As soon as Chase opened his eyes, he saw Olivia's concerned gaze in front of him.This expression was something Olivia only showed in front of Chase. In front of others, Olivia always maintained a cold demeanor."Don't worry, I'm fine now," Chase held Olivia's cold hand and comforted her."Alright, you two can continue your affection when no one else is around. I have a few questions for you," a voice interrupted, causing them to awkwardly let go of each other's hands.Recently, Chase had become quite shameless. He quickly acted as if nothing had happened and addressed Blake, "Please go ahead and ask, sir.""Chase, tell me honestly. Do you have any experience in refining pills?""A little.""Have you successfully made any pills?""I've managed to make a few.""Young man, from what your sister told me, you're unaffiliated. Would you be willing to join the Esoteric Medical Sect?" After receiving a positive response, Blake got straight to the point."May I know why, sir? I'd fin
Wilcox broke the barrier with a single sword strike but did not continue to attack. He merely said, "Chase, I'm Wilcox Saber. If you don't agree to join him, I assure you he won't dare force you."It was clear Wilcox held a grudge from the previous incident and wanted to antagonize Blake."Wilcox, you're courting death!" Blake initially did not care about the barrier being broken. However, after hearing Wilcox's words, he erupted in fury and unleashed a terrifying aura."Blake, even though you're a level higher than me, don't forget that I'm from the Sword Sect!" Wilcox retaliated, his sword intent soaring into the sky. He seemed less like a person and more like an unparalleled, sharp sword.This sudden change left Chase stunned. He wondered who this newcomer was and why the two were about to fight after just one exchange."Chase, this man is Wilcox, the sect master of the Esoteric Sword Sect. He previously wanted to take me as his disciple, but I refused. And thanks to Elder Ev
"That's right, Chase. That's exactly my intention. I'm Wilcox Saber of the Sword Sect, the current sect master and an eighth-stage martial lord. I would be the best master for your sister. Although she refused me before, I can't bear to see such a talent wasted. Would you persuade her? With her talent, she could even easily surpass you," Wilcox said bluntly.Blake's message and Wilcox's words came almost simultaneously.Chase then turned to look at Olivia."Chase, I've finally reunited with you guys. I don't want to be separated again," Olivia said as she met Chase's gaze and understood his intent."Olivia, a momentary separation is for the sake of a better future together. I can't protect you adequately right now. Don't worry, I'll come to bring you home one day." Chase recalled the painful moment when Olivia stood up for him but was easily struck down by Chuck. He felt utterly powerless. He did not want to miss this opportunity for Olivia to grow stronger."Besides, even if yo
The first stop was at Dragon Tiger Mountain's Heavenly Master Mansion. Inside the mansion, Phineas was startled by Chase's sudden appearance. It was not until he recognized Chase's face that he breathed a sigh of relief."I didn't expect you to actually win this battle, Master Collins. We've all benefited greatly from it," Phineas said, and he was not exaggerating.Originally, the Heavenly Master Mansion had dwindling numbers, but because of Chase's victory, many rogue cultivators now wanted to join them.Fortunately, the mansion would not accept just anyone. After a selection process, they only retained a few people.Most of these people were here because of Chase. His display of the Five-Thunder Technique was still vivid in their minds, and many sought to join the Heavenly Master Mansion to be associated with him.Chase understood this clearly but did not mind, especially since the Evil Slaying Sword had contributed greatly to the battle."Master James, here's your sword back,"
With Blake, a martial lord at the peak of his power, accompanying him, Chase not only returned to South River City within a day but also managed to appear in front of Julia before dinner.Chase had not informed Julia about the recent battle, not wanting to worry her with such matters.Chase briefly updated Julia on his sisters' situation and even met with Sam to settle everything before leaving for the Esoteric Medical Sect with Blake.The three traveled until they reached a mountain range devoid of any signs of human habitation. Just as Chase was about to express his curiosity about the location of the Esoteric Medical Sect, he saw Blake throw a token into the air.As the token inscribed with the word "Evans" flew into the sky, it caused ripples in the air. A portal's shadow slowly materialized, accompanied by an imposing aura."This is the entrance to our Esoteric Medical Sect. Without the token, even the strongest being won't be able to find our sect," Blake said proudly. He th
"What exactly is Elder Evans' role within the Esoteric Medical Sect?" Chase realized that he might have misunderstood. He thought that Blake was the sect master. Now, it seemed that it was not the case."Well, my master is essentially the sect's external envoy. The elders here don't handle affairs, and everything is managed by my master. However, he isn't the sect master because the Esoteric Medical Sect doesn't have one," Linus explained after some hesitation.Hearing this, Chase had some thoughts. Blake seemed like the chief steward of the sect. Chase wondered if the promises made to him would be honored.Nonetheless, since he was already there, he decided to take it one step at a time.As they continued their tour in silence, Chase refrained from asking questions since he did not know much. Linus was also preoccupied with his own thoughts. He was seemingly reflecting on his master's awkward position within the sect and grew more silent as they walked.They followed the stone pa
