Chapter 767: The Biggest Threat (1)

The three teams surrounding Wu Yuan were composed of over a hundred Devil Realm powerhouses in total. Originally intending to squeeze a soft persimmon, they had unexpectedly kicked an iron plate. [1]

"A quasi-Astral Monarch."

"We can't match him, retreat!" The crowd of Devil Realm powerhouses fled in panic. In their view, someone capable of instantly slaying nine Archimmortals and Archdeities had to possess at least quasi-Astral Monarch-level strength.

"How terrifying."

"Is this Ming Jian, the most monstrous prodigy among the High Immortals of the Dao Realm?" Archimmortal Li Shu and the others watched in shock. While they were still struggling to fend off attacks, they saw Wu Yuan sweep away a large group of powerhouses.

It should be noted that among the nine Archimmortals/Archdeities slain by Wu Yuan, two were estimated to be sixth-stage Archimmortals. Yet facing Wu Yuan, they still perished in an instant. This showed the absurdly large disparity in strength!

"Kill!" Wu Yuan’s mana body activated the sword domain for defense, simultaneously suppressing and restraining the various experts, while his qi refiner self summoned the lifebound flying swords to attack. Working in perfect harmony, they brought out the highest level of his power.

There was only one thought in Wu Yuan's mind—Kill!

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Sword light flickered as Wu Yuan summoned his nine lifebound flying swords.

Nine streams of sword light flashed within the sword domain, as if they were nine ninth-stage Archdeities skilled in sword arts.

Most of these Devil Realm powerhouses are below the sixth-stage Archimmortal level, with only a small minority at Astral Lord strength. There's no need to combine the nine swords; spreading them out will actually increase killing efficiency.

Wu Yuan quickly perceived that the Devil Realm powerhouses were weaker overall, with less than five percent being Astral Lords.

This ratio was lower compared to Dao Realm powerhouses, where Astral Lords could make up five percent of all Archimmortals/Archdeities.

In reality, only one Astral Lord would emerge from several hundred ordinary Archimmortals and Archdeities. It was just that Astral Lords had longer lifespans, while ordinary Archimmortals and Archdeities could live for a hundred million years at most, so the proportions didn't seem as disparate.

Is the Devil Realm sealed off, with no strong powerhouses to guide them?

Wu Yuan had his suspicions.

Cultivators of equal talent would achieve completely different results depending on whether or not they had guidance.

But Wu Yuan couldn't be bothered to investigate deeply. The weaker the overall strength of the Archimmortals and Archdeities on the ice plain, the more advantageous it was for Wu Yuan right now.

Not many experts could withstand even a single sword strike from him. Moreover, his excessively domineering performance caused many powerhouses to avoid him at all costs, fleeing for their lives.

Swoosh!

In less than two breaths of time, over thirty Devil Realm powerhouses fell to Wu Yuan's swords amidst the dancing sword lights.

"Run!"

"What a brutal High Immortal."

"Where did he come from?"

"How can a High Immortal be this strong? When did our Devil Realm produce such a heaven-defying monstrous prodigy?"

"Is he an unparalleled monstrous prodigy from the world outside?" Nearly a thousand Archimmortals and Archdeities within millions of li took note of Wu Yuan's frenzied killing.

It was far too unusual!

The Archimmortals and Archdeities who participated in the trial varied in strength, but in this chaotic melee, most advanced and retreated together, theoretically strong enough to hold their own against top experts. Yet, even when combining their efforts, they were still slaughtered by Wu Yuan.

This was because, with the sword domain's suppressive effects and Moonlight Shadow, Wu Yuan had no fear of being surrounded, dominating all opponents.

Moreover, an Astral Lord who dared to confront Wu Yuan head-on could only endure three sword strikes before being completely annihilated by several streams of sword light.

"A quasi-Astral Monarch! Without a doubt!"

"His sword art is so profound."

"He's only a High Immortal, but his Dao comprehension has definitely reached the Astral Monarch level." The many Devil Realm powerhouses were convinced of this point.

