Chapter 5498: The Situation With the Phoenix Clan

It took mere moments for the white-faced man’s look of disbelief to transform into a murderous glare. He hadn’t expected Chu Feng to make a move on him. How could someone of his stature have his hand severed by a nobody like Chu Feng?

“You’re courting death!”

With a furious roar, the white-faced man drew a whip, which was an Exalted Armament. At the same time, his aura surged as his eyes changed color. His cultivation began to rise from rank three Half-God level to rank five Half-God level.

He flicked his whip at Chu Feng, determined to claim the latter’s life with a single strike.

Uwa!

A cry of agony echoed before the whip could even land.

The other two Totem Phoenix Clansmen and Long Shanshan stiffened up in shock. They watched in disbelief as the white-faced man’s whip flew across the air with his remaining good arm.

Chu Feng had sliced off his other arm with a simple swing.

“Your cultivation feels unstable despite having reached rank five Half-God level. You must have consumed quite a few treasures to prop up your cultivation,” Chu Feng asked with a sneer.

Someone who relied on treasures to raise their cultivation couldn’t possibly be a match for Chu Feng.

“Audacious! How dare you hurt him! Do you know who he is?” one of the Totem Phoenix Clansmen pointed a finger at Chu Feng and roared.

Shoosh!

A sword qi flew across the air, lopping off the head of the man who had just spoken. Chu Feng showed completely no hesitation in killing him.

“Y-you… are you out of your mind?!”

The final Totem Phoenix Clansman was initially infuriated as well, but watching his comrade getting killed in cold blood intimidated him. He was put in a spot, not knowing whether to berate Chu Feng or step down here.

Chu Feng simply swung his sword once more, and the other party’s head was lopped off faster than he could even react.

“You madman!”

In spite of his injuries, the white-faced man scrambled to his feet in an attempt to escape. However, Chu Feng casually swung his sword once more, and the white-faced man fell dead a split instant later. He, too, was as helpless as his comrades before Chu Feng’s sword despite having reached rank five Half-God level.

It couldn’t be helped, since the disparity between them was that great.

Chu Feng proceeded to absorb their origin energies, collected their treasures, and destroyed their bodies. The way he dealt with the bodies was so smooth that it startled Long Shanshan. Her heart clenched up as she looked at him once more. Fear could be seen in her eyes.

To her relief, Chu Feng retracted his formation sword.

“You’re involved in this matter too. I trust that you won’t tell anyone?” Chu Feng asked.

“Of course not. I, Long Shanshan, swear that I’ll tell nothing about what transpired here to anyone.” Long Shanshan actually raised her hand to make a vow.

Chu Feng didn’t bother responding to those words but instead turned his attention back to the wall.

“Young hero Chu Feng, much thanks to you. The Totem Phoenix Clansmen are out of their minds to dare make a move on me. I’d be in deep trouble if not for your help,” Long Shanshan said out of gratitude.

“You need not thank me. I didn’t do it for your sake. They would have come after me next in order to silence me so that word doesn’t get to the Totem Dragon Clan. That’s the only reason I stepped in,” Chu Feng replied coldly.

Despite his heartless answer, Long Shanshan didn’t feel disheartened in the least. Instead, it spurred a peculiar feeling within her that made her purse her lips in embarrassment.

“Look, Chu Feng! That girl is looking at you with a very different gaze. It looks like she has fallen in love with you. Do you reckon that she’s a masochist? I mean, you even viciously beat her up once!” Eggy burst into hearty laughter, thinking that it was interesting.

“She’s probably too used to being spoiled that it fascinates her to be treated in a different way,” Chu Feng nonchalantly replied, knowing that he would never fall in love with Long Shanshan.

“Young hero Chu Feng, you have been staring at this wall for some time now. Have you deciphered anything from it?” Long Shanshan came so close to Chu Feng that her shoulder was almost pressing against his. Her body fragrance tickled his nose.

She’s doing it on purpose.

Chu Feng took a side step to avoid her, and the latter revealed a gleeful smile.

“What’s wrong, Chu Feng? You have always believed in taking advantage of every little convenience that comes your way? She’s practically throwing herself at you, and her looks are decent too!” Eggy teased.

“Please, Milady Queen. I have standards, all right? You should know how picky I am after seeing your face every day. There’s no way I’d fall for that kind of look,” Chu Feng replied with a smile.

It was a sharp contrast from his cold attitude toward Long Shanshan.

“Tsk,” Eggy scoffed, but her lips were curled up.

Chu Feng focused his attention on the specks of light on the surrounding walls, while Long Shanshan obediently stood by the side to accompany him, not asking a question at all. It was only when he was done grasping everything that he finally turned to Long Shanshan.

“Did you comprehend anything earlier in the water?”

“I noticed that something was hidden in the water, but somehow I was unable to focus on it,” Long Shanshan replied.

“Then whatever’s going to happen here has nothing to do with you. Consume some pain suppressants,” Chu Feng instructed.

“Now?” Long Shanshan asked.

“Yes, now,” Chu Feng said.

Long Shanshan took out two pills. She consumed one and passed the other one to Chu Feng.

“I won’t be consuming it.” Chu Feng shook his head.

“Young hero Chu Feng, will there be a similar impact later on? What is with that wind and the flood?” Long Shanshan asked.

“I’m guessing that it’s some kind of body tempering,” Chu Feng replied.

He was initially unsure what was going on too, but he could already fathom a guess or two now.

“Body tempering? Is this actually a benefit?” Long Shanshan widened her eyes in surprise. She hadn’t thought of it that way before.

“Not necessarily so. I’m guessing that this is a special tempering process. You’ll likely have to undergo a test at the very end. I’d recommend you give up on the test if there’s such an option later. You have only been going with the flow instead of seriously going through the tempering process, so it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to take it,” Chu Feng said.

“All right, I’ll listen to young hero Chu Feng’s words and give up,” Long Shanshan replied without any hesitation.

“I noticed that the Totem Phoenix Clan harbors a grudge against your clan. Is there a grudge between your two clans?” Chu Feng asked.

“There’s no grudge between our clans. If anything, we were actually on close terms,” Long Shanshan replied.

It turned out that the Totem Phoenix Clan used to be a close ally of the Totem Dragon Clan. The two clans worked closely together, collaborating in terms of their fighting means and formations.

When the Totem Dragon Clan’s founder passed away, the Totem Dragon Clan and the Totem Phoenix Clan drifted apart. However, that only spelled a decrease in their collaborations; they still continued to maintain an amicable relationship.

One thing that quickly became apparent with the reduction in their collaboration was that the Totem Phoenix Clan started to decline, whereas the Totem Dragon Clan continued to prosper. The Totem Dragon Clan couldn’t bear to see its old ally falling through the ranks, so it tried reaching out to them for partnerships, but the latter turned them down.

Rumors began to spread as the two powers continued to drift further, but the truth was that until the Totem Phoenix Clan finally disappeared, there were no signs of them turning hostile to each other.

Even their juniors would get along when they met one another by coincidence, thanks to the teaching of their elders.

However, the Totem Phoenix Clan had completely changed this time around. It acted arrogantly unlike its past self, and it didn’t hesitate to show its enmity toward the Totem Dragon Clan.