Chapter 362: Arcane Heavens VS Sky of Ten Suns

In a forest outside Yongding stood three figures: Nalan Qiankun, Tang, and the black skeleton.

Before them was a coffin, and Cui Haitang's corpse lay within.

Tang held the left division leader's token as he stared anxiously at the black skeleton. Black smoke surged from him, as though he had just been unsealed.

"Father-in-law, weren't you watching over Haitang that day? How did Xiao Nanfeng kill her? That day, I was badly injured by Xiao Nanfeng using the Immortal's Destruction, and my wounds are still evident. Even so, bereaved by Haitang's death, I intend to avenge her as soon as I can. Xiao Nanfeng's in the palace right before us. He's an enemy to us both. Haisheng died at his hands, and now Haitang has too. Father-in-law, think about how piteously Haitang died!" Nalan Qiankun cried out, his eyes red.

Black smoke surged from the black skeleton's body. He looked toward the palace and roared, "Xiao Nanfeng, return my son's life to me. Return my daughter's life to me!"

Then, he shot into the sky and toward the palace of Dazheng.

Nalan Qiankun's expression of sorrow vanished. He turned to Tang. "Pestilence Sage, I'm sure I don't have to tell you what to do and what not to do."

"Please relax, Your Majesty. I'm on your side," Tang stated immediately.

"Very good." Nalan Qiankun nodded in satisfaction.

He turned coldly to the palace before him. He knew that Xiao Nanfeng was within, and he didn't dare take him lightly. He had had the black skeleton strike first to see what Xiao Nanfeng's defenses were like.

The black skeleton had shot into the sky above the palace within moments. A fearsome aura filled the entire palace, freezing the guards in place even as they attempted to resist.

Xiao Nanfeng slowly walked out of the palace, raising his head to the black skeleton in the sky. He began to turn all around him.

"Nalan Qiankun, you must have come as well! Aren't you going to show yourself? Do you intend to remain hidden like a coward?" Xiao Nanfeng called out.

Nalan Qiankun narrowed his eyes. He naturally didn't intend to be lured out by Xiao Nanfeng. With a cold smile on his face, he looked toward where a fight was about to break out.

The black smoke around the black skeleton suddenly expanded in size. He shouted, "Are you Xiao Nanfeng? Return the lives of my children to me!"

The black skeleton slammed down with a palm. Even before the attack landed, a storm had spawned in the palace. The guards all around were forced to the ground, spraying out mouthfuls of blood.

Just then, the demonic sect master emerged from behind Xiao Nanfeng. He countered Cui Heiyan's palm strike with one of his own.

The two cultivators' attacks nullified each other in a storm of wind. The demonic sect master seemed to be stronger than Cui Heiyan and directed the windstorm upward, forcing the black skeleton back.

The demonic sect master demanded, "Cui Heiyan, you've broken out of your prison without having dealt with your demonic urges. Have you forgotten what you promised us, that you would only do so once your demonic urges could be sealed?"

The black skeleton demanded, "Who are you?"

"You don't even recognize me, the current demonic sect master? Your demonic urges are growing even more overwhelming. You must return with me!" the demonic sect master declared.

"Return? Xiao Nanfeng killed my children. I'll kill him and whoever else gets in my way!" the black skeleton shouted.

The black skeleton and the demonic sect master began to fight each other in the air. Flames and wind surrounded them.

Both cultivators were Earth Immortals, and neither trumped the other decisively. They began to fight ever more vigorously as they ascended higher into the sky.

Nalan Qiankun frowned in annoyance. "Xiao Nanfeng managed to trick the demonic sect master into coming here, too?"

Just then, he narrowed his eyes. Xiao Nanfeng was looking in his direction.

A guard in the city was pointing toward where Nalan Qiankun was located, where the black skeleton had flown out from. The region was surrounded by fog, but it wasn't difficult for Xiao Nanfeng to guess who lay in wait for him.

"Nalan Qiankun? Do you still intend to hide?" Xiao Nanfeng smirked.

Nalan Qiankun pondered the situation for a moment. His face gradually darkened at the news. The fact that the demonic sect master appeared to be on Xiao Nanfeng's side left Nalan Qiankun with a sense of urgency and pressure. He was worried that the demonic sect master knew that he had already turned traitor. The best solution to the problem was to kill Xiao Nanfeng and lie his way out of the situation.

He took a deep breath, then soared toward the palace. Once he was high in the air, he looked down. "Xiao Nanfeng, face me and perish!"

He stared at the hall from which Xiao Nanfeng had emerged, suspicious about the possible presence of other strong Taiqing forces within. He didn't rush down toward Xiao Nanfeng; he wanted to lure out whoever was within the hall first.

"Don't worry, the demonic sect master is the only one I invited. I alone am more than enough to deal with the likes of you," Xiao Nanfeng said, smiling.

He flew into the air and exuded a tremendous burst of aura, dispelling the clouds in the vicinity.