In truth, Wu Yuan's attack power was still slightly below that of a quasi-Astral Monarch. However, his exceptional movement skill, along with the coordination between his true self and mana body, made his killing efficiency comparable to, if not greater than, a quasi-Astral Monarch.

He was easily the most brilliant presence across the entire wasteland. Wherever he went, he left nothing in his wake. The Devil Realm teams that had originally banded together could only scatter and flee when confronted by Wu Yuan.

"Kill!"

"Quick, kill! This is our chance!" Archimmortal Li Shu and the dozen or so Hanging Moon Palace powerhouses following behind Wu Yuan felt utterly elated.

Normally, in such a large-scale melee with numerous experts joining forces, it would be difficult to achieve instant kills. But Wu Yuan was too ferocious, scattering team after team with overwhelming force, giving Archimmortal Li Shu and the others an opportunity.

Swiftly, Archimmortals and Archdeities began to fall at the hands of Archimmortal Li Shu and her companions.

Wu Yuan didn't deliberately assist them, but for them, having Wu Yuan at the forefront as a deterrent was the greatest help.

"Flee."

"We should save ourselves first." Many powerhouses had initially strived to maximize their kills, but soon discovered they had to prioritize saving their own lives.

However, some particularly powerful individuals fought with no holds barred, determined to seize the final inheritance.

Wu Yuan was one such person.

Across the icy battlefield, there were other similarly formidable existences, including a black-armored Archdeity of especially terrifying strength, wielding nine battle sabers and sweeping a vast area.

"Kill!"

"Die!" This black-armored Archdeity roared, blade rays flashing as he sent Archimmortals and Archdeities flying or cleaved them to death.

"It's Astral Lord Ding Lie."

"Ding Lie, it's him."

"Quick, retreat." The expressions of many Devil Realm powerhouses changed drastically as they hastily withdrew, not daring to engage him head on.

The Devil Realm was vast, and no Astral Monarch had emerged in a long time. The quasi-Astral Monarch level was the current pinnacle of strength, achieved by an extremely rare few.

Normally, someone with ninth-stage Archimmortal strength was considered a peak powerhouse, each one famous and ruling over vast territories in the Devil Realm.

Astral Lord Ding Lie was an Archdeity of terrifying power.

"A mere sixth-stage Archimmortal, how dare you act so arrogantly." After sweeping a wide area clear of opponents, Astral Lord Ding Lie set his sights on Archimmortal Li Shu and her group.

His figure towered imposingly as he strode forward toward them.

"Not good."

"What a powerful Archdeity." The dozen or so powerhouses from the Hanging Moon Palace paled, especially the two Archimmortals at the forefront.

Unable to dodge in time, they were killed by two saber strikes.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A series of blade rays collided, sweeping away all the arcane arts and artifacts wielded by Archimmortal Li Shu and the others.

"Late-stage Astral Lord."

"He's a peak powerhouse of the Devil Realm." The faces of Archimmortal Li Shu and her companions contorted with alarm and dread. How could they possibly contend with such a powerful existence?

But Astral Lord Ding Lie closed in at lightning-fast speed.

"Li Shu, fall back!" A cold voice suddenly rang out, followed immediately by a torrent of sword lights crashing toward Astral Lord Ding Lie.

It was Wu Yuan!

Boom!

Noticing that Archimmortal Li Shu was in danger, Wu Yuan's form blurred like a phantom as he pounced to attack.

"Thank you.

Quickly retreat." Archimmortal Li Shu immediately led the surviving Hanging Moon Palace powerhouses in a rapid withdrawal.

Half of them had already achieved kills, and they all recognized the reality of their situation. At this moment, they only wanted to prioritize staying alive.

This was also the norm. Many fifth or sixth-stage Archimmortal powerhouses were normally confident in their strength, but when thousands upon thousands of Archimmortals and Archdeities gathered, they would perceive their own inadequacy.

