Daqin Zhentiansi

Although the details were unclear, the continuous, terrifying ripples of explosion and the violently shaking sea of ​​blood were awe-inspiring!

"Wow! The points leaderboard is skyrocketing! Yuwen Zhen and Zhang Qingyang's points are soaring!" someone exclaimed.

On the list, Yuwen Zhen ranked fourth: 31,000... 35,000... 39,000...

Zhang Qingyang ranked sixth: 29,000...33,000...37,000...41,000!
In just a dozen breaths, their scores skyrocketed like a flood bursting its banks!

Zhang Yuan's name has surpassed Yuwen Zhen's, soaring to third place with 41,000 points!

Second only to the first and second place who are far ahead of the competition!
"Heavens! Zhang Qingyang... what... what did he do?! Yuwen Zhen was actually behind him?!"

"The monsters and dangers in the core area... the points gained from killing them far exceed those in the outer area! But their speed... is terrifying!"

"It's Zhang Qingyang again! His previous drop out of the top 100 was a lie! He was hiding his true intentions!" someone exclaimed.

"Deacon Li!" Several leaders from other sects turned to the senior deacon of the Great River Sword Sect who was left behind. "Just who is this Zhang Qingyang of your sect? Who could possibly have taught such a prodigy?"

Deacon Li stared intently at the blurry yet ferocious figure in the image, his heart filled with unparalleled shock.

He suppressed his turbulent emotions, a profound smile appearing on his face as he stroked his beard: "Hehe, Qingyang... he's exceptionally talented and has extraordinary perseverance; he has his own destiny."

He offered no explanation and revealed no details whatsoever.

Zhang Yuan's silent and ambiguous attitude only made him seem more mysterious and unpredictable, leaving everyone itching to know what to do with him.

Outside the Burning Heart Hall.

The area of ​​coagulated blood.

The first barrier has been plundered by Zhang Yuan in the most savage way!
His blood and qi surged, his robes were somewhat torn, but his eyes shone even brighter, like a burning flame of battle intent.

Yuwen Zhen followed closely behind, slightly out of breath, the tip of his sword still dripping with the foul blood of an unknown demon.

At the end of the "passage" ahead was not the palace itself, but a more condensed scarlet energy field, which coalesced into a magnificent and ferocious skeletal gate!
A "guardian" stands before the gate.

It was several meters tall and resembled a humanoid demon wearing tattered, heavy black armor.

However, what was revealed through the gap in the helmet was not a head, but two empty eye sockets burning with a ghostly blue soul fire!

In his hand he held a heavy giant axe that seemed to be forged from countless fragments of blood-red stars, the blade flowing with a viscous, blood-like radiance of law.

An immense, suffocating pressure from a Grandmaster at the third level of the Void Realm, mixed with an ancient and heavy aura of curses, crushed everything in its path as if it were a tangible force!

"Blood Soul Guardian... Void Realm!"

Yuwen Zhen's face was extremely solemn, and sweat beaded on his palm as he gripped the sword.

This is definitely a tough nut to crack!
Just then, several figures arrived from all directions!
Qin Mu, an elite of the Taixu Sword Pavilion and ranked twenty-second on the leaderboard, floated on his sword, his white robes fluttering in the wind.

Looking at the enormous guards and Zhang Yuan's back, his brows were furrowed, but his eyes were sharp.

In Xuan Yin Valley, You Luo, ranked thirty-seventh on the leaderboard, stood on a pale white bone platform, his face veiled, his eyes flashing with bloodlust, filled with fear and greed.

Ranked 45th on the leaderboard, Lei Bao from the Ten Thousand Beasts Sect rides a ferocious Bloodfang Giant Leopard, wielding a long staff made of beast bone, exuding a violent aura.

Others, including those from the righteous path, the evil path, and rogue cultivators, arrived one after another, each occupying a certain area. They were all stunned by the scene before them and dared not make any rash moves.

"Hiss... This is the Gatekeeper? A Void Realm cultivator?!"

"Is that monster from the Great River Sword Sect clearing the way? Is Yuwen Zhen assisting him?"

"They gained points so quickly, and they killed these things?"

The Blood Soul Guardian seemed to be completely enraged by the aura of the outsider, its eyes blazing with dark blue soul fire, and it let out a silent soul roar!

He raised the "Blood Star Shattering Axe" that emitted an ominous red light high in his hand!
The rules surrounding the axe blade were all distorted!

"Roar!!!"

It took heavy steps, its giant axe tearing through the solidified sea of ​​blood, carrying the terrifying power to shatter stars and cleave souls, and cleaved down directly at Zhang Yuan at the forefront!
The space seemed to be locked, and there was no way to avoid this axe blow!

Yuwen Zhen shouted, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, be careful! I'm coming..."

He knew that the axe was incredibly powerful and wanted to do his best to share the burden or delay the inevitable.

