Chapter 942: The Fisherman's Gain
The two figures charging at the very front were none other than the Divine Son of the Blood God Sect, clad in golden armor, and the Saintly Maiden, surrounded by nine rings of holy light.
Like two arrows released from a bow, they took the lead and quickly surged past the thousand-meter mark. Their movement techniques were exceptionally refined, and the barrier of the Poro Mountain seemed to have little effect on them.
Bai Yu, Ning Guihai, and Yan Kongming followed closely behind the Divine Son and Saintly Maiden. Among them, Bai Yu, possessing the Flying Immortal Saintly Body, displayed astonishing speed, trailing the Blood God Sect's Saintly Maiden by merely twenty zhang.
Ning Guihai's speed was also considerable, nearly keeping pace with Bai Yu.
Of the three top experts, only Yan Kongming was slightly slower, falling behind Bai Yu and Ning Guihai by about an arrow's flight.
Yet Yan Kongming remained calm, a cold, sly smile flashing in his eyes. "The middle section of Poro Mountain has poisonous gas barriers that corrode a Half-Saint's physical body and vortex swamps. Near the peak, there's even a region of wind blades. What's the use of rushing ahead now? They'll have to slow down eventually."
Yan Kongming glanced back and was momentarily surprised.
The person chasing him was not one of the third-step Half-Saints he had analyzed as potential threats, but rather a second-step Half-Saint.
"No wonder Haiming Dharma King sent him to compete for the Banner Lord position. He does have some skill."
Yan Kongming didn't take the second-step Half-Saint behind him seriously and continued sprinting toward the summit at his fastest speed.
The Half-Saint chasing Yan Kongming was, of course, Zhang Ruochen.
Zhang Ruochen didn't unleash his full speed, as doing so would only expose himself.
He shared Yan Kongming's plan: to conserve energy until reaching the mountainside, then burst ahead to overtake the frontrunners. For now, as long as he didn't fall too far behind, it was fine.
Behind Zhang Ruochen were four experts who had reached the peak of the third-step Half-Saint realm. Their strength couldn't match Bai Yu, Yan Kongming, or Ning Guihai, but they were only slightly inferior.
Before the Blood God Sect's Divine Son and Saintly Maiden appeared, these four had already planned to join forces and eliminate Yan Kongming first. That way, they might have a slim chance at becoming Banner Lord.
With the Divine Son and Saintly Maiden joining the fray, the competition grew fiercer. Now, even that last glimmer of hope was gone for them.
"That kid is only a second-step Half-Saint—how did he get ahead of us?" Among the four Half-Saints, a short, stout man in his fifties roared angrily.
The other three Half-Saints were equally indignant, speeding up to push forward.
Just then, Yan Kongming emitted a sound wave from his mouth, silently transmitting it to the four Half-Saints' ears to negotiate. "Liexin Half-Saint, Yaohai Half-Saint, Wancheng Half-Saint, Xuanyi Half-Saint—you four have no chance of becoming Banner Lord. Work with me instead, and help me claim the position. In return, I'll give each of you one Sacred Stone."
The short, stout man known as Yaohai Half-Saint sneered, "Just one Sacred Stone for our help? Are you trying to bribe beggars?"
"Two Sacred Stones each. Agree, and we'll lend you a hand," Xuanyi Half-Saint transmitted.
A first-step Half-Saint's total wealth was only enough to buy one or two Sacred Stones.
Thus, two Sacred Stones were no small sum, and for four Half-Saints, that meant eight in total.
Yan Kongming gritted his teeth, hesitated for a moment, then finally agreed. "Fine, I accept. Once we reach the mountainside, you four will act immediately to eliminate Ning Guihai. As for Bai Yu, I'll handle him myself."
Yaohai Half-Saint glanced at Zhang Ruochen's back and said, "That kid under Haiming Dharma King is a bit of an eyesore. Should we take him out first?"
"He's just a minor player. Bai Yu and Ning Guihai are the real threats. Don't let a small fry mess up my plans," Yan Kongming said sternly.
The conversation between Yan Kongming and the four Half-Saints was conducted via sound transmission, but Zhang Ruochen's ears were fused with a Divine Mark, allowing him to clearly hear every word.
"Planning to join forces? In that case, I'll slow down a bit more."
Zhang Ruochen had his own plans. Smiling faintly, he deliberately reduced his speed, soon falling behind Yaohai Half-Saint, Xuanyi Half-Saint, Wancheng Half-Saint, and Liexin Half-Saint.
If they wanted to fight, let them fight first.
At the foot of Poro Mountain, Lan Ye watched Zhang Ruochen gradually fall behind, his brows furrowing slightly. "Gu Linfeng's cultivation is ultimately too low, and he lacks stamina. He has no hope of seizing the Banner Lord position now."
"There's nothing to be done. Who would have thought the Divine Son and Saintly Maiden would also participate in the assessment?" Ji Shui sighed softly.
Lan Ye and Ji Shui no longer held any hope for Zhang Ruochen. Regardless of the process, the outcome was already decided.
On Poro Mountain, the Blood God Sect's Divine Son was the first to reach the mountainside, charging into the clouds.
