight, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

The two sides faced each other. Oppressive spiritual force rolled from both camps like crashing waves.

Onlookers scattered to the edges, unable to withstand the suffocating intensity. Even seasoned cultivators among them felt their legs grow weak.

From across the battlefield, a familiar voice rang out, sharp with hatred.

"Liu Wuxie, I bet you didn't expect to see me again like this," Yuan Ziping sneered as his face twisted with bloodlust. His cruel smile left no doubt that he was there to kill.

The Yuan Clan's disgrace still hung heavy on their shoulders. If they couldn't eliminate Liu Wuxie here and now, they would never lift their heads in the Central Plains again.

"Cut the crap and come!" Liu Wuxie snapped, his voice sharp and impatient, wasting not a single breath on empty talk.

"Liu Wuxie, I'll kill you myself!" roared a Yuan Clan elder as he stepped forward. He was at the third-level Earth Profound Realm, his aura bursting forth as he charged straight at Liu Wuxie.

The three clans hadn't initiated a full-scale clash. Instead, they aimed to kill Liu Wuxie first. In their eyes, once he fell, the Heavenly Dao Society would collapse on its own. Those who had reinforced the Society would likely retreat, unwilling to die for a leaderless cause.

They wanted to avoid the cost of total war. Everything stemmed from Liu Wuxie. And if he died, everything would end.

After all, even for the three great clans, an all-out battle would bring devastating losses.

Several Heavenly Dao cultivators stepped forward to intercept the charging elder. Among them was an expert at the fifth level of the Earth Profound Realm. However, Liu Wuxie raised his hand, stopping them in their tracks.

"Let me handle the trash," he said coldly.

Without another word, the two clashed.

"Liu Wuxie, die!" the Yuan Clan elder bellowed as he struck with a thunderous palm. His true essence surged, and a deafening rumble echoed through the skies above Astral Glory City.

"Trash like you dares step forward? I'll start my massacre with you." Liu Wuxie's voice boomed like a war drum, and in the next instant, his aura exploded outward, shaking the very heavens.

It surged with boundless power as he finally let go of the suppression he had maintained for so long.

Ever since his breakthrough in Northern City, he had been holding himself back, waiting for the right moment.

And now, he was just one step away from the fourth-level Spirit Profound Realm.

That moment had arrived.

Liu Wuxie's expression didn't change.

Liu Wuxie had already slain Steward He, a fifth-level Earth Profound expert. A mere third-level opponent was hardly worth his concern, especially now that his strength had grown.

For the past half a month, he had been immersed in cultivation, silently comprehending new Dao techniques.

Suddenly, the sky darkened as the Great Five Elemental Palm emerged, towering like a divine mountain. It descended with unmatched force, shattering the elder's palm strike as if it were nothing more than paper.

"What terrifying power!" gasped the spectators lining the streets, their eyes wide with disbelief. Even the elites from the three clans visibly trembled.

"This is bad..." Yuan Huaiguang's heart sank.

A third-level Earth Profound cultivator couldn't withstand the Great Five Elemental Palm. It could overwhelm nearly any expert at that level.

Not to mention, this was just the beginning.

Neither side could afford to back down after the first exchange. Retreating now would be the same as surrendering, an utter humiliation in front of so many eyes.

The colossal palm crashed down like judgment from the heavens. It descended in an instant, too fast for anyone to react.

"NO!" the Yuan Clan elder cried out in horror as he realized the depth of his mistake.

He had gravely underestimated Liu Wuxie.

Several experts from the three clans instinctively rushed to intercept, but Liu Wuxie struck before they could reach him. His speed had caught everyone off guard.

In a single blow, Liu Wuxie obliterated the elder, killing him on the spot.

Silence fell over the entire street, leaving the crowd stunned.

No one had predicted this outcome.

Even those who had come to reinforce the Heavenly Dao Society had felt concern for Liu Wuxie. After all, his opponent was a seasoned expert of the Earth Profound Realm.

Yet, Liu Wuxie had crushed that same expert in a single move.

Liu Wuxie drew in the laws of the Earth Profound Realm from his fallen opponent as vital energy flooded into his meridians like a tidal surge. In the next instant, his cultivation surged wildly. And with a thunderous boom, he shattered the bottleneck to the fourth-level Spirit Profound Realm.

The moment of breakthrough shook everyone to their core.

The cultivators on the battlefield froze in place.

The three great clans stood in stunned silence. Losing one of their Earth Profound experts in the first exchange had shattered their confidence, but to then witness Liu Wuxie's breakthrough before their eyes was a devastating blow to their morale.

Nearby, Qu Su and several high-ranking elders of the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy observed the scene with furrowed brows.

"Elder Qu, should we intervene?" one of the elders asked cautiously. With their authority, they could easily bring the battle to a halt.

However, Qu Su shook his head. "Our Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy does not interfere in the disputes between other forces. You all know the rules."

The academy didn't belong to any sect or clan. It operated as a neutral institution, a place that recruited prodigies from all over the Central Plains.

"But Liu Wuxie is one of our chosen disciples. How can we stand by and let him be hunted?" another elder argued, clearly uneasy.

If something were to happen to Liu Wuxie, the shockwaves would spread across the entire continent.

"If he's truly a chosen one, he won't die so easily," Qu Su replied with a faint, bitter smile. "Besides, the other clans also have disciples from our academy. Intervening would only create more enemies and bring no benefit to the academy."

A different elder narrowed his eyes. "Is this another instruction from the Grandmaster? Creating hardship on purpose to temper him?"

They had heard the rumors that the grandmaster was deliberately placing obstacles in Liu Wuxie's path to hone his potential under pressure.

"Don't speculate about Grandmaster's intentions," Qu Su said, shaking his head. "Let's just keep watching."

Indeed, no one could truly see through the mind of the academy's mysterious grandmaster.

Back on the battlefield, Liu Wuxie's breakthrough sent a shockwave of raw spiritual force that swept across the area like a tempest. His crushing aura forced ordinary cultivators to retreat; even Earth Profound Realm experts staggered under its weight.

He had consumed nearly five thousand supreme-grade spirit stones to achieve this breakthrough.

Divine force poured from the two gates of his inner world, sharpening his grasp of dao techniques, especially the terrifying Death Dao Art he had only begun to master.

During his battle with Wang Chen, the Death Dao Art had only existed in its embryonic state, yet it had already drastically weakened his opponent. Now, with further refinement, its power had grown exponentially.

If Liu Wuxie could fully master the technique, its execution could wipe out every living being within a ten-thousand-mile radius.

"Impossible! He's only at the fourth-level Spirit Profound Realm!" a cultivator exclaimed, horrified. "But his aura is as strong as someone at the fourth-level Earth Profound Realm!"

Shock rippled through the crowd, especially among Spirit Profound Realm cultivators, many of whom were forced to their knees, unable to withstand the oppressive pressure.

Even at the third-level Spirit Profound Realm, Liu Wuxie had been capable of slaying third-level Earth Profound opponents.

Now, with his breakthrough to the fourth level, none could predict just how terrifying his power had become.

Even fifth-level Earth Profound experts might no longer be his equal.