Chapter 718: Gratitude and Grudges
"Skyless Sword Emperor, how terrifying." The crowd was shocked by Skyless Sword Emperor's attack. With his cultivation at the Ninth Layer of the Mysterious Martial Realm, combined with his Seal Gate martial soul and the formidable techniques of the Divine Palace, his dominance was unmatched.
Yet, on the stage of the Snow Domain Grand Competition, the one who claimed first place was not Skyless Sword Emperor, but Lin Feng. So how powerful was Lin Feng?
And why had Lin Feng still not appeared?
"Longing wine, drunken longing, longing palm!" Yue Menghe's body remained ethereal and dreamlike as palm prints drifted through the air, as if trying to ensnare others in longing. Carrying the will of longing, they sought to melt and dissolve the opponent's terrifying, domineering power.
The overbearing imperial aura grew weaker and weaker until it finally dissipated into nothingness, the intent of longing spreading through the air.
"Hmph." Skyless Sword Emperor snorted coldly, stepping forward once more as he roared, "Overbearing King Fist."
As his voice fell, rumbling sounds erupted. An endless barrage of fist intent blasted forth, the terrifying whirlwind shredding those behind Yue Menghe.
After the fearsome, domineering fists landed, Skyless Sword Emperor did not stop. He took another step, and a terrifying sealing will seemed ready to seal Yue Menghe completely.
"Jade Heaven Burial, annihilate!" An enormous palm pressed down from above, as if a pitch-black tomb was bearing down on Yue Menghe, threatening to bury her within. The rumbling, terrifying force seemed to suppress everything. This divine ability technique carried a will of its own, as if binding Yue Menghe's body, leaving her to be buried at his whim.
Yue Menghe felt the dreadful burial force, as if she could barely breathe. The Seal Gate in the void trembled, ready to strike down together with it, an extremely terrifying sight.
Just then, a terrifying aura suddenly erupted. This aura permeated everything, encompassing all.
Behind Yue Menghe, a figure slowly stepped forward. In an instant, a fearsome will of intent burst forth, piercing through everything. The palm force that sought to bury Yue Menghe was directly pierced through, dissipating into nothingness.
Skyless Sword Emperor's expression shifted. Then, a terrifying oppressive force descended upon him, sending his body hurtling backward until he returned to his original position. As he looked at the person who had appeared, his pupils constricted.
"Heavenly Martial Realm... You must be Lin Hai!" Skyless Sword Emperor's cold eyes fixed on the man beside Yue Menghe.
"Correct." Lin Hai replied calmly. The crowd's eyes all stiffened. Lin Hai, one of the four great geniuses of the past, had actually broken through the shackles of the Mysterious Martial Realm and stepped into the Heavenly Martial Realm.
"Lin Hai." From deep within the imperial palace, a rolling voice drifted over: "Back then, I sealed you and banished you from the imperial city. I never expected you to break the shackles in your heart today and step into the Heavenly Martial Realm. But so what? Even if you've entered the Heavenly Martial Realm, I can seal you once more."
As the voice rolled down, a distant, illusory figure appeared in the crowd's line of sight. He wore an imperial crown and was draped in a yellow robe. It was not a monarch, but Duan Renhuang!
"Duan Renhuang, you're as shameless as ever," Lin Hai spat coldly.
"Hmph." Duan Renhuang snorted coldly. "It took you over a decade to break the shackles in your heart, and you've only just stepped into the Heavenly Martial Realm. And you dare come to the imperial palace to welcome a bride? Lin Hai, last time I sealed you; this time, I'll take your life."
Duan Renhuang was right. Lin Hai's cultivation had been sealed, and his heart was burdened with fetters, preventing him from ever breaking through. It wasn't until he returned to the imperial city and Lin Feng gradually rose to prominence that Lin Hai, by carving wood with focused intent, tempered his spiritual will, freeing his heart from all attachments. Later, when Lin Feng won the Snow Domain Grand Competition, Lin Hai finally broke through his shackles, his realm surging into the Heavenly Martial Realm. With his realm broken and his soul strengthened, the seal was naturally undone, allowing his cultivation to truly enter the Heavenly Martial Realm.
And it wasn't just him. Given a bit more time, Yue Menghe could also break into the Heavenly Martial Realm.
