Chapter 1390: It's Not Good to Walk Away Like That, Right?

Nanming Shaoze felt a chill crawl up his spine, cold sweat trickling down his back.

He was astounded.

What... just happened?

The Heavenly Sniping Art had not yet ended. To test his suspicion, he once again circulated his spiritual energy.

Pfft!

The arrow reappeared, half of its head already buried in his body. Just as it was about to be completely skewered, a figure suddenly appeared and caught the arrow by its tail.

It was Nanming Ruyue. He dissipated about eighty percent of the Heavenly Sniping Art's force.

The technique, having completed its cycle of cause and effect, slowly dissipated in his hand.

Nanming Shaoze's face was deathly pale.

At last, the crowd understood—the Heavenly Sniping Art had actually turned on its user!

However, they couldn't quite make sense of it.

How had that happened?

Many people now looked at Fang Chen with a hint of terror in their eyes. Even the two silver jade token cultivators who knew how strong Nanming Shaoze truly was gulped nervously.

"So... he's really won this time, right?" Lin Yuan asked.

No one answered him. The crowd's attention was entirely on the two core disciples who had intervened. Recognizing them as core disciples of the Enlightenment God Palace, everyone hurriedly bowed in respect.

Nanming Shaoze's face changed drastically. He quickly cupped his fist toward Nanming Ruyue. "Cousin..."

"Enough," Nanming Ruyue said coldly. "Now you understand what it means for there to be heavens beyond the heavens? Don't get smug just because you got a golden jade token. It's not purple, so stop showing off everywhere."

Nanming Shaoze dared not retort. His heart still thumped with fear. If Nanming Ruyue hadn't intervened just now, that arrow would have left him dead or half-crippled. He might have spent decades recovering, losing his precious chance to explore the Formless Purgatory.

"Interesting," Nanming Ruyue said, glancing toward Fang Chen. "That tap on his head just now, that was what broke his Heavenly Sniping Art."

He smiled faintly. "He's lost this battle. I'll make sure he doesn't cause you trouble again in the Formless Purgatory."

"You're Fang Chen, aren't you?" said Li Shanzi, who had just arrived.

He smiled lightly at Fang Chen. "I remember you. You'd better thank Fifth Senior Brother, if he hadn't acted, you might've caused quite a mess."

With the two core disciples appearing one after the other, the crowd realized that they had been watching the fight all along.

Nanming Shaoze lowered his head, his expression ugly. The pride he'd carried since earning his golden jade token was shattered. And the one who shattered it... was just a bronze jade token holder.

Could I have... grown complacent these past years? Have I already begun to fall behind?

His confidence began to waver.

"No need to thank me," Nanming Ruyue said mildly. "My sudden intervention also counts as bullying the weak. Take these ten immortal crystals."

He tossed Fang Chen ten shimmering immortal crystals, then turned and left, dragging Nanming Shaoze with him.

Li Shanzi paused beside Fang Chen and added, "You held back last time. You should've taken first place in that assessment. Whatever your reason for hiding your strength, since you're in the Enlightenment God Palace now, you don't need to worry about being ostracized for your talent. Because what you call 'talent'... might mean nothing in our eyes."

He gave Fang Chen a faint, knowing smile, then departed as well.

Only after they left did the others gradually recover from the shock. Several glanced greedily at the ten immortal crystals in Fang Chen's hand.

Their value was immense, nearly equal to ten thousand top-grade spirit stones. For anyone not yet an immortal, it was a staggering fortune.

Fortunately, they still had sense. Those crystals came from Nanming Ruyue himself, so none of them dared make a move.

"Fang Daoist," Yu Tiange said, stepping forward with a wry expression. "I didn't expect even someone as proud as Nanming Shaoze to lose to you so thoroughly. My own loss back then feels much less unjust now."

"We won!" Lin Yuan suddenly exclaimed with delight. "Our Nine Realms Expedition Team's captain beat a golden jade token prodigy!"

The name "Nine Realms Expedition Tealm" quickly spread among the onlookers, many silently memorizing it.

"Wait," Fang Chen called out suddenly.

The crowd paused, unsure what he wanted to say.

Then they saw him look toward Chen Mingxiong, who was trying to slip away quietly.

Fang Chen smiled. "Leaving just like that? That doesn't seem right, does it?"

Chen Mingxiong turned around and forced a strained smile. "What... what do you want?"

Yu Tiange already understood Fang Chen's intent. He snorted coldly. "Hit him."

The bronze jade token members of the small alliance charged forward, joining Yu Tiange to attack the Ascension Realm cultivator. Yu Wuxia, Lin Yuan, and Meng Qingling also leapt in.

Chen Mingxiong instantly felt immense pressure. He kept glancing nervously toward Fang Chen, since Fang hadn't moved yet, he didn't dare fight seriously.

Ordinarily, as an Ascension Realm cultivator, he could have lasted much longer against this siege, but his constant fear of Fang Chen striking made his defenses sloppy. Within moments, he was overwhelmed and beaten bloody.

A few minutes later, Chen Mingxiong, black and blue, stumbled away.

And thus, a mighty Ascension Realm cultivator—a quasi-immortal—was beaten up by a bunch of Tribulation Realm cultivators, his reputation utterly ruined. He could only hope the news wouldn't spread too quickly.

When it was over, the nearby cultivators didn't leave. Instead, they crowded around Fang Chen, greeting him enthusiastically and trying to curry favor.

Anyone with eyes could see that this man had a bright future ahead. He had even defeated a golden jade token prodigy—there was a real chance he might become a core disciple someday. And at that level, he'd be one of the true powerhouses of the Nine Mortal Realms.

***

A quarter of an hour later.

After dealing with the flood of eager well-wishers, Fang Chen turned to his team and asked, "That Heavenly Sniping Art Nanming Shaoze used, do any of you have its cultivation method? Or is it a secret art of his family?"

"Yes," Yu Tiange said, his expression shifting slightly. He took out a jade slip and handed it to Fang Chen. "The method for cultivating the Heavenly Sniping Art is in here. With your talent, you can try it. But the art has several levels. At your current stage, it'll be hard to reach his level. He's trained this as his core immortal art since childhood, day and night without pause."

"Didn't stop him from losing to the captain," Lin Yuan said cheerfully.

Yu Tiange fell silent for a moment, unable to argue. Finally, he nodded. "This technique is... unusual. It's not much use to ordinary cultivators. But for you... It might actually suit you."

Without realizing it, when Yu Tiange said 'ordinary cultivators', he had included himself in that category.

"Thank you," Fang Chen said with a smile, taking the jade slip and beginning to study it.

The others lingered nearby, chatting quietly.

Far away, several hidden gazes were fixed in their direction.

Ji Tianjun's eyes narrowed as he stared at Fang Chen.

His talent is indeed impressive. Before reincarnation... could he have been one of the higher demon clans?

For some reason, the man gave him an unpleasant feeling, a subtle, instinctive irritation.

"The princess thinks highly of him," Ji Tianjun murmured, "but he's already offended the core disciple Nanming Ruyue. To prevent Her Highness from being dragged into trouble, we should find an opportunity to... remove him. Since he's of our bloodline, make it quick, and keep it clean."