"You? Alone?" Nalan Qiankun narrowed his eyes.

"As I said, it's more than enough!"

Nalan Qiankun's eyes glinted with killing intent as he unleashed a palm strike at Xiao Nanfeng.

Xiao Nanfeng countered with a fist. A windstorm spawned around the two cultivators.

The tremendous strength pushed Xiao Nanfeng back some distance.

"Is this all you've got?" Nalan Qiankun sneered disdainfully.

Xiao Nanfeng didn't seem bothered. "So you're not an Earth Immortal? You're just a peak Human Immortal! In that case, you'll die here today."

"Nonsense! I only used a third of my strength, and you were already unable to defend against it. Your confidence is misplaced," Nalan Qiankun declared.

"I only used a tenth of my strength," Xiao Nanfeng replied, smiling.

Nalan Qiankun thought that Xiao Nanfeng had to be joking, but he remained as careful as ever. After his first cursory blow to gauge Xiao Nanfeng's strength, he intended to strike with full force.

"Heaven's Birth!" Nalan Qiankun shouted.

His aura magnified in strength as a dragon's howl and phoenix's cry were emitted from his body. A huge golden dragon and golden phoenix emerged, dancing around him. Their cries caused spiritual aether to surge toward him, forming a golden whirlpool. His body gleamed with golden light as frightening strength billowed from him.

Tang gasped in the distance. "The Arcane Heavens technique! Isn't that one of the peerless techniques of the Taiqing sect? The birth of the heavens summons a dragon and a phoenix, which passively gather spiritual aether around the user. Filled with vitality, the cultivator will never be lacking for energy and can fight indefinitely. Allegedly, this technique can even allow a cultivator to fight on equal footing with one from a higher realm..."

Nalan Qiankun smirked. "As I said, I only used a third of my strength."

He had grown at least three times stronger than before, and his essentially limitless spiritual energy would allow him to fight indefinitely. He was at the peak of the Human Immortal realm and was all but invincible against another Human Immortal.

Xiao Nanfeng smiled. "And as I said, I only used a tenth of my strength."

Golden light radiated from his body as ten golden figures emerged from within it.

Ten golden crows cawed as they unfurled their wings. The skies darkened as the sunlight all around them was absorbed by the golden crows, leaving them the only source of illumination.

The golden crows absorbed the sunlight within hundreds of kilometers and provided Xiao Nanfeng with a torrent of energy. A burst of golden flames emerged from his body. Pure yang elemental force empowered and boosted him to ten times his initial strength. He too was indefatigable.

Nalan Qiankun frowned at the ten dancing suns in the air. "And what sort of technique is this?"

𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Sky of Ten Suns," Xiao Nanfeng declared.

He charged toward Nalan Qiankun.

Nalan Qiankun met his advance with a fist.

The two cultivators' strength had both increased by leaps and bounds. A huge sphere of wind formed around them as they were forced back by each other's strength. They seemed to be on par with each other.

Ten suns hung in the air, as did a golden dragon and phoenix. Fire and wind erupted in the air as two beams of light clashed with each other time and again. Xiao Nanfeng and Nalan Qiankun were fighting at full force.

The people of Yongding gaped at the sight that unfolded in the skies far above. The cultivators of various Immortal sects, who had been sent to spy on Xiao Nanfeng, swallowed gulps of saliva as they watched the fight.

"The Arcane Heavens? The Sky of Ten Suns? These two cultivators are far too strong. They could easily take our sects on alone!"

"Has Xiao Nanfeng really only been a cultivator for four years? Just how could he have gotten so far in so short a period of time? And what have I been wasting my time doing...?"

"They're too frightening!"

Shocked cries rang out as countless cultivators realized that they weren't even able to get close to a fight of this magnitude.

In the fog some distance away, Tang gaped as he watched the fight unfold. "Xiao Nanfeng really is sinister. Thank goodness I'm on his side!"

Just then, Tang stiffened. He whirled around to see two figures suddenly appear behind him: the demonic sect master and the black skeleton.

The black skeleton had been chained up tightly and was now under the demonic sect master's control.

"Sect Master? Thank goodness you're here! I've been trapped here all this time and treated like nothing more than a tool. The disciples of the demonic sect died an ignominious death!" Tang cried out.

He didn't know how the demonic sect master would view his involvement; he had to take the initiative to establish what happened so he wouldn't be blamed.

However, the demonic sect master only looked toward the sky at the two fighting cultivators.

"The Arcane Heavens? Nalan Qiankun is truly an impressive cultivator. No one in either of the Taiqing sects has managed to learn that technique in thousands of years---but he has!" the demonic sect master exclaimed.

"Nalan Qiankun is strong, but Xiao Nanfeng's impressive as well. He's only been a cultivator for four years," Tang reported.

The demonic sect master fell silent for a moment, then said, "Xiao Nanfeng's beyond the realm of genius. He might as well not be human!"