Chapter 993: A Challenge To Duel

Tie Ling was the absolute confidant of Patriarch Tie Qinlong. In many cases, he was considered the patriarch’s mouthpiece. So when those words came from his mouth, every elder present immediately understood that this was none other than Tie Qinlong’s will.

“The Ruò Iron Tribe needs no change,” Tie Ling declared. “All we need to do is follow the guidance of the Ancestor of Wisdom. If Tie Wushuang was one of those traitors who once turned his back on the Ancestor, what right does he have to return now and claim leadership over us?”

Tie Ling laid out his position clearly and forcefully. Finally, he declared with steel in his tone, “Therefore, he must be executed. His head shall be offered to the Ancestor Court as proof of our Ruò Iron Tribe’s unwavering loyalty to the Ancestor of Wisdom.”

The room remained silent.

Patriarch Tie Qinlong then spoke, “Since everyone agrees, then it’s settled. However, that sinner may indeed possess the ancient knowledge of our ancestor’s Vital Qi cultivation methods. It could be of use to us. Capture him alive, and extract the truth using the tribe’s secret interrogation techniques.”

Everyone felt a chill run down their spine.

How ruthless, but it wasn’t unexpected. This was the classic fate of a man with a treasured jade; he who possesses a coveted treasure becomes guilty in the eyes of the world. What made it worse was that this man posed a direct threat to the patriarch’s strength.

Tie Ling said, “Patriarch, the sinner’s strength is considerable. I suggest we use cunning. Lure him into a deathtrap, wear down his energy, and then capture him.”

“Good,” Tie Qinlong approved of the plan.

Just then, a sigh echoed through the room.

“You lot...” The words were spoken in the archaic and obscure ancient tongue of the Ruò Iron Tribe.

Everyone’s expressions shifted dramatically. A figure slowly stood from the corner of the room. It was a King-ranked elder, a Three Pearl King-ranked elder. He had long been considered one of the patriarch’s trusted confidants. But as shimmering light rippled over his form, his features began to change.

In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a two-meter-tall Tie Wushuang, whose body was wreathed in flickering silver radiance.

“Seize him!” Patriarch Tie Qinlong reacted instantly, shouting with a wave of his hand.

Though it was embarrassing to be caught red-handed while plotting treachery behind someone's back, there was no longer room for pretense. It would have to be a battle to the death.

Whoosh.

Two figures shot toward Li Xiaofei like streaks of lightning. But his entire body surged with flowing Vital Qi, and a massive bone-forged greatsword appeared in his hand.

The jade-like sword was snow-white, crafted from the leg bone of some unknown beast. He had found it back in the vast fortress city of the Ruò Iron Tribe within the Evolution Temple.

Li Xiaofei raised his hand and swept the blade. Sword light flashed, appearing and vanishing in a single breath. The two elders who had rushed him were instantly decapitated, their heads and bodies flying apart.

“Pathetic,” he said coldly. “So this is your so-called new path of evolution? A pack of unfilial descendants who prize the box and discard the treasure. You disgrace the honor of our ancestors.”

Li Xiaofei wore an expression of furious disappointment, his voice sharp and scolding. With sword in hand, his figure seemed to tower like never before.

An overwhelming torrent of energy poured from his body like crashing waves, sweeping across the room. His presence was divine, terrifying, and absolute. The sword technique he had just used was a genuine combat art of the ancient Ruò Iron Tribe.

The tribe's early ancestors had championed the philosophy of “sagely within, kingly without”, embracing both inner cultivation and external martial mastery. Their battle prowess, particularly their swordsmanship, was renowned for being unmatched.

Since he had the Dual Sacred Body of Blade and Sword, Li Xiaofei had easily comprehended these techniques after studying the records and scrolls in the ancient library. Thus, when he wielded them now, it looked as natural as breathing as he displayed their strength in full.