"Duan Renhuang, don't talk about me. What about you?" Lin Hai's face was cold as he spoke slowly: "Back then, you, Menghe, Wuqing, and I met by chance and became the best of friends, brothers. We roamed together until one day in the Nine Dragons Mountain Range, where we obtained a celestial demon corpse and a Heaven-Snatching Spirit Herb. And you, as the eldest brother, what did you do? You secretly took them all for yourself. After your cultivation soared, you had the audacity to pursue Menghe and hunt us down. Do you, Duan Renhuang, have no guilt in your heart? If you truly had no guilt, you wouldn't be stuck at your current cultivation level."
"Shut up!" Duan Renhuang roared, the rolling sound waves filled with fury, causing the crowd's hearts to tremble. Four people. Best friends... So the events of twenty years ago were even more twisted than they had heard. What they had heard were merely rumors.
"Stung by the truth, are you? It seems that after all these years of cultivation, you're still nothing special. I never thought that after so long, we had all let go of the past, yet today, you want to be shameless once more," Lin Hai mocked.
Duan Renhuang's face was dark and cold. He stepped forward slowly, walking through the air, his gaze looking down on Lin Hai and the others, ruthless and indifferent.
"Lin Hai, prepare to die." Duan Renhuang released his terrifying willpower. His will was also one of sealing, but at the Heavenly Martial Realm, he was countless times stronger than Skyless Sword Emperor. At this moment, the crowd below felt as if they couldn't move, as if they were all about to be sealed.
As his voice fell, Duan Renhuang's body pressed down from the void, unleashing all his domineering and terrifying sealing power.
Lin Hai stamped his foot on the ground, his body soaring into the air as rolling energy pressed toward Duan Renhuang. Two terrifying gales collided and merged in the sky.
"Seal!" Duan Renhuang roared. A terrifying explosive force clashed in the void. Lin Hai's body instantly stiffened, sealed by that dreadful sealing will. The gap between their bodies was ultimately too great.
Yue Menghe silently rose into the air, her killing power also surging toward Duan Renhuang.
Duan Renhuang's cold eyes merely swept over her as he shouted coldly, "You made the wrong choice back then, and now you're still so stubborn. Fine then, die together."
Boundless, overbearing kingly aura pressed down from the void. An enormous ring of light blasted directly toward Lin Hai and Yue Menghe. The shocking, domineering force sent both of them crashing back to the ground, where they collapsed. They were no match for Duan Renhuang.
"Swish, swish..." From afar, a soaring sword aura shot straight toward Duan Renhuang. It was still far away, but in an instant, it arrived before him.
"You can die together too!" Duan Renhuang roared. A terrifying palm strike came down, and the fearsome sword aura dissipated in an instant, vanishing into nothingness. The sword-like figure was also struck down, landing beside Lin Hai and Yue Menghe.
"Cough, cough!" Lin Hai coughed up a trace of blood. Looking at the newcomer, he smiled bitterly, "Why did you have to do this?"
"The four of us have been apart for so many years. It's time we met again." Zhuge Wuqing sighed. His body still exuded that ruthless intent, but the faint, weathered smile on his face carried warmth.
"Good, very good. Zhuge Wuqing, I gave you a chance back then too, but you all chose to oppose me. So today, you can all die together."
Duan Renhuang's gaze looked down at the three below. He was furious. They had once been the best of friends, but now, all three stood against him. Could he truly be at peace in his heart?
Now, he would kill them all. Anyone who opposed him would die.
Lin Hai, Yue Menghe, and Zhuge Wuqing exchanged glances, then all smiled.
"Wuqing, back then I took Menghe for myself. Do you resent me?"
"If I truly resented you, I wouldn't have protected your son," Zhuge Wuqing shook his head. He looked at Yue Menghe, that smile so radiant, burying the deep love in his heart.
"I never thought the three of us would still die at his hands." Yue Menghe stood up, turned around, and looked at Meng Qing: "Meng Qing, you must leave safely. Everyone, flee Snow Moon."
Lin Hai and Zhuge Wuqing seemed to understand Yue Menghe's intent. They too stood up, a resolve to die already in their hearts.
Even if they died, they would do so spectacularly. It was a pity they had dragged so many others into this. Now, what Lin Hai and Yue Menghe worried about most was still Lin Feng and Meng Qing.
"Fine. You want to die? I'll grant your wish." Duan Renhuang exuded a terrifying killing intent, his gaze icy cold. A destructive aura filled the space, pressing down until the crowd could barely breathe.
Were the four great geniuses of the past going to end their grudges with the deaths of three of them?
PS: Frustrating. Even though we can't break into the top five, I'll still burst out with updates tomorrow. But can you give me the motivation to burst out?