Chapter 1922 - No Respect Given

The instant Liu Wuxie’s declaration ended, stunned silence seized everyone around him. He had spoken only a few sentences, yet those words sent icy shivers through countless people.

The crowd quickly retreated. Few people were willing to risk their lives when the destruction of the White Tiger Merchant Association, Azure Bamboo Gang, Wen Clan, Shadow Divination Gate, and Celestial Moon Dao Hall still served as fresh warnings of what awaited those who opposed Liu Wuxie.

Each one offered living proof that those who opposed Liu Wuxie faced only absolute destruction.

“He’s completely insane! I never want to cross paths with him again,” many cultivators cried as they abandoned the Ten-Mile Slope without hesitation. The faint aura of an Immortal Emperor alone kept the Divine Immortals present from raising their heads, let alone ordinary cultivators.

“Don’t run! If every one of us attacks together, no one will be able to stop us,” the Shen Clan disciple shouted, still refusing to surrender. He was convinced that the Azure Flame Dao Hall could not withstand their combined forces.

However, no one was foolish enough to fall for the Shen Clan and Zhu Clan’s manipulation.

The Azure Flame Dao Hall might have been incapable of stopping them alone, but the Xiang Manor, Fourfold City’s City Lord Mansion, the Heavenly Divination Gate, and the Skyhalberd Auction House had all secretly thrown their support behind Liu Wuxie.

With so many powerful forces behind him, everyone understood that killing Liu Wuxie would remain impossible, even if they joined forces.

Those who stayed gradually returned to their seats and resumed watching the competition. Even cultivators who carried grudges against Liu Wuxie slowly relinquished their obsession. Unless they were absolutely certain of killing him, none dared act recklessly. Failure would cost them everything.

Once the crowd dispersed, only the elders and disciples of the Shen and Zhu Clans remained standing, leaving them exposed in an increasingly awkward position.

“Liu Wuxie, take my advice and let this end here,” the Stormcloud Sect’s sect master said, making one final attempt to persuade Liu Wuxie to spare the Celestial Moon Dao Hall.

Liu Wuxie sneered. “Where were you when the Celestial Moon Dao Hall provoked me? Why didn’t you step forward and stop them then? Now that I’m winning, you suddenly want to stop me. Don’t you find that laughable?”

Liu Wuxie held no favorable impression of the Stormcloud Sect. They had openly supported the Celestial Moon Dao Hall, and their sect master had now personally stepped forward to interfere with the competition.

Did they honestly believe Liu Wuxie was a fool?

Liu Wuxie’s response immediately silenced the Stormcloud Sect’s sect master. None of his accusations were wrong. When the Celestial Moon Dao Hall had repeatedly provoked Liu Wuxie, only the Azure Flame Dao Hall, Xiang Manor, and the City Lord’s Mansion had defended him. Now that Liu Wuxie had taken control of the situation, opportunists suddenly emerged from all directions and demanded that he end the competition.

Liu Wuxie did not refuse to show respect to the Stormcloud Sect. The Stormcloud Sect had never offered him any in the first place.

The face of the Stormcloud Sect’s sect master darkened visibly. He had intended to mediate the conflict, only for Liu Wuxie to humiliate him before the entire crowd.

The Stormcloud Sect’s elders finally lost their restraint and stepped forward one after another, denouncing his arrogance. “Liu Wuxie, how dare you disrespect our Sect Master!?”

“Stay out of matters that don’t concern you, and shut your mouths unless you want the Stormcloud Sect to share the Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s fate. Keep interfering, and don’t blame me for showing no mercy,” Liu Wuxie warned coldly, refusing to grant the Stormcloud Sect the slightest respect.

His decision had already been made. Nothing would stop him before he completely destroyed the Celestial Moon Dao Hall.

The warning froze everyone from the Stormcloud Sect in place. Its elders trembled with fury, unable to endure such humiliation from a mere Spirit Immortal, yet none could find a response.