Patriarch Tie Qinlong felt a chill in his heart. The strength this ancient clansman displayed far surpassed what he had imagined. Especially when it came to that single sword strike just now, that single flash of white light.

Despite his own cultivation level, he had been utterly unable to perceive the energy shifts or transitions of the technique.

So this... is the power of the cultivation arts practiced by the ancient ancestors?

For a moment, no one dared to make the first move.

Tie Qinlong barked, “He who slaughters his kin is guilty beyond redemption. Kill him!”

Urged on by his command, four level twelve elders stepped forward in unison, each unleashing their most powerful divine weapons. These four were formidable, each a powerhouse in their own right.

Together, they specialized in a synergized formation technique. When they fought as one, their combined might rivaled even the peak of level thirteen. With their divine armaments complementing their coordination, they were considered an invincible unit within the Ruò Iron Tribe.

But who was Li Xiaofei? Determined to sever the claws of this patriarch, he held nothing back. The snow-white bone sword in his hand sliced through the void once again.

Whoosh.

Sword light erupted and blood sprayed. With only four strikes, four great elders coughed blood and staggered backward. They collapsed to the ground and their bodies went rigid. Then, blood geysered outward from the center of their chests. Their bodies ignited like fire, and in seconds, they were reduced to ash.

Clang.

The four divine weapons fell to the ground, letting out crisp, ringing sounds. Everyone felt a chill seize their hearts.

Heavens...

What kind of power is this?

He had just instantly killed four elders.

Could it be that the ancient cultivation arts of their tribe, once practiced by the ancestors in their youth, were actually this formidable?

Many of the elders now looked toward Li Xiaofei with newfound reverence and awe.

Tie Qinlong, meanwhile, could not stop his body from trembling. He had expected that Tie Wushuang might be difficult to handle. But he had never imagined it would be this difficult.

If the ancient cultivation methods truly possessed this kind of terrifying strength, then why had their lineage teetered on the edge of extinction? Why had they been forced to abandon the Evolution Temple?

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

“I do not wish to slaughter my own kin,” Li Xiaofei said. He raised his sword to point at Tie Qinlong. “In the name of the ancestral founders, I issue you a challenge of honor. As the patriarch, you must accept. If you dare not, exile yourself.”

Such a rule did in fact exist within the Ruò Iron Tribe. The Reapers worshipped the law of the jungle. The strongest survived. To be patriarch, one had to be the strongest of the clan, and one was required to accept an honor duel when issued.

This was an ancient law. But what made it fatal for Tie Qinlong... was that this old rule was still observed within the tribe.

He gritted his teeth and growled, “A rotting corpse that crawled out of a coffin dares challenge me? Fine. I’ll give you that chance.”

He summoned the Patriarch’s Sacred Weapon, a massive bone fang. It was a tooth from the fallen Beast Ancestor during one of its evolutionary ruptures. It was a relic personally gifted by the Ancestor of Wisdom to the Ruò Iron Tribe.

Li Xiaofei’s eyes lit up,

Good stuff.

He could sense the wild, primal energy swirling within the two-meter-long bone fang. It far exceeded even the Mother of All Beasts’ hide. This was ideal for forging a spear.

It’s mine now,

thought Li Xiaofei.

Li Xiaofei’s bone sword trembled with his intent as he struck without hesitation. The two titans clashed. The surrounding elders instantly retreated to a safe distance.

Sword lights slashed and white brilliance surged. The clash of bone and steel echoed without end. It felt as though eons passed, and yet, it was over as if in the blink of an eye. Just as the elders were still entranced by the dazzling spectacle of blade and light, the entire world seemed to fall into sudden silence.

The two figures stood apart. Back to back. No one moved.

Who won?

That question roared through everyone’s hearts.

Then, a crack sound echoed. The bone sword in Li Xiaofei’s hand suddenly shattered. Fragments of pure white bone fell, piece by piece, to the floor.

The ancient tribesman... lost?

A jolt of shock rippled through every heart.