In the hall of the Esoteric Medical Sect, several elders were engaged in a heated debate.Leading them was a white-haired, youthful-looking elder who was staring intently at Blake."Elder Evans, I know you've been tirelessly working outside on behalf of the sect. Bringing in a Pill Refining Master from outside is one way to approach it, but outsiders will never be as reliable as our own. "Do you know that my disciple has already successfully refined a grade-seven pill? Just give him a bit more time and he'll surely become a true Pill Refining Master," the elder said."Hmph, just a single grade-seven pill? Is that even worth mentioning? Grade-seven pills are no big deal here. Everyone here can make them. Yet, who among us dares to call themselves a Pill Refining Master? "Elder Erwell, surely you know that to claim the title of Pill Refining Master, one must be able to refine pills of grade six or higher," Blake retorted, mocking Lundly Erwell for defending his disciple."Indeed,
"What’s this, Elder Erwell? You're unable to win the argument, so you're resorting to suppressing me with your cultivation?" Even Blake found it difficult to withstand the pressure.As the two stood off, a child's figure entered the hall. With the child's arrival, the oppressive force vanished. The elders' expressions changed as they hurriedly stood up and saluted."Greetings, Supreme Elder Phoenix!""Supreme Elder Phoenix, why have you come out?"The child before them was none other than the highest-ranking elder of the Esoteric Medical Sect."There's no need for formalities, everyone. If I hadn’t come out, you two might have torn down the Esoteric Medical Sect’s hall. Elder Evans, Elder Erwell, you’re both too old to be arguing so heatedly over such matters. "After all these years of friendship, is this necessary?" The voice emanating from the child's body was unexpectedly aged."Supreme Elder Phoenix, you must stand up for Floyd. You watched him grow up, and you know his tal
As Clive had gained quite a lot, he decided to let it be. He allowed himself to let go of things. However, that being's consciousness began to open up to Clive, and that was when Clive realized how powerful the being was.It was one against the 12 Primal Treasures, and the universe was its target. It had existed for millions of years. The result of allowing it to take over was Clive losing complete control of his body. It was a projected image that vanished after Chase defeated it.However, Clive's body had been modified by it, and Clive's mind and soul were unable to control his own body. This was what had caused Clive to look like he was in a daze right after the match.Rania then used a mystical technique to transmit her cultivation and combine the powers of both parties. It triggered a lost talent within Clive that merged all of the swordsmanship he cultivated to form an unknown sword form that had never been seen before.Clive felt like he had been revived.He looked at the Ni
Inside the halved corpse, faint outlines of Rania and the coachman's bodies could be seen. They were twisted and contorted.Foul-smelling digestive fluid bubbled and hissed, corroding their bodies.Rania appeared to retain a shred of consciousness. "Cli... Clive... Clive... Help me... Save..."Her voice was faint, tremulous, and laced with sorrow. It stirred pity in the heart.In truth, even before she had spoken, Clive had already detected her presence through his spiritual consciousness. He raised his sword. His face was tormented as if he wanted to put a swift end to things. Yet in the end, he let out a long sigh and released a surge of true essence, pulling both the coachman and Rania from River's corpse.The coachman's cultivation was far too low, and his clothes were made of ordinary fabric. They offered no resistance to the corrosive and toxic digestive acid inside River's body.Half of his body was already unrecognizable, with the bones and internal organs exposed. His b
"Pathetic."The Nine-Sea Giant Squid that River had transformed into spoke with a human voice, then opened its gaping maw and swallowed her whole.The coachman, who had leaped off the horse the moment River transformed, scrambled and sprinted away. He was already dozens of feet out.Just then, a dark blur flashed past, and one of River's tentacles shot forward at incredible speed, snatching him back and devouring him in a single gulp as well."Disgusting. That woman tasted better," he muttered while slithering toward the carriage on his tentacles.Suddenly, an explosion echoed from within his belly, and faint glimmers of light shone through the surface of his body."That woman's protective artifact is so weak. Looks like she wasn't treated well in the Norths, after all."River examined himself carefully and found that it was indeed Rania's protective talisman that had just detonated. Yet his body remained largely unharmed. With some minor healing over ten days to half a month, he
