A group of people stood faintly visible in the swirling dust. The night still lingered in the sky, with dawn yet to break.Despite the dust flying everywhere, Chase and his group stood quietly, waiting. This was the very place where they had all entered the secret realm together."Why haven't we seen the exit yet?" Slant asked impatiently.Although Chase could leave and return to Bactria at any moment, he remained standing there. He could see the outskirts of Bactria's Capital City through a thin veil.At the entrance to the secret realm, representatives from the major families had already gathered. There were the Hawkinses, the Coopers, the Salvatores, the Brennans, the Kaydens, and the Welches. They were eagerly waiting.Chase even spotted Gareth, who had brought an entire armed troop to prevent any trouble from these families. Not far from Gareth, Chase also saw a banner of the Flaming Sun Clan.The four elders who had opened the secret realm suddenly appeared, and the entranc
After speaking, Thelonius waved his hand and took his three disciples away, disappearing into the sky. Meanwhile, the remaining family heads of Capital City exchanged looks.What? Even a powerful clan like the Flaming Sun Clan had only three out of over ten people return?The family heads immediately focused on the entrance, each hoping the next person to come out would be their family's prodigy.Inside the secret realm, Mitchell was about to step into the exit when he suddenly found himself stopped by something.He realized instantly that Chase was behind it."Chase, what do you mean by this?" Mitchell asked, his voice laced with frustration.Chase smiled faintly. "Mitchell, swear a blood oath and I'll let you out."Though Chase wore a smile, Mitchell had no doubt that if he refused, Chase would kill him.There was no escaping this, after all. Mitchell's face twisted with indecision. The exit was right in front of him, but if he did not agree, it might as well be miles away.
The voice of the patriarch of the Coopers, Lennox, rang out from behind them."What's the matter? Are you blocking my way?" Gareth immediately questioned."You represent Bactria, so naturally, I wouldn't dare obstruct you. However, I need to ask Scott and Basalt's Collins about the Coopers' prodigy,'' Lennox began, apologizing to Gareth before turning to Chase.Seeing Chase and the others emerge with no one else following from the secret realm, the family heads felt a growing sense of unease.Hence, Lennox directly voiced his concerns."I don't know," Scott replied nonchalantly, his expression unchanging.Chase remained silent."We're leaving," Gareth declared once more."Gareth, you're free to go, but Scott and Basalt's Collins, you can't leave until you explain what happened in the secret realm," Carson, the patriarch of the Hawkins family, said. He also stepped forward to block Chase and Scott."How dare you?!" Though without any cultivation himself, Gareth felt a surge of
"Even the entire cultivation world has never heard of such a heaven-defying existence," everyone exclaimed in awe.The two mysterious martial lords in the sky turned their gazes toward Chase as well."As you're a stage-three martial lord, was it you who claimed ownership of this secret realm?" one of them coldly asked, staring at Chase."So what if it's me?" Chase replied calmly.The two previously enigmatic elders now seemed less intimidating to Chase, perhaps because they were near the secret realm's exit. He could vaguely sense their auras, revealing them to be at most mid-stage martial lords, no higher than level six."It really is you! Such audacity, young man. You've just broken through and already you're so arrogant, showing no respect for your elders. Do you think becoming a martial lord allows you to challenge us?" the elder retorted angrily."It's your condescending attitude that's provoking me. I had no intention of being disrespectful. What now? After knowing that I c
Facing the demands of Ripley, Chase straightforwardly refused, stating, "I have none. Not a single one!""You impudent brat! Do you truly believe your Basalt status can protect you? I've spoken to you respectfully, and you still dare show such disrespect!" Ripley was furious, unable to contain his anger any longer."Respect is earned, not given. It was you who acted shamelessly first, so why should I be respectful?" Chase retorted calmly, his words dripping with sarcasm."You insolent whelp! With your disposition, you're truly fit to be the remnants of the Collins family—always courting death!" Ripley suddenly withdrew his anger and sneered.Hearing this, Chase immediately questioned, "What do you mean?""You know exactly what I mean.""So, you're admitting that the incident at Green Hills Orphanage was orchestrated by the Coopers?""So what if it was? Chase, even if I tell you that not only was the Green Hills Orphanage incident orchestrated by the Coopers, but we were also inv
"Yes, who would've thought Basalt's Collins had such bloodlust? It's a shame. With his control of this secret realm, Basalt's Collins might've been able to restore the Collins family's former glory in Capital City. Why did he get into this ordeal?""Indeed, it's such a pity," the crowd lamented.Although they did not know exactly what transpired between the two, Chase's moment of losing control made everyone make some guesses.Not only independent cultivators but also Scott and Gareth, who were standing beside Chase, realized something was wrong.What could have happened to make Chase lose his composure so completely? However, now was not the time to find out."Hmph. How dare you try to attack Ripley? You're doomed, Chase Collins!" Lennox sneered, casting a mocking glance at Scott and Gareth."Yes. Although our families don't always see eye to eye, I have to agree with you on this," Carson chimed in, watching the spectacle with interest.High above, Ripley deliberately led Chase