“Old Yun, this dispute belongs to our two Dao Halls. I appreciate your intentions, but you should leave now,” the Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s hall master said, offering the Stormcloud Sect’s sect master a graceful escape while making it clear that further interference was unwelcome.

Liu Wuxie ignored the Zhu and Shen Clans entirely. Sooner or later, he intended to flatten both clans.

“Liu Wuxie, our clan won't forget today's humiliation,” the Stormcloud Sect’s sect master said, fixing him with a meaningful stare.

As a dignified Divine Immortal, he received respect wherever he traveled. Liu Wuxie had not merely denied him that respect but openly mocked him before everyone, humiliating the entire Stormcloud Sect.

Liu Wuxie dismissed the threat and returned his attention to the Celestial Moon Dao Hall. The talisman category came next.

Only the Shen and Zhu Clans still stood apart from the crowd, making their position increasingly uncomfortable. With no one supporting them, they could only retreat as well.

From the beginning, Liu Wuxie had never regarded the surrounding mob as a genuine threat. They appeared imposing and greatly outnumbered the Azure Flame Dao Hall, but beneath that display, they were merely a disorganized rabble.

Most had come to witness the spectacle rather than kill Liu Wuxie. This conflict ultimately belonged to him and the Celestial Moon Dao Hall, giving outsiders no right to interfere.

They all claimed to act beneath the banner of righteousness, yet many committed deeds more despicable than those they condemned.

Liu Wuxie’s figure flashed onto the talisman arena.

The remaining Celestial Moon Dao Hall mentors turned grim the moment they saw him take the stage.

“Liu Wuxie, I’ll drag you into death with me,” a mentor roared as he charged from the crowd, his body swelling rapidly. He intended to self-detonate, kill Liu Wuxie, and end the competition once and for all.

Waiting helplessly for death had driven the remaining mentors to madness. If they were to perish regardless of what they did, some believed that taking Liu Wuxie with them was their only remaining option.

Gongye Zhang prepared to intervene, but Liu Wuxie moved first. The Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron manifested and swallowed the mentor whole.

After refining the Profound Myriad-Aspect Sand and absorbing several Primal Chaos Shards, the Sky Devouring Divine Cauldron had undergone a tremendous transformation. Liu Wuxie no longer feared refining even someone at the pinnacle of the Origin Immortal Realm.

The mentor vanished before a scream could escape his throat, reduced entirely to ashes within the cauldron.

“Who else wants to try?” Liu Wuxie asked, staring toward the Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s section. If they were determined to court death, he saw no reason to refuse fulfilling their wish.

With even self-destruction rendered useless, the surviving mentors could only clench their teeth and continue the competition.

Liu Wuxie had refused to show respect even to the Stormcloud Sect, making every further attempt at persuasion meaningless. Sighs sounded as everyone realized that nothing could stop the Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s march toward destruction.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s hall master clenched his fists while murderous intent boiled within him.

“I’ll take this match,” a young mentor said before entering the arena and facing Liu Wuxie.

The instant his feet touched the arena, dozens of talismans shot forward, surrounding Liu Wuxie. He had attacked without offering the slightest warning.

Liu Wuxie responded to the incoming talismans with nothing more than a mocking laugh.

“Freeze!” Liu Wuxie commanded as he traced runes through the air, instantly suspending every talisman in place.

The sight stunned the young Celestial Moon Dao Hall mentor, but he did not hesitate. He immediately produced several additional talismans, which exploded upon appearing and unleashed a powerful shockwave across the arena.

“Far too weak,” Liu Wuxie said, gently exhaling and shaking his head.

The frozen talismans suddenly reversed course and surrounded the young mentor. Their ensuing explosion killed him with his own weapons.

The entire confrontation ended within a few breaths and carried no suspense whatsoever. Everyone had already expected such a result.

The remaining thirty-odd Celestial Moon Dao Hall mentors turned deathly pale. The reaper’s scythe had finally descended over their heads.

Without allowing them time to select the condemned among themselves, Liu Wuxie randomly claimed nine mentors’ lives and devoured them. He then proceeded toward the alchemy arena for the next match.

