Chapter 798 779: Appearance

The ancestor Xie Wanrou faced was the first one whose spirit clone had been slain. His original strength surpassed hers, but the destruction of his spirit clone—and even the erasure of a wisp of his Primordial Spirit—had left him grievously wounded.

His power was significantly diminished, and he could now only manage a stalemate against Xie Wanrou. It was clear that determining a victor would not be easy.

The other ancestor from Blazing Flame Province hovered above the Grand Canyon, one hand still dripping blood.

He was the one who had just tried to save Zhao Min, but he hadn't been in time. In fact, he had suffered a minor flesh wound when Zhao Min's body shattered and exploded.

Such an injury was utterly insignificant to a Celestial Venerable, but to this particular ancestor from Blazing Flame Province, it felt like an outrageous humiliation!

'When have I ever suffered such an indignity since reaching the Celestial Venerable Realm?'

He was furious. Utterly enraged!

'First, my spirit clone was killed. Slain by a youth I saw as nothing more than an ant.'

'Even though its strength was suppressed to the Initial Tier Ultimate Venerable, it was carrying three treasures and possessed incredibly rich combat experience.'

'And what was the result? Not only did all three treasures fall into the enemy's hands, but the spirit clone itself was destroyed.'

'This was simply inconceivable. If someone had told me my spirit clone would be slain by someone who hadn't even reached the Venerable Realm, I would have slapped them to death on the spot!'

And yet, this unbelievable thing had actually happened!

'The Jiuzhou Seed I brought from Blazing Flame Province had his Dao heart shattered right before my eyes, then self-detonated and died.'

'I didn't even have time to intervene.'

What made him most furious was that the person responsible for the Jiuzhou Seed's death and the one who had destroyed his spirit clone… were the exact same person!

Luo Tian of Celestial Brilliance!

If before he'd wanted to maintain a veneer of dignity and was reluctant to act against Luo Tian personally, now he would strike without the slightest hesitation the moment Luo Tian dared to show his face.

Thus, he paid no heed to Xie Wanrou's taunts. The Celestial Venerable Ancestor from Blazing Flame Province simply stared down into the mist-shrouded Grand Canyon, his eyes shooting out two beams of divine light. If Luo Tian dared to emerge, he would not be spared.

An elder from the Jin Family cupped his fists toward the ancestor from Blazing Flame Province. "Senior from Blazing Flame Province, there's an exit at the bottom of the canyon. The Jin Family will send men to guard it. If they dare to escape by the river, we ask that you lend us your aid!"

"Shameless!"

Above the Grand Canyon, many onlookers cast cold glances toward the Jin Family.

After all, the conflict between the Jin Family, Celestial Brilliance, and Luo Tian was an internal affair of Xi Hezhou.

For the Jin Family to now be blatantly colluding with an outsider against Luo Tian was truly contemptible.

The Jin Family elder put on a sorrowful expression and cupped his fists to the crowd. "We've just received word that the eldest son of our direct line, Jin Ming, has been murdered by that vile cur Luo Tian! This is a blood feud! The Jin Family swears to avenge him! This is a private matter between the Jin Family and Luo Tian, and involves no one else. We hope our friends here can understand!"

"Jin Ming is actually dead?"

"The eldest son of the Jin Family's main branch... I heard he was once the top expert of Celestial Brilliance's younger generation. I never imagined he'd die by Luo Tian's hand."

"Hmph. The Jin Family was probably the one who posted that bounty with the Bounty Guild. Now that their eldest son has been killed, it's only what they deserve!"

"Exactly. If you don't go after others, why would they come after you?"

Voices of scorn arose from the crowd. The Jin Family members were indignant, but they knew this was not the time to make more enemies. The top priority was to kill Luo Tian and avenge their Young Master.

The eyes of the ancestor from Blazing Flame Province flickered as he stared coldly at the Jin Family. After a long pause, he nodded. "If you find a trace of that little beast, I will lend my aid."

The Jin Family elder nodded. "We'll make sure there's nowhere for him to run, nowhere for him to hide!"

With that, the Jin Family elder gave the order, and a large number of Jin Family Martial Artists sped off toward both ends of the Grand Canyon.

Meanwhile, within the Jin Family's encampment, another old man sat cross-legged, his eyes half-closed as if he were asleep.

After giving his orders, the Jin Family elder approached the old man respectfully and said in a low voice, "Ancestor..."

The old man wore a Profound Yellow Robe. His silver hair was tied in a topknot, and his face was completely unlined. Without opening his eyes, he spoke faintly, "Ming'Er is dead? So be it. The boy was a disappointment. He's been useless ever since he was expelled from Celestial Brilliance. Dead is dead."

The elder's expression froze. 'He was still your descendant!' he thought.

Then, the old man added coolly, "However, a child of the Jin Family is not so easily killed. No matter who did it, anyone who kills a member of the Jin Family must pay the debt in blood!"

Standing at a distance, Jiang Botao watched the Jin Family with cold eyes. "Jin Family," he called out in a frosty tone, "are you declaring yourselves enemies of Celestial Brilliance?"

"Hmph!" Hearing this, the Jin Family's ancestor let out a cold snort.

It was as if a great sledgehammer had struck Jiang Botao in the chest. He instantly spat out a mouthful of blood and glared furiously at the Jin Family.

"Insolent!" the Jin Family ancestor said coldly. "So what if it's Celestial Brilliance? A junior like you, spouting the name of Celestial Brilliance with every breath. Do you really think I'm afraid of them?"