However, he didn't finish his sentence!
"Go away!"

Facing this earth-shattering axe blow, Zhang Yuan showed no fear whatsoever; instead, his eyes erupted with an unprecedented surge of fighting spirit!
He roared and for the first time gripped the heavy handle of Duan Tao with both hands!
The Broken Wave Ruler hummed, no longer a dull growl, but like the roar of a demon god from the abyss!

No blocking!

Zhang Yuan chose the most direct and head-on approach—raising his ruler and confronting the opponent head-on!

"broken!!!"

The Broken Wave Heavy Ruler, carrying the explosive power around Zhang Yuan, transformed into a dark torrent that pierced through the heavens and earth. It surged upwards with an unparalleled and overwhelming force, directly colliding with the falling "Blood Star Shattering Axe"!

"clang!!!!!!!"

An indescribable, ear-piercing metallic explosion!
It was like two giant stars colliding in the center of a sea of ​​blood!
A devastating ring-shaped shockwave spread out at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The hard, solidified blood-red ground cracked and collapsed inch by inch, like inferior glass!
The top 100 experts who came to watch the battle were all horrified. They all rallied their true energy and activated their magic weapons to protect themselves. They were pushed back by the violent shockwave, their blood and qi churning!

Blood gushed from the mouths and noses of those with slightly weaker cultivation levels!

In their horrified gazes, they witnessed a sight they would never forget:

The terrifyingly powerful "Blood Star Shattering Axe" suddenly dimmed and dissipated the blood-red light of laws flowing on its blade the moment it collided with the dark heavy ruler!
Then, centered on the point of contact, countless spiderweb-like cracks instantly covered the huge axe surface!

"Crack!"

"Boom——!"

Amidst a muffled, heart-stopping explosion, the treasured artifact forged from "Blood Star Fragments" was smashed to pieces!

Countless dark red fragments, carrying violent energy flows, flew in all directions like a meteor shower!

The massive, mountain-like, and powerful Blood Soul Guardian of the Void Realm had its arms disintegrate inch by inch under the unimaginable, terrifying force of the recoil!
The sturdy, jet-black heavy armor began to collapse, deform, and shatter from the chest area!
The entire massive body was as if it had been crushed by an ancient divine mountain, silently disintegrating and exploding from front to back!
There was no struggle, no wailing, only the absolute crushing power of pure strength!
Amidst the billowing blood crystal dust, the massive guardian, reduced to only half a body, slowly collapsed onto the shattered earth, splattering large amounts of filthy blood crystals.

The whole place was dead silent!

Time seemed to freeze.

Whether it was Qin Mu, You Luo, Lei Bao, and other top 100 geniuses nearby, or other cultivators gathering in the distance, or even Yuwen Zhen, they all stood frozen in place as if under a spell!
Zhang Yuan slowly retracted the heavy ruler; its dark blade remained unsharpened and unblemished, untouched by blood. He exhaled a faint, scorching breath and glanced indifferently at the mess on the ground.

At this moment, the numerous low-level blood crystal guards who had been cowering on both sides of the gate, amidst the shockwaves of their leader being instantly killed, let out terrified screams and scattered like a school of startled fish!
"Treasure! The materials on the guard's body!"

"And those axe fragments! A treasure of the rules!"

"Grab it quickly!"

The deathly silence was shattered in an instant!
Greed instantly overwhelmed fear.

The onlookers, whether they were the top 100 geniuses or ordinary cultivators, all had bloodshot eyes and rushed like madmen towards the area where the Blood Soul Guardian had exploded and the scattered minions.

They began to scramble for the scattered blood crystals, fragments of precious armor, and especially the largest, almost intact, axe handle!
They no longer cared about Zhang Yuan and Yuwen Zhen; all they cared about was seizing the opportunity!

Yuwen Zhen suddenly snapped out of his shock, looked at the chaotic scene, then at Zhang Yuan, opened his mouth, but found his throat dry and didn't know what to say.

The image of that one foot shattering the Void Guardian was deeply imprinted on his soul.

At this moment, a large fragment of the axe blade core, radiating a dark red, regular light and exuding a heavy, destructive aura, happened to fly to a place not far from Zhang Yuan.

The fragments hummed softly, as if telling tales of their past extraordinary nature.

Yuwen Zhen glanced at it subconsciously. As a sword cultivator, although he did not use an axe, he knew that the power of the rules and the value of the materials contained in this fragment were priceless.

Zhang Yuan also saw the fragment.

He bent down and easily picked up the heavy axe blade core fragment, which was as big as half a millstone.

He weighed it in his hand, sensing the chaotic yet powerful force within, and a hint of... barely perceptible disappointment appeared on his face.

