Chapter 1140 - Peace After Chaos

After repelling Liu Hanyi, the Spirit Jade Pavilion's pavilion master advanced toward Liu Wuxie, each step causing the surrounding space to quake.

His overwhelming pressure shattered the Heavenly Dao Society's defensive array. Moments later, building after building collapsed, leaving nearly half the sect in ruins.

Liu Wuxie raised the Heretic Blade. With no path of retreat, he resolved to kill the pavilion master, even if it would cost him his life for the sake of protecting his family, friends, and loved ones.

"Liu Wuxie, I gave you many chances to submit. Since you've refused each one, you'll die here," the pavilion master said, his voice devoid of emotion.

A strange luster surged outward and trapped Liu Wuxie in place.

"The Five Divine Spirit Palm? You've actually cultivated such a sinister technique?" Liu Wuxie narrowed his eyes and stared sharply at the pavilion master.

This vile technique demanded the absorption of five elemental souls—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. In other words, the pavilion master had slaughtered countless cultivators over the years.

"You recognize it? Then you should know its power. If I were you, I'd be on my knees, begging for mercy," the pavilion master said, surprise flashing across his face. He hadn't expected Liu Wuxie to recognize the technique.

Only the grandmasters of the two academies knew of the Five Divine Spirit Palm, as it originated from the Astral Domain.

"Since you cultivated it, you must also know that anyone who practices it needs the Five Spirit Altar. Without it, the vengeful wraiths will escape," Liu Wuxie said with a faint smile.

The pavilion master's expression shifted. Liu Wuxie had not only recognized the palm technique but also understood how the Five Spirit Altar worked. He realized that he had underestimated him.

After all, even a chosen one couldn't know so much.

"Liu Wuxie, you deserve to die!" the pavilion master shouted. For the first time, fear flickered in his eyes. He felt a chill creep down his spine, and it was all because of someone still in the Earth Profound Realm.

"You're the one who should die. Why do you think I've been talking to you this long? You really think I'm afraid?" Liu Wuxie smirked coldly.

The pavilion master thoroughly studied Liu Wuxie.

He knew Liu Wuxie calculated every move with precision. Now, uncertainty bloomed in his chest. A bead of cold sweat rolled down his forehead.

The crowd watched in disbelief. How could the pavilion master fear someone in the Earth Profound Realm after overpowering Liu Hanyi, a third-level Heaven Profound cultivator?

"Ling Qiong, look at this!" Elder Madman appeared before Liu Wuxie, holding a strange jade token in his hand.

The pavilion master trembled violently at the sight of it and plummeted from the sky.

"You—" he began, but Elder Madman crushed the jade token before he could finish.

Ling Qiong, the pavilion master's actual name, was finally revealed.

When the token shattered, he convulsed. Black miasma burst from within him and coiled around his body like death itself.

A thunderous explosion erupted from deep within the Spirit Jade Pavilion. The blast sent a mushroom cloud soaring into the sky, and countless stunned onlookers stared upward.

No one could tell what had happened.

"Liu Wuxie, you can't kill me!" the pavilion master roared, his face twisting as black lines spread beneath his skin like venomous wraiths.

The miasma thickened, transforming him into a ghostly figure rising from hell.

Elder Madman stepped forward and nodded at Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie bowed in gratitude. He knew that without Elder Madman, today's outcome could have been catastrophic.

Suddenly, the black miasma shot skyward.

"This is bad!" Liu Wuxie exclaimed.

The pavilion master had abandoned his body. His soul fled toward the Astral Domain. If he found a new host, he could rebuild his strength and return in secret.

Liu Wuxie immediately summoned the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron to devour the miasma, but he reacted too late. The black mist pierced the clouds and vanished into the sky.

Liu Wuxie frowned as cracks tore across the True Martial Continent.

Smugglers found it challenging to take out a physical body, but a soul could easily slip through. And the pavilion master surely knew the secret techniques of the Astral Domain.

"Kill them all!" Liu Wuxie ordered.

He needed to eliminate the three forces now. Whether the pavilion master escaped or not, he had to destroy the threat in front of him.

The Heavenly Dao Society and Liu Clan cultivators charged together.

Terrified by the pavilion master's fall, Yu Tai tried to flee.