In an instant, an immense secret realm enveloped the two elders.Unaware of the change around them, they continued their conversation, smiling and chatting."Who would've thought that a young lad could give you such trouble, forcing you to call me for help?" Harley remarked lightly."Indeed. The last time we joined forces was during the Collins family incident. After all these years, it's still someone from the Collins family," Ripley added casually."Seems like the rumors about a rift between the Cooper and Hawkins families are false," Chase interjected. Seeing them conversing like old friends, he could not help but comment."A rift? That's just a squabble among the younger generation," Harley said with a smile, clearly thinking that Chase was no threat with the two of them joining forces.Ripley also spoke up, "If we didn't create some discord, Bactria wouldn't let us stay in Capital City. But you wouldn't understand even if I explained.""Young man, you're trapped in my domai
"Is that so?" Chase moved his mind again. Harley looked on in disbelief as his body started disappearing from his feet upward, bit by bit."This... is impossible!" he exclaimed upon seeing such casual obliteration. "T-This isn't your domain. Is this your world?"Those were Harley's final words before dying.Though Chase did not fully grasp what a 'world' meant, he understood it was a level above a domain.This was his world? Even so, it was not the time to ponder. Chase's cold eyes focused on Ripley instead."Spare me, Basalt's Collins! I lied about everything before. It was all a bluff. Spare my life, and I'll give you anything you want!" Having witnessed Harley vanishing into thin air, Ripley now faced Chase's gaze with immense fear as he pleaded desperately."It's too late to beg for mercy now. If you had only targeted me, there might've been room for negotiation. But you shouldn't have involved the entire Green Hills Orphanage. "Don't worry, I said I'd bury the entire Coope
Jade gritted her teeth as she gathered all her vital energy, preparing to unleash her ultimate move. It was the very origin of her title—Thousand Eyes and Flowers.Behind her, a vital energy screen spread open like a peacock fanning its tail.The surface was covered with intricate patterns, resembling the eye-like spots on a peacock's feathers.These patterns were not mere decorations. Each one was an ancient rune, capable of releasing a devastating vital energy attack.When Jade unleashed this move, everyone below gasped in shock."No way, this is just a friendly tournament match. Does Jade really need to go this far?""Should we reinforce the arena's defensive array? I'm afraid someone might get caught in the crossfire.""Tsk, tsk, it's been so long since we last saw Jade lose her temper. She's even more stunning when she is angry!""You're such a pervert. If you get hit by that move, there will not even be a corpse left of you!""You don't understand. There are worse ways t
Inside Universal Holy Land, Clive and his master were facing off against the woman suspected to be the Dark Divine Pearl. Meanwhile, at Light Divine City, Chase's fourth round at the tournament's semifinals had already begun.His opponent was Jade, the Saintess of Modest Lady Holy Land, also known as Thousand Eyes and Flowers.It was already extremely rare for two contestants with such a rare same surname to appear in the same tournament. They belonged to different factions yet both were advancing to the final few rounds. Not to mention, if Yara had revealed his phoenix bloodline and inheritance, he might have very well made it to the finals too.The people with the surname Fries were terrifying beyond words!These were the thoughts running through Chase's head for no particular reason. On the other hand, after Jade saluted, she launched her attack without hesitation.Chase, still a bit distracted, was startled by the ferocity of her strike. Such a name and demeanor, paired with
Skyler spoke proudly.Clive kept having the feeling that something did not seem right when he heard Skyler's words."The Holy Path will only open after winning the tournament championship. Only those selected by the champion can enter. I was already eliminated in the second round…" Clive stammered."Won't you become the champion after killing the current champion? Isn't killing Chase Collins what you want to do?" Skyler was frustrated with Clive.Clive finally realized what felt wrong about all of this."You're not Skyler," he said coldly.The Universal Element Priest had also locked down on Skyler with his vital energy at this point. "Reveal yourself. Who are you? What did you do to Skyler?""Oh? How did you know?" Skyler was taken aback but quickly calmed down and asked the question. "What's wrong with my charisma and appearance?"He looked at his body and clothes while asking the questions with curiosity and calmness. This person had admitted to pretending to be Skyler."Fir
