Archfiend

Scarletflame Crystal Jade was only produced in the largest seabed volcano in the world, Tamu Massif, located due east 1,600 kilometers away from Japan. Presently, the world’s largest active volcano was Hawaii’s Moanalua, which was barely only a sixth of Tamu Massif. In comparison to the American state of New Mexico, it was even bigger, however. Not only was it Earth’s largest volcano, but it was also known as one of the largest volcanoes in the solar system. 

In a year, only a hundred catties were produced!

However, its application wasn’t just limited to all fire-attribute pill-elixirs, spirit-lands, spirit-plants, and especially refining tools… it could also directly raise all items by two or three minor ratings!

Such an item was already something that money couldn’t buy. At the very least, there was no record of Scarletflame Crystal Jade being auctioned for spirit stones on the cultivation net… No, there was no auction record of Scarletflame Crystal Jade period!

Dragon’s Saliva was produced a thousand meters underground in Xiaozhai’s Heavenly Pit, an area known as one of the Eight Great Deadlands. From extreme heat, it was taken with extreme cold. Perhaps foreign cultivators may have never heard of such a thing. Each year, only 320 catties were produced. Inevitably, it could only be traded between the hands of half-step Core Formation and Core Formation cultivators.

Rootless Wood, Trident, Splendid Summer Breath-Soil… By reading of each of these ingredients in the Eternal Alchemy Canon, Xu Yangyi discovered that such things originally existed in the world!

“If I want to rank them, these things… might all be far beyond SSS-rank.” He shook his head and laughed bitterly. “A Thousand Li Invincible isn’t hard; it’s even simple, but five kinds of spirit-objects, fifty catties of each one. They have to be placed in an urn and then broiled in an active volcano after I set down a formation… Isn’t this a plan to cook me dry? Granted, I still want to know how bad the pain is.”

“But… the greater the pain, the greater the gains. Even though I just learned the first move Splitting Air, the physique art that Vermilion Snow learned from the Dracul wasn’t a match. I can only last for less than thirty seconds, though. If I can truly refine this physique art… added with the Eternal Alchemy Canon’s amplification after I get the Vermilion Bird Fire in the future…” He couldn’t help but clench his fists. “There won’t be anywhere I can’t go in the entire world!”

“And that’s not to mention after I’ve trained this physique art to the point of excellence. Legendary apex divine abilities like Three Heads, Six Arms, and Heavenly Way, Earthly Form… In China, I’m a little worried that I put myself too much into the limelight during the auction back then. Especially since I was nothing more than insignificant Qi Condensation at the time. But now…”

Xu Yangyi’s gaze flashed. “I… have the wealth of the Clearcloud Realm’s harvest, the elementary-rank Voidspirit Immortal Physique, and double the spiritual force growth rate. I can even risk going a round with a half-step Core Formation cultivator!”

This was also his confidence in not being scared to fight Gowers.

“If I’m not making money now, am I going to keep waiting?”

All of a sudden, the doorbell rang out.

“Please come in.”

The door opened, but it unexpectedly wasn’t New York’s government that entered. On the contrary, it was Danny.

“You really are brave,” Xu Yangyi said in a plain voice. “I just made a soul contract with you; I didn’t call on you, but you actually came in yourself.”

With a thump, Danny planted a knee on the floor. His black complexion became paper-white, and he stammered, “Y-Your Honorable Highness… it’s not that I wanted to come, but…”

“Oh?” Xu Yangyi laughed, “You’re not willing to come?”

“I…”

Pitiful Danny.

“Alright.” Xu Yangyi cracked a harmless joke and turned his head away. “If you have something to say, say it. If you don’t, don’t come in without my explicit approval, unless I summon you.”

“Yes… b-but t-this time someone had me bring something to you, Your Highness…” Danny’s shaky hands held out an envelope. 

Just as Xu Yangyi was about to take it, however, he stared blankly into space and deeply eyed Danny. “Did anything peculiar happen when you got here?”