Then, to Yuwen Zhen's incredulous gaze, Zhang Yuan casually tossed the core fragment of the rule-based treasure, which was enough to make any grandmaster envious and go crazy, and it flew in an arc like a piece of trash, landing steadily at Yuwen Zhen's feet.

"This item is useless to me. Its rules are too complex and don't align with your Crimson Cloud Fire intent, but the materials can still be recycled. Consider this payment for helping me clear out the small fry earlier."

Zhang Yuan's voice was extremely calm, as if he had lost not a fragment of a powerful treasure, but an ordinary rock.

Yuwen Zhen was completely dumbfounded!
He looked at the alluring fragments at his feet, then looked up at Zhang Yuan's calm face. A huge sense of unreality and an indescribable complex emotion welled up in his heart—shock, ecstasy, absurdity, and deep awe!

This gift is too generous!

This is more than just payment; it's a form of recognition...

Or rather, how to "price" his value?
Yuwen Zhen took a deep breath, calmed his wildly beating heart, solemnly bent down to pick up the fragments, put them into his storage ring, clasped his hands tightly to Zhang Yuan, and said in a trembling voice, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, Yuwen Zhen...is deeply grateful! I am willing to serve you like a dog!"

The humility in his words signifies that he has willingly positioned himself as subordinate.

Zhang Yuan simply nodded slightly, his gaze already passing over the chaotic crowd of treasure hunters and landing behind the skeletal gate.

A deep, misty fog churning with strange, crimson-gold flames!

The mist exuded a soul-crushing, soul-piercing pain, as if a single glance could ignite one's very being.

"The second layer is the Heart-Burning Netherfire. It is formless and intangible, scorching the soul and difficult to defend against." Yuwen Zhen immediately relayed the information he knew, his expression turning solemn once again.

This layer can no longer be easily solved by brute force.

"Let's go." Zhang Yuan uttered a single, cold word without hesitation.

He shouldered the heavy ruler, took the lead, and his figure disappeared straight into the churning crimson-gold flames and mist.

Yuwen Zhen's eyes sharpened, and without hesitation, he ignited his Crimson Flame to protect himself and rushed in after him!

The two figures were instantly engulfed by the thick, all-consuming, crimson-gold flame mist that seemed to writhe and devour everything.

Outside the gate, the chaotic struggle continued fiercely, with various spells radiating light, and roars and sounds of fighting filling the air. Yet, it seemed to be completely separated from the gate that led to a deeper, more terrifying world, creating two distinct realms.

Deep within the mist, the scorching flames of the soul arrive unseen.

Beyond the sea of ​​blood.

Crystal Platform.

"boom--!!!"

When the image representing the entrance to the Burning Heart Palace, the core area, shook violently, showing the terrifying Void Realm guardian being instantly crushed, the entire crystal platform fell into a suffocating silence.

However, the deathly silence was instantly shattered by the blinding light and frenzied numerical changes on the Integral Crystal!

"Look at the leaderboard! Zhang Qingyang! Zhang Qingyang's points—!"

Under countless stunned gazes, the name "Zhang Qingyang of the Great River Sword Sect" on the crystal tablet shone like a ignited star, its score fluctuating wildly:
Forty-one thousand...forty-seven thousand...fifty-three thousand...sixty thousand!

Without the slightest pause, that radiant name boldly surpassed the original second place—"Li Chen Palace Chu He, 56,900".

With unparalleled momentum, they rushed straight towards "Qingxu Temple Xuanchengzi", who was at the top of the leaderboard with 73,000 points!
Finally, the light settled, hanging high in the sky.

Second place: Zhang Qingyang of the Great River Sword Sect - Points: 63,800!

After a brief period of silence, the entire platform erupted into chaos, like boiling water tossed with hot oil!

"Second...?! He killed that guard and...he's already second?!"

"Hiss... Sixty-three thousand eight! My god! That guard is worth more than twenty thousand points?!"

"What good luck! What patronage! That's utter nonsense! That's real, terrifying strength! He... he single-handedly shattered that Void Realm guard! The image even shook!"

"A heavy sword has no edge, great skill appears without artifice... This is the true way of proving the Dao through strength! Monster! What kind of monster is hidden in the Great River Sword Sect!"

The previous doubts, ridicule, and disdain were completely crushed at this moment.

Instead, there was shock, awe, and disbelief.

The way everyone looked at the Great River Sword Sect team completely changed.

Several figures appeared almost simultaneously in front of Deacon Li of the Great River Sword Sect.

The elder from the Heavenly Pill Sect, who had once expressed surprise that "the Great River Sword Sect has produced such an interesting young fellow," now beamed with unprecedented enthusiasm, saying, "Fellow Daoist Li! Your sect's Zhang Qingyang is truly a peerless genius!"

"After this trial, our two sects should exchange ideas and share resources regarding the exploration of the Sword Tomb Secret Realm!" (End of Chapter)