Chapter 436: Jiang Chen Emerges From Closed Door Cultivation, Strikes Back with Strength

Xie Tianshu, defeated!

Gu Xiong rested the sword on his shoulder and appeared different from the menacing Wu Chen. He couldn’t seem to be bothered to chase after Xie Tianshu at all, allowing him to fall from the ring, defeated.

“Weak. Too weak. If even the sect head is this pathetic, who else is capable of putting up a fight?”

Gu Xiong exuded an almost primal charisma, an awe inspiring tone suffusing his words. Between the two, the peak of the spirit realm experts actually didn’t dare meet his gaze.

“Who else?”

Zuo Lan smiled faintly and started slowly applauding. “Only three matches have passed since the agreement of the nine matches. Don’t say I’m bullying you. Send out whatever else you’ve got. Only when you accept your complete and utter loss will you wholeheartedly toil away for my Sky Sect.”

There was no mockery or irony in these words, just the superiority of one in a dominant position. He didn’t bother to conceal it at all. More than anything else, this was undoubtedly the greatest humiliation to the three great sects.

“Accept a complete and utter loss? Pah!” Ninelion was the first to stand. “I don’t care where you came from or how strong you might be. I only know that the sixteen kingdom alliance has always been our territory. You want to come and act as you please in our territory? I reject that from the bottom of my heart!”

“Reject?”

Zuo Lan’s face grew frosty. “Reject? Then send your people to fight until you’re all meekly submissive. You’re old monster Ninelion of the Myriad Spirit Sect? Do you think you’re quite something just because you’re an origin realm cultivator?”

“Do you think it’s an insult to slave away for my Sky Sect?”

Zuo Lan snorted derisively in quick succession. “I have to say, you think too much. Someone on your level is as common as the hairs on an ox in our Sky Sect. Your laughable self confidence and dignity is a joke in front of the authority of the Sky Sect. I don’t even know how many within the sect can crush you with one finger!”

“Do you think I value your strength by wanting to bring all of you under control? That I have some use for you?” Zuo Lan’s tone was dismissive. “The reason why I’ve chosen to spare your pathetic lives is because even if a place is a desolate wasteland, any domain listed within Sky Sect territory needs some guard dogs. You all are just the watch dogs that I’ve chosen. No matter how strong you are, the strong experts of the Sky Sect wouldn’t deign to come here at all!”

Watch dogs!

These two words stabbed deeply into the hearts of all those present from the three sects.

Even those from the Purple Sun Sect had on some awkward expressions. However, they were more aware than anyone that they truly were only watch dogs.

And this was the Sky Sect giving them face. If the Sky Sect was incensed, any random expert they sent would be able to crush the entire sixteen kingdom alliance.

“Cut the blather. There are six battles left out of nine. Either you fight, or you submit!”

Zuo Lan’s tone suddenly changed as his aura billowed and spread. The pressure from the earth origin realm filled the scene and stifled everyone from the three sects.

Even the forefathers felt woozy and nauseous. They almost wanted to vomit.

Those with spirit realm cultivation all broke out in a sweat and couldn’t stop themselves from vomiting.

The earth origin realm was only a step away from the forefathers, but the energy and aura that Zuo Lan was displaying seemed to be a far cry from the earth origin realm that they were familiar with.

“This is bad! Although Zuo Lan is only of the fourth level origin realm, his level of cultivation is at least two to three times higher than the earth origin realm we’re familiar with. His strength alone is enough to challenge us four origin realms. Add that to the traitor Sunchaser, the three sects will only be suppressed even if we fight with all we have.”

Ye Chonglou’s thoughts were spinning quickly as countless plans flashed through his mind all of a sudden. A beam of inspiration rose.

“Hold!”

Ye Chonglou waved his hands and called out.