Outside Light Divine City, Rania sat inside a carriage with Clive."Clive, say something, will you? You staying silent like this is really worrying me," she said while wiping the sweat from Clive's forehead and letting out a sigh.As a collateral descendant of the Norths, Rania's life had never been particularly easy. She had thought she had finally snagged a golden opportunity with Clive, only for him to fall into a daze after just one match.What was she supposed to do now?Everyone had witnessed their behavior during the tournament. Though some might look down on them, they would undoubtedly see the two of them as a pair by now.If she abandoned Clive at this point, she would surely be labeled a heartless woman.Just then, the carriage came to a halt. They had only left the city less than an hour ago and were still far from Universal Holy Land. Was someone blocking the road? Rania frowned and lifted the curtain.Sure enough, there was someone standing in the way.She looked c
Even though the match had ended, Lisa still could not fully escape the lingering terror.The slimy, wriggling tentacles covered in suction cups and jagged teeth, stretching out toward her… Such images were seared into her mind. The impact had been too great.Though she was a direct descendant of the dragon clan—an authentic ancient lineage and one of the top races in the entire world—she had been completely overpowered then.Normally, her bloodline would exert natural suppression over most others. However, at the time, she was almost crushed by another.She could not even begin to imagine what kind of race could do that."It tried to eat you?" Walter exclaimed in shock.As a great beast himself, he understood just how powerful the dragon clan's pure bloodline was.Even though the incident with the Lightning Dragon kneeling to Chase had dulled some of the mystique around dragons, it remained undeniable that they were a superior bloodline."For a creature to make a dragon feel lik
"Pfft, what Saints or Saintesses? They're just titles. They don't have any real skills to speak of!""Exactly. These so-called Saints who suddenly emerged probably got their status through shady means. The moment they enter a duel, their real strength shows."Amid the chorus of cheers and congratulations, a few jarring voices remained, and one of them was Rania's. Although she was a social climber herself, hearing the crowd ridicule Clive after his defeat made her deeply uncomfortable."That's not true. Clive is not like that," she repeated again and again. Those were the only words she could manage.Several in the crowd recognized her as the one who accepted a gift from Clive earlier and began to mock her."She's the perfect example of a shallow woman. The moment she accepts a gift, she loses her sense of judgment. It's pathetic.""Right? The truth is right in front of her—Clive is just a big show-off with no real skills. And yet she keeps lying to herself.""Hmph. They really a
Later, a certain senior of the sect discovered a secret technique of the Nefarious Spirits.It was to meditate on the image of a divine beast or an overwhelmingly powerful immortal being the embodiment of one's soul. As the level of visualization deepened, one's spiritual soul strength would grow accordingly.This method of cultivating Nefarious Spirits was a hybrid of corpse refining and body cultivation.However, while corpse and body cultivation focused on physical bodies, Nefarious Spirits cultivation trained the intangible—the spiritual consciousness and the mind and soul.After this discovery, they even improved the methods of refining corpses and bodies using it.When refining the body, practitioners would visualize fierce beasts like bears or wolves or celestial warriors, generals, and even gods. The subjects of their visualizations would match with their nature and temperament, making them their own Nefarious Spirits.Fallon's Nefarious Spirit was an ancient giant ape. It
As for Fallon and Carla on the high platform, they clearly sensed that the ominous gaze from above had lessened significantly.Clive, who was facing Chase directly, also felt that his seemingly unstoppable sword strike had suddenly stalled in front of Chase. It could not push forward any further. This shocked him greatly.After all, even when sparring with his own master, he had never encountered this sensation. His master had even praised him for his good fortune after obtaining a peerless sword and for mastering a sword technique unparalleled in this generation. If not for the looming limit of his life span and the need to break through to gain more years, his master would have wanted to cultivate that technique himself.This sword strike, which Clive considered to be the culmination of all his understanding of the sword path, was the most perfect attack he had ever executed since beginning his cultivation journey.Even so, this nameless opponent had forced it back with a single
Tania once attended celebratory events held by other sects, only to encounter top-tier demonic beasts on the road. A brutal battle left her covered in wounds, and she missed the celebration entirely, offending the host.At that time, her master's resentment had already reached its peak.That thousand-year-old wolf demon became the last straw that broke the camel's back.Her master unleashed Emerald Lake Holy Land's most powerful technique—Radiance of Emerald, Eternal Slumber.Heaven and earth changed color the moment it was unleashed. The thousand-year wolf demon gathered all of its cultivation but still could not withstand the strike. It was reduced to ashes in an instant.Tania once thought that the gap between her and her master was not too wide and that she would rightfully inherit the mantle of leadership over Emerald Lake Holy Land within a century.Yet after witnessing that attack, she realized how wrong she had been. From then on, she started training harder and more dilig