“Huh? No?”

No?

A mysterious smile curved up at the crook of Xu Yangyi’s mouth. Good… they really do move pretty quickly. 

He clearly sensed a faintly discernible qi on Danny. It was unique, certainly not the qi of a vampire. It was just that it was merely for tracking, so it couldn’t see everything here.

As soon as he hurried and finished this business, then he would slowly sort this other party out… 

He took the letter and slowly opened it, but a streak of white light fired straight between his brows in the instant he did!

A scheme!

Xu Yangyi glared and shouted angrily, “Break!”

Rumble! The white light answered and broke, but all the starry dots of white light gathered into the shape of a person in the room.

It was an old man.

Bald but a full beard on his face, he wore a black suit. His body formed of spiritual light was about 1.87 meters tall, and his face seemed to be right before the eyes. Although he looked old, his grand stature told everyone that there was no question whatsoever that he could presently tear a lion apart.

Laurent W. Tullius.

“You sure got guts.” Xu Yangyi narrowed his eyes and stood up bare-footed. He turned to his dresser and switched into a white shirt and a pair of western trousers that outlined the swell of his muscles, but not too exaggeratedly. “You sure you want to challenge me?”

Meanwhile, in a secret room in the Tullius Family grounds, Laurent bolted up to his feet. His eyes radiated light. In front of him was a doll. It was a picture of life. As he spoke, the doll’s mouth surprisingly began to open as well.

“It’s not a challenge.” From over a dozen kilometers away, the manifestation spoke in sync. “I smelled the scent of your ambition… It stings the nose, it’s heavy, and it also brings the jingle of countless spirit stones. I thought that I should first prove your ability to the Tullius Family before I prove your ambition.”

There was no one else besides Laurent in the secret room. The door outside was sealed off by chain after chain. Only two of his trusted confidants were outside. Inside the room, he slowly raised his fists, and Laurent’s spirit-body in the hotel room also adopted the same boxing stance.

“T-That’s…” Danny was terrified out of his wits, a knot forming in his throat. “Laurent… Laurent W. Tullius!!! His Highness Marquis!”

“He’s the Tullius Family’s Marquis?” Xu Yangyi brushed his gaze over the spirit-body. “Does he want to tell me that he isn’t scared of me even though his realm is less than mine?”

Despite the fact that Laurent had come as a manifestation, Xu Yangyi still felt the might of Foundation Establishment. If he ignored the manifestation and let it hit him, it would be no different from letting an actual initial Foundation Establishment cultivator hit him!

“No, this is an opportunity.” Laurent licked his lips and restrained his excitement. “The opportunity I give you is to prove your ability. What you are able to give to the Tullius Family. Protection? Cultivation resources? I didn’t witness the activities last night myself, and I’m not someone who would take stock just because Warren said so. I believe you also understand and realize this point.”

His fists exploded with a burst of shimmering light, and the phantasms of two western elder-dragons wishing to take flight coiled around him. “It’s not about who has the qualifications to do business with the Tullius Family, friend. And it’s not about who has the qualifications to incite the Tullius Family, either. But you can relax. If you’re just an idiot, I won’t speak of today’s matter. However…”

His gaze slightly flashed. “Maybe you’ll have to leave me with a few very minor commemorations. Such as… the origin of that powder?”

Xu Yangyi studied Laurent for two seconds and laughed. “Don’t overestimate yourself.” He extended his hand and beckoned. “Come, I’ll make you accept it with all your heart.”

“Hehe…” Laurent’s gaze flickered. “We have a saying in America: ‘when you can move, you don’t need to waste words’.”

Before he even finished speaking, Laurent punched out at Xu Yangyi’s temple. The sound of wind and thunder rang out in the air, and even the faint cry of a dragon was heard.