Zuo Lan’s gaze was remote as he looked at Ye Chonglou. “What? Do you plan to be the first to surrender? Very good. It’s said that those who suit their actions to the times are wise. The sixteen kingdom alliance is but a tiny backwater barren land. The people here are destined to be lower class, destined to be slaves for others. To be able to fall under the banner of my Sky Sect is the greatest fortune of your lives. If you’re willing to toil away, perhaps you might fight your way to glory and wealth one day. Wouldn’t that be an act that honors your ancestors? Isn’t that much better than being frogs at the bottom of a well in your remote boondocks?”

Ye Chonglou’s expression chilled. “Envoy Zuo, you think too much. Surrender? I’ve lived for a great deal of time and have no plan of betraying my ancestors to eke out a living.”

Zuo Lan’s brow knit together as his pupils contracted rapidly. Killing intent exploded out of him. “Then you are making fun of me?”

Ye Chonglou was hit with an overbearing extension of Zuo Lan’s aura. The former’s chest heaved heavily, but he managed to hang on. He said determinedly, “You said that only three matches have occurred out of the nine. Are you unilaterally announcing your victory now?”

Zuo Lan started. He looked around the premises and smirked disdainfully. “What, do you think there are any in your three sects who dare to fight?”

“Yes!”

When Ye Chonglou spoke this word, a gust of wind accompanied another more ferocious and determined voice .

One voice was close at hand and the other far away, but they seemed to have reached a prior agreement as they opened their mouths and spoke at the same time.

Ye Chonglou’s brow arched when he heard this voice, delight blossoming on his face. “Jiang Chen, you’ve finally emerged from closed door cultivation?”

A low howl echoed forth as sound waves suddenly rippled forth from the empty air. The nameless blade trapped to his back, Jiang Chen came in on the wind and landed in the middle of the scene.

The current Jiang Chen had long, dominating brows, eyes sparkling with celestial radiance, and his twenty year old body seemed even more well balanced and upright. He seemed perfect no matter what angle one looked at him.

Jiang Chen’s appearance drew the looks of all three sects. Everyone’s gaze had been a bit dull and depressed beforehand, but now the light of hope shone from their eyes. It was as if a trace of light had appeared in endless darkness, and they’d found someone to place their hopes on. Everyone’s spirits were revitalized in that instant.

Zuo Lan hadn’t thought that someone else would suddenly appear at this moment.

“Who are you?”

Jiang Chen smiled faintly. “And who are you?”

Hatred blazed deep in the eyes of all the Purple Sun Sect members present when they saw Jiang Chen appear. It was a reaction markedly different than that of the other three sects.

“Master Zuo Lan, this vile swine is Jiang Chen. The Sky Sect’s favored Long Juxue of the innate constitution was killed by this scum!”

Sunchaser’s eyes grew red when he saw Jiang Chen, as if he’d truly seen an enemy. He itched to pounce and tear Jiang Chen to shreds, hacking his corpse into ten thousand pieces.

“Jiang Chen? You’re that so-called secular genius?” Zuo Lan’s gaze was contemptuous as he sized up Jiang Chen. “A mere spirit realm, but the three sects reacted to your arrival like they’d seen a savior. What, is a mere spirit realm pawn wanting to assume the role of a savior?”

Zuo Lan’s tone was full of disdain. He was obviously completely dismissive of Jiang Chen. His status was high, he’d come from the Sky Sect, and he stood in the earth origin realm. He naturally wouldn’t think much of a spirit realm cultivator like Jiang Chen.

In Zuo Lan’s eyes, anyone below the origin realm was an ant.

Zuo Lan found it hilariously ludicrous that an ant wanted to hop out and be a savior, and that the three sects were full of anticipation that he would save them.

Jiang Chen attitude was noncommittal, unmoving in the face of the pressure from the earth origin realm. He’d entered closed door cultivation for seven days this time and had refined the Divine Fruit of the Rosy Dawn to break through to the ninth level spirit realm, reaching the peak of the spirit realm in one go. With the strength and quality of his fighting capabilities, he now had the right to be hailed as a spirit king.