Dawn had already broken across the horizon, heralding a new day. At the current pace, the competition would finally conclude before the day ended, after everyone had endured one torment after another over the past several days.

Two alchemy cauldrons stood ready inside the arena.

“Liu Wuxie, allow me to test the extent of your abilities,” said an elder who appeared to be in his fifties as he stepped forward and stopped beside one of the cauldrons.

Cries of astonishment immediately erupted when the crowd recognized him. “That’s Elder Luo! No one in Eastern Emperor City can match his Void Alchemy Art.”

“Liu Wuxie is finally in danger,” members of the Shen and Zhu Clans declared, openly lending their support to Elder Luo.

Grave expressions settled across the Azure Flame Dao Hall’s upper echelons. They understood Elder Luo’s alchemy techniques well and knew he would be a formidable opponent.

Two identical sets of ingredients had been prepared. Their age and quality matched perfectly, with no difference between them.

“Begin,” Qian Yao announced. Complicated emotions filled him, for this year’s competition might become the last one he ever presided over. After today, another competition between the two Dao Halls might never occur.

Elder Luo summoned his heavenly flame and fed the immortal herbs into the cauldron one after another.

Many cultivators rose from their seats and gathered closer to the arena, eager to observe every detail. “That’s the formula for the Spirit Tempering Pill. Refining it is no simple task, so the quality of the completed pills will ultimately decide the victor.”

Gongye Zhang remained beside Liu Wuxie, guarding him against any further sneak attacks.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall had already employed every method at its disposal, but no one knew whether an even more sinister scheme remained hidden.

The Spirit Tempering Pill possessed little value and ranked merely as a common fourth-grade immortal pill on the market. However, its relatively low grade made the refinement process unusually difficult.

Tempering the pill’s spirituality posed the greatest challenge, which was precisely how the Spirit Tempering Pill received its name. Ordinary pills carried only common spirituality, whereas the Spirit Tempering Pill possessed exceptionally powerful spirituality.

Liu Wuxie showed no urgency. He activated the Ghost Pupil and Divine Tribulation Pupil, sweeping his gaze across the herbs arranged on the table. Every root and stem became perfectly distinct beneath his vision as he meticulously removed the impurities concealed within them.

Elder Luo, meanwhile, had already begun refining.

The Celestial Moon Dao Hall’s mentors could only watch in nervous silence while cheering Elder Luo on within their hearts. Liu Wuxie waited until he had thoroughly sorted every immortal herb before finally starting his refinement.

The spectators watched Liu Wuxie pluck several leaves from a handful of herbs, leaving countless people baffled. “Liu Wuxie, why waste so much time? Those herbs already underwent rigorous selection, so what purpose does another round of impurity removal serve?” None of the discarded leaves had yellowed or withered, and each still contained powerful medicinal properties.

Liu Wuxie ignored every discussion around him and swept his right hand forward. Demonic flames appeared and engulfed the entire cauldron, radiating such scorching heat that nearby spectators immediately retreated several steps.

When Liu Wuxie traced one finger through the air, the power of destiny descended and shrouded the cauldron. He had invoked the Heavenly Destiny Alchemy Art, a technique he did not fear anyone recognizing. Pills refined through this art would contain the three supreme powers—Creation, the Heavenly Dao, and Destiny. Even immortal emperors could not accomplish such a feat.

“What a peculiar alchemy technique. It almost seems blessed by heaven and earth,” the surrounding cultivators exclaimed, their attention fixed entirely upon Liu Wuxie.

This marked the first time Liu Wuxie had refined pills before such a vast audience. His movements accelerated steadily as he cast immortal herbs into the cauldron one after another, each visibly purifying the instant it entered.

“What terrifying purification speed,” the Yue Clan’s patriarch exclaimed in shock.

The Yue Clan enjoyed great renown for its alchemy. Compared with Liu Wuxie’s technique, however, their methods suddenly appeared pitiful and scarcely worth mentioning.

Liu Wuxie continued accelerating until countless afterimages blurred around his hands, moving beyond what ordinary cultivators could follow.