"His will is a blur." Clive sounded helpless when he added, "But it's a will that is extremely frightening and evil."He had the right to this opinion as someone who had faced Klondike directly.When Klondike's will was directed at him, Clive could feel unlimited fear and helplessness. Any second more of facing Klondike might make him lose his mind.He could barely take the energy pumped into him. He only managed to get through it because of his guilt for Rania and his desire to live.The thought of begging Klondike was equivalent to seeing death.There was one reason why he was brave enough to talk about Klondike with the Universal Element Priest and Skyler. It was because Klondike was in a stage of being half awake and half asleep. Clive only dared to discuss Klondike when he was asleep.However, speaking of anything that crossed the line would attract his attention, and Clive was not willing to see that happen.The Universal Element Priest and Skyler glanced at each other. The
Both of those disciples thought they could see Skyler lose his temper, but he reacted calmly. The attempts to fan the situation seemed to have failed. Had they lost credibility with Skyler for their misguided actions?They broke into a cold sweat from fear.Those disciples had offended the previous and current Saints. It looked like they had just made life tougher for themselves.They glanced at each other and gave a long sigh.…Inside Universal Element Palace, Clive had placed Rania down on a training mat while he knelt in front of his master, the Universal Element Priest. "Master, please save Rania North. I'm willing to pay any price without regrets!"He spoke with great determination, and there was a grim look on his face."Silly boy." The Universal Element Priest glanced at Clive and sighed."Rania North seems to have been poisoned by a vicious curse and an extraterritorial poison. I can temporarily save her life, but her face…" He shook his head."I'm grateful enough that
The man had just commented to his junior when a sharp sword aura came swishing toward him. It sliced off half of his fringe, and his knees buckled from fear. If the sword had moved an inch further, his skull would have been sliced off."Shut your trap!" Clive's cold voice was heard. It was filled with murder. He had ignored all the criticisms directed at him. However, he pulled his sword out when the man insulted Rania."This is my woman. Insult her again, and I promise you will not see the sun rise tomorrow." Clive turned and continued walking forward without looking back.When he finally vanished from sight, a tall, dashing man came forward with a sword behind his back."Is Clive around?"He asked the two Universal Holy Land disciples who had just seen Clive."Clive just went inside to see the master, Skyler," one of them replied respectfully."Oh. What a coincidence. Um… What happened to your hair?" Skyler suddenly noticed the fringe of the disciple answering him had been slic
"If everything goes as planned, I'll be heading to the Holy Path with Chase Collins." Yara put the small, white bottle into his storage pouch as he spoke in a low voice."There's no hurry for this. I need to make proper arrangements at the Evil Shadow Sect first. Carla secretly set up the Severance Formation at the locations where Norm Weber and I were cultivating in isolation. She wanted to trap us inside and see us dead! I must have my revenge for that."The Holy Path won't happen immediately. You'll make it there eventually. Don't worry too much about it."Tack's eyes turned sharp at the mention of Carla. He and Norm had taken pains to nurture and groom Carla to become the sect master of the Evil Shadow Sect.Yet she showed ingratitude to their efforts by trying to kill them just to be with that rascal, Fallon Locke.Carla was a heartless woman who had no loyalty or filial piety. Such a vicious woman should find it lucky if all they did for revenge was to kill her.Tack saved N
Yara returned to his room at the inn after exiting the tournament venue. He checked the room carefully for any signs of intruders entering his room. He then took out a talisman from his storage pouch and blew gently on it.The talisman started to burn, and gentle smoke slowly billowed in the air. A formation formed instantly, and the entire room was cut off from the outside world.After that, Yara took out a messaging talisman. He touched the image of an old man on it. The next moment, the old man's image projected in front of him. He looked to be about 50 or 60. The old man had a head of white hair and a white beard. He was also wearing a big, red robe as he held a chowrie in his hand."Chase Collins took the bait, master," Yara said respectfully to the old man."Good job. You'll be rewarded well once this is done." The old man whisked his chowrie and laughed. He added, "Get his primordial essence, understand?"He lowered his voice when giving the instruction. When he bent his hea
After all, Chase had to bring Yara along if they were really going to the Holy Path.Chase would not be able to hide it from them then. It was better to be honest with them from the start."What? He needed something from you? Will he come over to see you tonight?" Willow's question had Lisa and Walter exchanging a glance.Chase had no idea how to respond. "What are you thinking, Willow? Sweep those dirty thoughts out of your mind."He berated Willow.Willow realized what she had just said and quickly apologized. "Oh, that's not what I meant. I just wanted to ask what you meant by him needing your help."Chase sighed. "To put it in a nutshell, Yara has phoenix bloodline and requires the Light Divine Pearl's help to receive the Rising powers of the Phoenix Deity. He knows that I have hope of getting the Light Divine Pearl, which is why he came to me."Willow and Walter were stunned."The Phoenix Deity? Isn't that one of the Five Major Demon Saints who holds the same standing as th