When vast numbers of Archimmortals and Archdeities converged, only late-stage Astral Lords had the ability to start a massacre. Even ordinary Astral Lords weren’t qualified!

"High Immortal? Die!" Astral Lord Ding Lie growled, his form colossal, yet not hindering his agility in the slightest. Like a nimble butterfly, he darted towards Wu Yuan.

"Ninth-stage Archdeity?" Wu Yuan's gaze turned cold. He had encountered such opponents before. Naturally, he was unafraid.

With a thunderous roar, a sword domain centered around eighty-one low-grade celestial artifact flying swords instantly enveloped an area spanning hundreds of thousands of li, completely engulfing Astral Lord Ding Lie. An invisible pressure surged towards him from all directions.

"You think you can pressure me with such a domain?" Astral Lord Ding Lie roared with unbridled arrogance.

He had cultivated for eons in the Devil Realm, standing at the pinnacle of strength, and dominated his territory. Few could make him lower his head. He was naturally prideful.

Even after witnessing Wu Yuan's devastating attacks, he still believed he could hold his own.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Though the sword lights from the sword domain restrained him, drastically reducing his speed, they could hardly harm him.

Nine swords! Unite!

With a thought from Wu Yuan's qi refiner self, the nine lifebound flying swords acting independently suddenly assembled to form a single divine sword array.

In a flash, a Spacetime divine sword formed, immediately unleashing the ‘Nine Swords of Spacetime’ technique. The sword light sliced through heaven and earth, striking Astral Lord Ding Lie's towering form like lightning.

It was too fast. So fast that even Astral Lord Ding Lie could hardly evade it. Shock and fury overcame him.

Boom!

The terrifying force imbued within the Spacetime divine sword instantly sent Astral Lord Ding Lie flying backwards.

...

The battle on the ice plain was incredibly fierce, with Archimmortals and Archdeities falling one after another.

As time passed, the most eye-catching conflict on the entire ice plain was undoubtedly the clash between Wu Yuan and Astral Lord Ding Lie. Both sides fought with all their might!

In terms of raw power, Astral Lord Ding Lie was naturally stronger. A casual swing of his saber could cause tremors even in the stable space.

But Wu Yuan's swordplay was too exquisite, too unpredictable. The Spacetime divine sword, formed by the assembly of nine lifebound flying swords, was truly unparalleled in might. It forced Astral Lord Ding Lie to retreat step by step.

Slash!

"No!" The shockwaves of their fierce battle struck an unsuspecting Archimmortal, who barely let out a strangled cry before he perished.

"Flee quickly!"

"Don't get close!" The crowd of Archimmortals and Archdeities no longer dared to approach the two combatants.

How can he be so strong? Can a High Immortal really reach such a level of strength?

The more Astral Lord Ding Lie fought, the more alarmed he became. In his long years of cultivation, he had never encountered such a terrifying opponent.

He had no idea that Wu Yuan’s sword techniques were so profound they could rival those of top-tier geniuses from macrocosms, even those who had cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years.

Compared to those of the same age, Wu Yuan was already among the top geniuses in the entire river of space and time after a thousand years of tempering.

The Devil Realm where Astral Lord Ding Lie had grown up was only the size of an immortal nation. What kind of talented individuals could it produce? How could they compare to Wu Yuan?

Faster! Even faster!

Wu Yuan's true self and mana body worked in tandem, using Astral Lord Ding Lie as a punching bag to constantly hone and test his sword art insights.

After several exchanges, Astral Lord Ding Lie realized he was completely outmatched by Wu Yuan and could only focus on defending with all his might.

Hum~

An invisible pressure suddenly enveloped the world. The ice plain, previously locked in fierce battle, fell silent as everyone stopped fighting.

Wu Yuan and Astral Lord Ding Lie, engaged in combat, also felt a powerful binding force descend upon them. They had no choice but to stop their battle there.

1. They planned to pick an easy target (persimmon), but ended up meeting far more resistance (iron plate). ☜