Chapter 228. On the Back Foot, Descent, Repelled With a Hand

When Jiang Ningxian saw the techniques Zhou Yunqiong was displaying, astonishment flickered in her eyes. She instantly recognized that divine art.

Lu Yuan looked confused.

Noticing that, Jiang Ningxian explained, "Along with the True Dragon Art, the True Phoenix Art of the Ji Clan is one of the two forbidden divine arts of the Ziwei Starfield. It's a closely guarded secret of the Ji Clan. Even their Rankers find it difficult to learn.

"One must possess an exceptionally powerful bloodline to master it. The Ji Clan has yet to descend on this world, but she has already obtained it from them. In other words, Zhou Yunqiong must have a connection to a certain personage in the Ji Clan, and they value her enough to pass it down to her."

Jiang Ningxian knew much about the Ji Clan, which was why she could make this assessment so quickly. Both the True Phoenix Art and the True Dragon Art had been passed down from the era of the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan.

They were valuable divine arts, which was why she reacted so strongly at the sight of one of them here.

"If they did not value Zhou Yunqiong, she would not have reached the Venerable King Realm so quickly," Lu Yuan responded. He had long anticipated something like this, so he wasn't particularly shocked.

The Global Awakening offered excellent conditions conducive to evolution, but if one wanted to become even stronger, one had to take it step by step, which meant a ton of time was needed to become truly formidable.

Lu Yuan was a great example of this. How many divine treasures had he assimilated? How many opportunities had he claimed? Had it not been for those fortuitous opportunities, he wouldn't have reached the Venerable King Realm.

Despite that, Zhou Yunqiong stood at the same stage of evolution as him.

Without someone's assistance, it was an impossible feat.

"That makes sense." Jiang Ningxian nodded, fully agreeing with his assessment.

"Let's go. The Golden-Winged Great Peng and the others are on the backfoot," Lu Yuan said, and his aura began to seep out of him.

Just as he had said, it was time to settle things.

***

Zhou Yunqiong was shrouded in the manifestation of a true phoenix, becoming even stronger as a result. Every movement on her end generated fierce winds that howled around her.

Just then, radiant light burst out of her, transforming into phoenix feathers that shot forth like lethal swords.

The four beast kings were indeed powerful. Outside, they could be considered nearly invincible. Yet against Zhou Yunqiong, they were on the back foot and could no longer fight back when the former revealed her true strength.

The "swords" made of radiant lights surrounded them. The Golden-Winged Great Peng couldn't withstand the attacks and was forced to retreat repeatedly. It was already riddled with holes from its injuries.

Fortunately, its bloodline and physique were formidable enough to withstand such injuries.

Unfortunately, Zhou Yunqiong showed no signs of stopping her attacks. In fact, it seemed as though she had only just begun.

The Peacock King, the Spirit Monkey, and the Nine-tailed Fox King found themselves under immense pressure as Zhou Yunqiong's attacks grew heavier and heavier.

Eventually, a terrifying aura erupted from Zhou Yunqiong as she gathered all the feathers and her strength to unleash a concentrated strike that was easily capable of obliterating a mountain.

The four beast kings were alarmed. They immediately combined their strength and deployed their own techniques to defend themselves.

They knew they couldn't block it completely, but if she thought she could kill them so easily, then she was sorely mistaken.

"Still not going to retreat?" Zhou Yunqiong frowned at the sight. She had already shown mercy by not attacking them immediately. However, she hadn't expected them to remain so stubborn.

It seemed she would have to teach them a lesson.

With that in mind, Zhou Yunqiong stepped forward and summoned even greater power from within her.

BOOM!

Waves of radiant light erupted from her, and she appeared as though she were a celestial maiden descending from the heavens. All the phoenix feathers converged at one point in midair, transforming into a "sword" overflowing with killing intent.

The next moment, she brought it down without hesitation.

This attack was meant to grievously wound all four beast kings.

The Golden-Winged Great Peng and the others were alarmed, and their hearts trembled at the sight.

Before they could do anything, however, an even more powerful aura descended without warning.

Boom!

Lu Yuan appeared before the four beast kings and extended his right hand, catching the "sword" with his bare hand. Then, he clenched his fingers around the sword.

BANG!

A powerful shockwave rippled outward like violent tidal waves. Had this been somewhere else, the shockwaves alone would have devastated the land.

Amidst the storm, Lu Yuan stood unmoving. With a casual wave of his hand, the Nine Provinces Map appeared in his hand.

Zhou Yunqiong staggered several steps backward, anger flashing across her face.

"Lu Yuan?" Surprise flickered in her eyes upon seeing Lu Yuan, but she quickly composed herself. "Taking advantage of the chaos to seize a treasure doesn't seem to be your style, Lu Yuan."

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

She had expected him to come, but not so soon. Seeing the Nine Provinces Map in Lu Yuan's hand, displeasure welled up within her.

"You said it yourself earlier. 'Since ancient times, treasures have always belonged to the strong.'" Lu Yuan held the Nine Provinces Map, his face calm. "If you're dissatisfied, you're welcome to try and take it."

Zhou Yunqiong frowned slightly at his words. Uncle Zuo and the others hurried over, on high alert. Lu Yuan was just too formidable. He could kill Sages, after all. If the Young Miss were to fight him, the outcome wouldn't be in her favor.

"That's right! And weren't you fierce just now? Where did that bravado go?" the Nine-tailed Fox King exclaimed, stepping forward to add, "King Lu, we found that map first, and she attacked us out of nowhere. I don't think you should keep talking to her."

None of the beast kings knew the history between Zhou Yunqiong and Lu Yuan. They assumed she was a being from the Outer Cosmos, and the Nine-tailed Fox King wasted no time, immediately grumbling against her.

Zhou Yunqiong's displeasure deepened upon hearing that. However, she knew that she couldn't gain any advantage now that Lu Yuan was here. At this rate, the conflict between them would only escalate.

She knew when to advance and when to retreat. A smile appeared on her face as she looked at Lu Yuan and said, "You should know that I could have grievously wounded or killed them. You're the reason I held back."

First, she had to ease the tension. Then, she would work on mending their relationship. Zhou Yunqiong believed that resolving their past grievances would not happen in just one or two encounters. However, she had the patience for it.

"I know." Lu Yuan's voice was calm. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have held back just now."

Fighting over opportunities and treasures was perfectly normal. However, the four beast kings were his people. He could not allow them to come to harm. If he could not even do that much, then he could truly be considered a tyrant.

His words made Zhou Yunqiong's expression flicker. The meaning behind Lu Yuan's words was unmistakable. He had no regard for whatever relationship they had shared in the past. She could tell that his attitude toward her had changed completely.

This made her frown, as she found it difficult to accept. However, Zhou Yunqiong wasn't an impulsive person who would let her emotions control her.

In addition, Jiang Ningxian was watching in the distance. She knew she could not remain here any longer.

"In that case, I shall take my leave. Until we meet again, then," Zhou Yunqiong said, understanding that mending her relationship with Lu Yuan was going to be exceedingly difficult.

At the very least, it would be a long-term project. Zhou Yunqing decided to take it step by step. After all, Lu Yuan was crucial to her future plans.

Just then, Lu Yuan called out, "Wait."