The clouds were filled with poisonous miasma that could corrode a Half-Saint's physical body. Even the Divine Son had to slow down, releasing his Saint Soul Domain as he carefully ascended.
Next, the Blood God Sect's Saintly Maiden, Bai Yu, Ning Guihai, and Yan Kongming successively entered the cloud layer and the poisonous miasma region.
At that moment, Yan Kongming pulled two crimson iron tokens from his chest and infused them with Saint Qi.
With a wave of his arm, the two tokens flew toward Bai Yu and Ning Guihai respectively.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
From within each token, thirty-six chain-shaped inscriptions burst forth, as thick as a bowl's rim, descending from midair to connect with the ground, trapping Bai Yu and Ning Guihai inside.
"Soul-Sealing Demon-Suppressing Formation."
Standing within the formation, Bai Yu was slightly startled. His eyes fixed on Yan Kongming as he coldly said, "Yan Kongming, you've got some nerve. Do you intend to wage war against both Ning Guihai and me at once?"
Yan Kongming was not only a martial Half-Saint but also a spiritual power Half-Saint, with top-tier mastery in both blade techniques and formation arts.
Yan Kongming chuckled. "Today, only one of us three will reach the summit, and that person will be me."
Ning Guihai's face hardened with a sharp, murderous intent. He glanced at Bai Yu and said, "Since he's so arrogant, let's join forces and take him out first."
"Agreed."
Bai Yu formed a sword seal, executing Sword One. With a thunderous crash, he broke through the Soul-Sealing Demon-Suppressing Formation and attacked Yan Kongming from the left.
Ning Guihai produced a three-foot-long Dragon Fang Dagger, pierced through the formation, and charged at Yan Kongming.
"Ning Guihai, your opponent is us."
Four powerful figures surged forward, encircling Ning Guihai. They simultaneously unleashed martial techniques, pressing down on him.
The four figures were Yaohai Half-Saint, Wancheng Half-Saint, Xuanyi Half-Saint, and Liexin Half-Saint.
The combined assault of the four Half-Saints left Ning Guihai flustered, forcing him into a purely defensive stance.
Ning Guihai's assassination techniques were indeed formidable, but once exposed in the open and surrounded, many of those techniques became useless. Even his speed advantage vanished.
At the mountainside of Poro Mountain, seven Half-Saints clashed in a chaotic battle, churning the poisonous miasma and sending boulders tumbling down with a rumbling roar.
Zhang Ruochen arrived at the mountainside at a leisurely pace, suppressing his aura to the utmost as he skirted around the battle zone of the seven Half-Saints.
Then, he accelerated to pursue the Blood God Sect's Saintly Maiden ahead.
Hearing the sound of wind breaking behind her, the Saintly Maiden turned her graceful body and glanced back. When she saw Zhang Ruochen's figure, a seductive smile bloomed on her face. "The snipe and the clam grapple, and the fisherman profits. This kid's cultivation isn't much, but he's got some cleverness."
At this moment, Zhang Ruochen's speed was only slightly slower than that of the Blood God Sect's Divine Son and Saintly Maiden.
"Damn it, someone's gotten ahead of us!" Yan Kongming was the first to notice Zhang Ruochen's figure, fury flashing in his eyes.
Bai Yu also looked up at Zhang Ruochen and snorted coldly. "This brat is cunning. He deliberately acted weak at the start to make us let our guard down. But his true strength is considerable—his current speed is even faster than mine."
Yan Kongming and Bai Yu stopped fighting, transforming into two streaks of light as they chased after Zhang Ruochen above.
"Boom!"
Ning Guihai sensed the danger as well. He activated the power of the Blood God Gu, unleashing strength at the level of a fifth-step Half-Saint.
With a swing of his Dragon Fang Dagger, he sent all four peak third-step Half-Saints flying backward.
"Whoosh!"
Empowered by the Blood God Gu, Ning Guihai's speed reached its peak, like a gray bolt of lightning, quickly overtaking Yan Kongming and Bai Yu.
Yan Kongming and Bai Yu also activated their Blood God Gu, achieving the speed of a fifth-step Half-Saint as they charged toward the summit.
"First, take out that second-step Half-Saint brat, so he doesn't take advantage while we're fighting," Yan Kongming said irritably.
Ning Guihai, Bai Yu, and Yan Kongming reached a consensus to eliminate Zhang Ruochen first.
"So all three of them have taken the Blood God Gu."
Watching the three figures closing in from behind, Zhang Ruochen grew anxious, considering whether to activate his own Blood God Gu.
The power of the Blood God Gu was formidable but short-lived, lasting at most a quarter of an hour. After that, the cultivator would revert to their original state.
Unless absolutely necessary, Zhang Ruochen didn't want to rely on the Blood God Gu.
Looking up at the Blood God Sect's Saintly Maiden ahead, Zhang Ruochen devised a plan. He poured all his Saint Qi into the Saint Meridians of his legs, increasing his speed further.
At that moment, the Saintly Maiden was trapped in a hundred-zhang-long vortex swamp, struggling to advance at less than a tenth of her previous speed.
To reach the summit, one had to cross the vortex swamp region.
Zhang Ruochen quickly arrived at the edge of the vortex swamp and plunged in without hesitation.