Swoosh! As his fist swung out, the surrounding air seemed to ripple like a wave, as if an elder-dragon was rising to the sky. It brought forth a momentum akin to thunder, like 30,000 catties of weight! In the room, almost everything seemed to be electrified. In an instant, the crackle of static rang out! All the electronics exploded!

Hiding at the side, Danny was initially crawling out on his hands and feet. Upon hearing the sound of rolling thunder, however, he turned back and nearly jumped up from the ground!

“Elder-Dragon Twisting Murder! This the Tullius Family’s exclusive physique art!”

He exhaled sharply, only feeling his scalp grow numb. This physique art was the supreme skill that Laurent had used to make his name. When Laurent was a Perfect Count, he had beheaded five of the Corvinus’ Counts during the Decade Holy War! This move was one of the Tullius Family’s true aces!

“This is too scary… Legend says that one fist can destroy a skyscraper! T-This is a Marquis’s power!”

“On the black market, this fist art can be sold for tens of millions of dollars! I didn’t expect His Highness Laurent had already finished training in it!”

However, just as he crawled a few steps away, he felt something was off.

The fist wind… had disappeared?

Shocked, he turned his head back again, but promptly cried out in fright, “Oh my god! Jesus! What am I looking at?!”

A finger.

An ordinary finger.

Vigorous and powerful, it was completely scarred and calloused. It seemed to be sketched in light shades, following the wind and brushing willows. At the side of Xu Yangyi’s temple, it stopped Laurent’s bowl-sized fist like so!

Danny stared vacantly into space, and Laurent became foolish.

After ages, Laurent’s voice faintly stuttered out, “T-This is impossible… The Twisting Murder Style… T-This is one of the Tullius Family’s legacy secrets! How could…”

“Nothing is impossible,” Xu Yangyi said indifferently. “We’re both Marquises. But the difference of one rank is that of heaven and earth.”

“I once said that I could kill you in ten moves, that I wouldn’t even need eleven.” He licked his lips like a wolf. “Because your growth environment and my growth environment are on virtually different levels.”

“You’re a flower in a greenhouse, hiding under the wings of vampires… and I took step after step out of mountains of blades and seas of blood!”

As he said those last few words, Xu Yangyi fiercely raised his voice. Laurent was instantly flicked away, and his body of spiritual light slammed into the wall, dimming for a moment.

In a secret room over a dozen kilometers away, Laurent groaned. A wave of alarm spread through his heart.

So powerful!

His final suspicion was whether or not Xu Yangyi was the man at the center of yesterday’s tumultuous events, if Warren was mistaken. If Xu Yangyi turned out not to be, he wouldn’t mind doing wrong by another villain, but if Xu Yangyi really was, he would enter actual talks with Xu Yangyi. After all, he dared to confirm that the powder wasn’t a completed product! This Chinese cultivator had an even better item!

But now, he was sure he wasn’t wrong! He couldn’t resist that explosion of qi at all! It was like a tsunami!

“T-This…” Laurent took a deep breath. He sensed a terrible murderous aura emanating from the other’s body.

Xu Yangyi stretched out a finger and bent it. He laughed coldly, “One move.”

“To defeat you.”

Bang! Xu Yangyi’s finger gently flicked out. It seemed to be absent of spiritual force, but it was in fact amplified twice by the Voidspirit Immortal Physique! Furthermore… this move contained Splitting Air, concentrated down to the size of a pellet!

Not to even speak of Laurent, even Vermilion Snow would dodge this shot!

Boom… A heavy noise echoed, and spiritual light rocked out. Laurent yelped out in fright, and his real body over a dozen kilometers away bolted up.

This was a move he couldn’t resist!

The surrounding space caved in! This wasn’t a move that a low Marquis could withstand whatsoever!

Crash! Although he was controlling a spirit-body, his real body at this moment seemed to sense Xu Yangyi’s murderous aura that crossed over from far away. He couldn’t help but retreat! The furnishings behind him were grounded into dust by Xu Yangyi’s colossal spiritual force!