"Die!" Liu Wuxie shouted, pointing a finger. He froze Yu Tai into an ice sculpture and shattered him on the spot.

Chaos erupted as the three sects collapsed. Disciples and elders raised their hands in surrender, pleading for mercy.

Within fifteen minutes, more than ninety percent surrendered.

No one dared resist. They only hoped Liu Wuxie would spare their lives.

"What should we do, Liu Wuxie?" Fan Zhen asked.

There were too many prisoners, and executing defenseless captives would damage the Heavenly Dao Society's reputation.

"Cripple everyone above the Spirit Profound Realm. Disperse the rest. From now on, none of them may oppose the Heavenly Dao Society," Liu Wuxie commanded.

Those in the Spirit Profound and Earth Profound Realms made up a third of the total. Killing the rest served no purpose. Wails broke out, but no one dared resist.

Silence fell. From that moment on, the Heavenly Dao Society and the Liu Clan stood as titans of the True Martial Continent.

With the Spirit Jade Pavilion gone, anyone seeking resources would turn to them.

"Wuxie, how did you kill the pavilion master?" Xu Yilin and the others asked, curiosity gleaming in their eyes.

They had steeled themselves to die, yet Elder Madman had pulled out a jade token at the critical moment, and the pavilion master vanished afterward.

No one could understand what had happened.

"Master, why don't you explain it?" Liu Wuxie said, deferring.

All eyes turned to Elder Madman. His reputation preceded him. Had he not failed his heavenly tribulation, he would have become a grandmaster.

"Years ago, we discovered that many cultivators had vanished mysteriously. After a thorough investigation, we found that they all practiced the five elements," Elder Madman began.

Even the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy had dispatched cultivators to investigate.

"Months ago, the pavilion master ordered me to investigate. Eventually, I traced all the disappearances back to the Spirit Jade Pavilion," he added.

Even though they hid it carefully, they still left traces behind. After his breakthrough, Elder Madman launched a covert investigation.

"He also told me about the Five Divine Spirit Palm. I've been stalling for time so he could infiltrate and destroy the Five Spirit Altar," Liu Wuxie added.

When Elder Madman arrived at Astral Glory City, he sent Liu Wuxie a secret message. However, he couldn't act until the pavilion master had left. In other words, they needed a window of time.

Liu Hanyi and Liu Wuxie bought him that window of time.

"But what exactly is the Five Spirit Altar?" someone asked.

"Those who practice the Five Divine Spirit Palm must extract elemental souls daily. Those souls aren't truly dead—someone had suppressed them beneath the altar as vengeful wraiths. I crushed the jade token known as the Five Spirit Token. It was keeping them sealed," Elder Madman explained.

"So breaking the token released them, and they turned on the pavilion master?" Zhao Guanhai asked, stepping forward.

"More or less. Ling Qiong had been absorbing immense elemental power over the years. As long as the altar remained intact, he would be safe. Once it shattered, the wraiths would turn on him and devour him," Elder Madman said.

The Five Divine Spirit Palm was powerful—no wonder it sent Liu Hanyi flying away. In theory, someone at the fifth-level Heaven Profound Realm couldn't have been easily overpowered by a third-level Heaven Profound Realm cultivator.

"He brought it on himself," many muttered in disgust. The Spirit Jade Pavilion had captured five-element cultivators who were friends and kin to many people here.

Once they gathered all five elements, they could forge the Five Elemental Mythical Art—an art far superior to Liu Wuxie’s Great Five Elemental Palm.

Mythical arts surpassed dao techniques, and only true immortals could cultivate them.

The grand battle had ended, and peace returned to the Central Plains as the Heavenly Dao Society cleaned up the battlefield.

"Brother Zhao, I won't forget your help today. I'll visit you personally to thank you," Liu Wuxie said, bowing to the Nine Profound Sect.

"Brother Liu, why so formal?" Zhao Chao replied, pulling him up. Their friendship ran deep, even without frequent contact.

"I won't host you for now. The Heavenly Dao Society needs rebuilding. Once we're finished, I'll welcome you properly," Liu Wuxie said, cupping his fists.

They had lost half their buildings in the battle and needed time to rebuild.

"Then we'll take our leave," Zhao Chao said. With that, the Nine Profound Sect departed from Astral Glory City.