Chapter 689: Chen Cheng Is Here

As the saying goes, a name casts a shadow.

Inside the Fog Concealment Cave Mansion, the only person who made Chen Cheng feel wary was Ji Lingxiao, ranked second on the Northern Territory Earth List.

She was simply too domineering, to the point where none of the younger generation’s geniuses in the entire Northern Territory dared to challenge her.

Even Zhao Wuji, number one on the Northern Territory Earth List, deliberately avoided confronting her.

Even when suppressed by the cave mansion’s Array, Ning Hao’s Yellow Tier Spiritual Artifact, the Sun and Moon Mirror Light Sword, still granted a Realm Power bonus of five thousand.

Ji Lingxiao’s Lingxiao Sword was a Profound Tier Spiritual Artifact. Moreover, as a Spirit Soldier used by the Great Yu Founding Saint Emperor in his youth, it was likely one of the very best even among Profound Tier Spiritual Artifacts.

How terrifyingly powerful would its bonus be?

As for Ji Lingxiao’s personal strength, it had to be immense. Otherwise, her elders would never have bestowed the Lingxiao Sword upon her.

Upon entering the cave mansion, Ji Lingxiao had easily broken through the Qian Palace Array Hub and taken control of its Array Banner. This proved her true combat strength was far beyond everyone else’s, placing her in a league of her own.

Chen Cheng had advanced by leaps and bounds within the cave mansion and could also break through Array Hubs, but he still seemed to fall short when compared to Ji Lingxiao.

After all, Ji Lingxiao held three Array Hubs. The resources she had gathered were certainly no less than what Chen Cheng had, so her strength must have also grown significantly.

‘If I were to fight her to the death, the Lingxiao Sword, a Profound Tier Spiritual Artifact, is too great a variable. I really have no confidence in the outcome.’

Besides, although Ji Lingxiao was incredibly sharp and domineering, she still seemed to have principles. Her willingness to protect his master Mr. Zheng’s family was a sign of that.

Deep down, Chen Cheng didn’t really want to bring the hammer down on her for good.

‘Forget it. A man’s heart is never content, like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. Greed knows no bounds.’

‘I came to this cave mansion just to cultivate and gather resources. My harvest has been substantial enough. There’s no need to take a risk and tangle with an unscrupulous person like Ji Lingxiao!’

‘I’ll just cultivate in peace and make full use of the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi from the Gen Palace Array Hub.’

‘As for the Central Palace Array Hub, I’ll just have to leave it to fate. If I really can’t get it, I’ll just give up. Staying alive is what matters most!’

Chen Cheng’s expression grew calm and composed once more. After finishing the Demon Beast Meat, he rested briefly and then began his day’s cultivation.

「Evening.」

A figure in white streaked across the sky, arriving at the outskirts of the Stone Forest. She landed atop a stone mountain, her eyes fixed on the forest’s central region.

Her skin was fair, with slender willow-leaf brows and phoenix eyes. With a stunning face and a tall, graceful figure, she looked like a fairy from beyond the heavens who had descended to the mortal realm.

A sharp glint shone in her eyes, exuding a natural air of arrogance, as if she looked down upon the entire world.

It was none other than the Lingxiao Fairy, Ji Lingxiao.

‘This person managed to break through two Array Hubs. His mastery of the True Intent of Heaven and Earth must be exceptionally profound. He’s already become a threat to me.’

‘And as an Innate Realm Expert, he must have some ulterior motive for risking entry into this cave mansion.’

‘Whether he plans to fight for the Central Palace Array Hub or not, I must kill him to eliminate this potential threat!’

A cold killing intent flickered across her stunning face. The longsword at her waist flew from its sheath, transforming into multicolored rays of light that neutralized the heavy, oppressive pressure of the Stone Forest’s terrain.

Riding the radiant light, she sped toward the center of the Stone Forest.

When she reached the vicinity of the cave housing the Gen Palace Array Hub, Ji Lingxiao paused on a large boulder, a hint of surprise in her beautiful eyes.

There, standing on a massive boulder outside the cave, was an exceptionally handsome young man in green robes, holding an enormous hammer.

His expression was calm and composed, utterly unruffled. He stood with the gravitas of a deep abyss or a towering mountain—an extraordinary bearing completely at odds with the image of a veteran Innate Realm Expert Ji Lingxiao had pictured.

As Ji Lingxiao carefully sensed Chen Cheng’s aura, her alarm grew.

The Martial Arts Realm was full of Dharma Gates for changing one’s appearance. Some Innate Realm Experts who cultivated techniques like the Five Elements Wood Lineage Skill were skilled in preserving their youth. Even after living for eighty or a hundred years, they could still look quite young.

But as one aged, the Innate Origin within the body naturally dissipated, an irreversible process that betrays the passage of time.

No matter how one altered their appearance, the abundance of one’s Innate Origin was nearly impossible to fake.

The Taiyi Numerology legacy Ji Lingxiao cultivated, the Eight Trigrams Heaven and Earth Realm Lineage Skill, was extremely sensitive to Heaven and Earth Origin, and her senses were rarely wrong.

And she had always trusted her intuition.

This handsome young man before her possessed an incredibly abundant Innate Origin. He looked to be twenty-five or twenty-six at most. Even if his appearance was deceivingly youthful, his true age could not be over forty!

An Innate Realm Expert under forty was already an astonishing feat in the Martial Arts Realm!

Such individuals were, without exception, top-tier Celestial Prides from Major Sects! Most were destined to become Sect Elders, Sect Leaders, or even Supreme Elders, with a chance to ascend to the rank of Martial Arts Grandmaster!

In the Central State Territory, he would be considered a reclusive genius from one of the millennium-old Noble Families!

His presence here in the Fog Concealment Cave Mansion meant he was undoubtedly here to fight for the Central Palace Array Hub!

At this thought, a grave expression appeared on Ji Lingxiao’s stunning face. She clasped her hands in a serious salute and said:

“Ji Lingxiao, True Disciple of the Taiyi Sect, greets you, Senior!”

In Ji Lingxiao’s eyes, since the other party was an Innate Realm Expert who had passed the threshold of Opening the Profound Passage, addressing him as ‘Senior’ was proper etiquette.

Of course, she was determined to claim the Central Palace Array Hub. Her politeness was merely a matter of courtesy before conflict, a prelude to the inevitable battle.

As long as she could best him by even a single move, a person of his status would naturally choose to concede.

Ji Lingxiao’s unexpectedly humble demeanor stunned Chen Cheng.

After all, Chen Cheng controlled the Gen Palace Array Flag Jade. He could wield a portion of the Gen Palace Array’s power, which put him in a virtually unbeatable position against anyone else.