With a cold smirk, the Jin Family ancestor continued, "Celestial Brilliance is strong indeed, but... who in this world doesn't know that their true top experts have all gone to the forbidden zones? This time, Celestial Brilliance only sent four ancestors. They're clearly stretched thin! So a little junior like you should stop making a fool of yourself in front of me. Get lost. This has nothing to do with you, and I can't be bothered with you!"

"You..." Jiang Botao was enraged. He was, after all, one of Celestial Brilliance's high-ranking Elders. When had he ever been treated with such contempt?

Even if the man was a Celestial Venerable Ancestor, his flagrant arrogance infuriated Jiang Botao.

Just then, the Old Golden Monkey, who had been focused on Xie Wanrou's battle, glanced toward the Jin Family. "He's just an old fossil on the brink of death, his vital energy all but gone," he said faintly. "There's no reason to fear him."

WHOOSH!

The Jin Family ancestor's eyes snapped open, seeming to contain the rise and fall of the sun, moon, and stars. Two beams of divine light shot toward the Old Golden Monkey.

They tore through the void, carrying an overwhelming killing intent!

"Vital energy all but gone? How naive!" the Jin Family ancestor bellowed. "A mere beast dares to pass judgment on me? Die!"

The Jin Family ancestor could spare Jiang Botao because he was backed by Celestial Brilliance.

No matter how much he claimed not to fear them, he didn't want to burn his bridges with Celestial Brilliance completely.

But the Old Golden Monkey... that was another matter entirely.

The Golden Monkey Race had once been powerful, but now... they were just another Beast Race from the Vast Mountains.

'So what if I kill him?'

The Old Golden Monkey was currently in human form. Facing the two beams of divine light from the Jin Family ancestor, he simply raised a hand. An ancient mirror appeared, blocking the attack and… reflecting it right back!

"Hm?" The Jin Family ancestor let out a low cry of surprise. He knew the monkey must be holding a treasured mirror, and a covetous gleam appeared in his eyes.

Just then, someone shouted in alarm, "They're coming out!"

People were beginning to emerge, climbing up the canyon's cliffs.

Anyone who made it out of the Ancient Ruins World alive was considered one of the more outstanding members of the younger generation. They should have been walking with their heads held high, faces full of pride.

But now, every single person who emerged looked utterly dejected, as if they had been terrified by something.

The ancestor from Blazing Flame Province whose spirit clone had been destroyed watched the emerging figures with cold eyes. He hung motionless in the air, clearly determined to kill Luo Tian of Celestial Brilliance.

Descending into the Grand Canyon had been quick, but climbing out was not so easy. Even the young experts at the Venerable Realm were panting and exhausted by the time they reached the top.

At the same time, news of what had happened at the bottom of the canyon spread rapidly with the return of the witnesses.

"What? Blazing Flame Province lost a Jiuzhou Seed? Is that true?"

"Incredible. To become a Jiuzhou Seed, one must be a peerless prodigy, one in a hundred million. Someone actually managed to kill a Jiuzhou Seed?"

"That Luo Tian is truly heaven-defying!"

"Celestial Brilliance is powerful, but it's hard to believe they could produce someone like that!"

"Inconceivable! A Heavenly Brilliance Disciple actually killed a Jiuzhou Seed!"

"No wonder the ancestor from Blazing Flame Province is so furious. Anyone in his position would be!"

"No wonder the Bounty Guild had such a sky-high bounty on Luo Tian. With that kind of power... who wouldn't be worried? And he's so young! Once he's fully matured, who in the world could possibly stand against him?"

"Exactly. It's one thing if you're his friend, but if you're his enemy, you'd have to eliminate him before he gets any stronger!"

"So Jin Ming of the Jin Family is really dead... I thought it was just an excuse they made up to go after Luo Tian..."

A buzz of discussion swept over the crowd above the Grand Canyon.

Meanwhile, some began to ask about the whereabouts of Luo Tian and his companions.

One of the climbers answered directly, "After causing so much trouble, how could they dare come straight up? They followed the river. By now... they're probably hundreds of miles away..."

"What?" The hovering ancestor from Blazing Flame Province opened his eyes and shot a cold glare at the Jin Family.

The Jin Family members looked aggrieved. The elder cupped his fists and said, "Senior, the feud between the Jin Family and Luo Tian is to the death. If we had discovered his whereabouts, how could we possibly conceal it?"

The Blazing Flame Province ancestor snorted, then glanced at the Jin Family's own ancestor. "How about the two of us pursue them from different directions?"

The Jin Family's ancestor nodded slowly. He shot a last glance at the Old Golden Monkey and the treasured mirror in his hand, then said coldly, "I'll let you off the hook for now!"

With that, the Jin Family ancestor sped off in one direction.

The ancestor from Blazing Flame Province shot off in the other.

A short while later, a group of people slowly emerged from the distance.

An onlooker spotted them and cried out, "Isn't that Luo Tian's group? They didn't escape down the river at all! The ancestors from the Jin Family and Blazing Flame Province were tricked!"

At that moment, Ding Lie and another old man appeared as if from nowhere beside Du Qingteng and Gao Ping. Without a word, they grabbed the two of them and prepared to leave.

Du Qingteng's eyebrow shot up. "I'm not leaving!"

Gao Ping shook his head. "I'm not leaving either!"