However, the title of spirit king could only be obtained after the accumulation of time and battle victories.

Jiang Chen was qualified for the title in all areas but one, he only lacked experience. This would be rectified through continuously defeating cultivators on the same level as him.

Zuo Lan’s aura was strong, but after Jiang Chen’s repeated breakthroughs, his Boulder’s Heart had reached ever increasing levels. The state of his strength of heart had long since reached a stage of more than ten times that of one of his peers.

Add that to some of the essence he’d absorbed from the magnetic golden mountain—it’d added a certain quality of being as stable as a mountain to his demeanor.

𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

“Savior?” Jiang Chen smiled faintly. “I’m not any savior, but neither are you some sort of cataclysm that can destroy the heavens and earth.”

Ye Chonglou spoke, “Envoy Zuo, the agreement of the nine matches has yet to conclude. Now that our candidate has arrived, do you only want to stand here and continue sparring verbally?”

Zuo Lan snorted coldly in response to Ye Chongou’s sarcastic words. “That’s just as well, it looks like you lot won’t repent until you fail completely, refusing to cry until you see your coffin! This Jiang Chen must be an unsurpassed genius in your heart and certainly your last hope.”

“However, you will soon see that your so-called hope is just a unilateral delusion. It will burst just like a bubble after one poke.”

Zuo Lan suddenly raised his voice after speaking thus and shouted, “Gao Xiang, Gu Xiong, Wu Chen—which amongst you is willing to do battle?”

“I am!”

“I am!”

“I am!”

The three gray-clad men all took a step forward and stared discourteously at Jiang Chen like hunters measuring up their prey. None of them bothered to conceal the mockery in their eyes.

“Jiang Chen, don’t underestimate your opponents. Three experts from the three sects all took the field just now and lost utterly. Even sect head Xie Tianshu was defeated by that Gu Xiong. There’s another who has yet to fight—the one with the three stars. His cultivation level should be even stronger than Gu Xiong’s realm of spirit king. I exchanged blows with this person just now and he actually took one of mine!”

Ye Chonglou reminded Jiang Chen that of the three, Gao Xiang had yet to display his strength. They’d exchanged a punch, and when Ye Chonglou wanted to follow up on it, Zuo Lan had prevented him from doing so. He naturally had to alert Jiang Chen to the fact that this person could take one of his blows.

Jiang Chen nodded faintly, his face as calm as the waters of an ancient well. His gaze turned towards the three and then snapped to Zuo Lan. “Envoy Zuo, is it? It’s not that we can’t spar, but will you immediately get the hell out if I win?”

Zuo Lan laughed in his anger. “Win? Even the sect head of the Precious Tree Sect found it difficult to win. What right does an unweaned brat like you have to speak about winning?”

Wu Chen was unruly and hot-tempered as he cracked his whip, charging at Jiang Chen. “Kid, let Master Wu send you on your way. Die!”

He cracked the whip and sent it snaking towards Jiang Chen’s neck. The whip was like a lesser dragon, full of consciousness and moving faster than lightning.

Jiang Chen only smiled slightly and suddenly concentrated the God’s Eye. He saw through the trajectory of the whip amidst the various illusions and realities. He suddenly grasped at the air as if snatching a fly.

Whoosh!

The shadows of the whip that had filled the air were instantly dispelled by a miraculous power, vanishing without a trace. The other end of the whip was firmly caught in Jiang Chen’s right hand.

Jiang Chen’s gaze was indifferent. “You dare run your mouth with this little bit of ability? One of you isn’t enough. All three of you, come at me together and save me from doing things one by one.”

He pointed with his left hand at the whip as he spoke.

Pfft pfft pfft pfft! The whip started crackling and popping with flame, as if it’d been set on fire. The fire consumed the whip with an astonishing speed, like it was crawling up the lead wire of a cannon and instantly traveling to the other end.

Wu Chen was frightened senseless and hurriedly flung out his hands.