Chapter 656 - 178: Head-on Clash, Invincible Below the Fifth Realm

Chapter 656: Chapter 178: Head-on Clash, Invincible Below the Fifth Realm

Originally, they just thought Chu Fan had some skill and a few tricks, which was how he’d been able to defeat Wang Meng of the Acupoint Realm.

Tang Tinghua had once provoked Chu Fan and been severely injured by a single punch, leaving him bedridden for over a month. At the time, he had only chalked it up to Chu Fan’s special Cultivation Technique or his own carelessness, believing his opponent was just a sliver stronger than him.

But what they witnessed today...

The three fierce Bright Heart Realm assassins from before had been utterly helpless against Chu Fan, each killed on the spot with a single punch!

It was so clean and efficient it was chilling!

And now, facing an even more terrifying peak expert, Chu Fan had gained the absolute upper hand, forcing her to flee for her life!

’Is he even human?’

’He’s clearly a humanoid Fierce Beast!’

’A peerless prodigy who has shattered the barriers between Realms!’

Yun Bufan’s throat felt dry. He wanted to speak, but stopped, his lips trembling so much he couldn’t get a single word out.

Tang Tinghua’s face was even paler. Beyond his lingering fear, his heart was a swirl of complicated emotions—awe mixed with relief that Chu Fan hadn’t dealt a killing blow back then.

But mostly, there was a sense of bewildered shock, as if the world had changed overnight.

Just then, Xiao Ziye, who had been silently tapping her stick, suddenly turned her head.

Her gaze was rather peculiar—neither sharp nor unfocused. It actually held a hint of pride, like a parent whose child had made them proud.

"How’s my nephew?"

Xiao Ziye spoke faintly, but her voice, though quiet, drilled clearly into their ears.

"Pretty amazing, right!"

Huh... huh?!

Yun Bufan and Tang Tinghua nodded subconsciously, then suddenly caught themselves.

Their necks, stiff as rusted iron axles, creaked as they turned toward Xiao Ziye, their eyes bulging even wider than before.

’Chu Fan... since when did he become your nephew?!’

’Everyone in the Demon Suppression Bureau knows your nephew is Shi Hao, right?’

The two men looked at each other, seeing the same speechless expression in the other’s eyes.

This Lord Xiao was sometimes lucid, sometimes confused. No one could ever tell which of her words were genuine and which were the ravings of a madwoman.

Not daring to respond, they could only turn their gazes back toward the valley.

At that very moment, the massive Five Elements Cauldron suddenly let out a low hum.

HUMMM—!

The five-colored light flowing around the cauldron’s body suddenly sped up, and then the Giant Cauldron abruptly shrank.

In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a streak of bronze light and, with a WHOOSH, burrowed into Chu Fan’s palm, vanishing without a trace.

At Chu Fan’s feet, a person lay silently on a relatively flat stone surface.

It was the masked woman from the Moon Worship Sect.

She was completely still. Her expression was hidden by her mask, but her chest no longer rose and fell.

The Primordial Qi around her had been cut off, and all signs of life had dissipated...

Even from a great distance, Yun Bufan and his companion knew that this woman was completely and utterly dead.

A peak Bright Heart Realm expert, a master from the Moon Worship Sect who could command the wind and rain, was now just lying there silently, devoid of any aura.

The two men felt a wave of Cold Qi shoot up from the soles of their feet straight to the crowns of their heads!

They watched as Chu Fan skillfully squatted down and, with a smooth, natural motion, removed the ring from the woman’s finger.

Then, his gaze swept over the ground beside her.

A few dull, lusterless, and even somewhat twisted and deformed metal fragments were scattered there.

They could faintly make out that these were the three black, diamond-shaped shields that had previously rotated around the woman, boasting astonishing defensive power.

Now, only one was more or less intact; the other two had been smashed to bits by Chu Fan, their Spiritual Mechanism completely gone.

Chu Fan reached out, picked them up one by one, weighed them in his hand, and then carefully examined the marks on the broken edges.

"Tsk!"

Chu Fan’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, the corners of his mouth turned down, and his expression clearly wasn’t pleased.

An Ancient Treasure like this, capable of withstanding the full force of his third-level Vajra Undying Body, must have been made from extraordinary materials with an exceptionally brilliant crafting technique.

If it were undamaged, its value would be immeasurable. It would have been an excellent item, whether for his own use or to trade for resources.

But now... they were all smashed.

But it couldn’t be helped.

To kill that woman, he had to completely destroy this turtle-shell-like defensive Ancient Treasure; it was truly difficult to harm her otherwise.

Still, seeing such fine treasures smashed to this state by his own hands, even someone with Chu Fan’s disposition couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret.

He gathered the fragments.

’Every little bit helps. These materials might be useful for reforging something else.’

After stowing the shield fragments, Chu Fan casually lifted his right foot and gently stepped on the chest of the woman’s dark-silver, form-fitting Battle Armor.

CRACK... CRUNCH...

A cringe-inducing sound of twisting and cracking metal rang out.

The Battle Armor, which had previously shimmered with light and possessed astonishing defensive power, was now like fragile glass that had lost all its spiritual support.

Under Chu Fan’s seemingly casual step, it shattered inch by inch, breaking into dozens of metal plates of various sizes that scattered across the ground.

Evidently, the Battle Armor’s internal structure had also been completely destroyed during the previous onslaught, and it had only been barely holding its shape.

From a distance, Yun Bufan watched, his eyelids twitching wildly and the corner of his mouth spasming uncontrollably.

’Holy hell... what kind of monster is he?!’

’He smashed two obviously high-grade defensive Ancient Treasures to pieces with his bare fists?!’

’Those were Ancient Treasures!’

’Not wooden planks!’

’An ordinary Bright Heart Realm Cultivator would be lucky to have even one suitable Ancient Treasure!’

’But this guy just goes and dismantles them!’

’And in the most violent, direct way possible!’

’This isn’t something you can just describe as "amazing" anymore. He’s practically a walking, human-shaped demolisher!’

Just then, Xiao Ziye’s voice, laced with a hint of teasing yet undeniably authoritative, drifted down from above again: "Little nephew, stop gawking. It’s time to go back!"

Chu Fan’s movements paused. Speechless, he turned and looked in the direction the voice had come from.

’"Little nephew"?’

It felt as if several dark lines were streaking down Chu Fan’s forehead.

’This nickname... does Shi Hao know about this? Did he approve?’

’Lord Xiao, what act are you putting on now?’

’Is this a new symptom of your madness, or just a twisted sense of humor?’

’You keep calling me "little nephew," but I don’t see this "little auntie" giving me any perks...’

Chu Fan couldn’t be bothered to overthink it, nor did he feel like arguing.

Arguing about a nickname with a superior who was ’sometimes lucid, sometimes mad’ was just asking for trouble.

Ignoring Xiao Ziye, he squatted down and meticulously picked up every last piece of the shattered dark-silver Battle Armor from the ground, stowing them away.

’These materials might even be more useful than the shield fragments.’

Having finished, he was about to say something, but before the words could leave his mouth, he saw Xiao Ziye, high above, flick her wrist and toss the jet-black Fire Stick into the air.

The Fire Stick grew as it met the wind, instantly transforming into a dark-black staff as thick as a bowl and about thirty feet long, hovering in midair.

Xiao Ziye leaped, landing lightly on the staff with a fluid, elegant motion.

"I’m off!"

She tossed out the two words without a backward glance, and then—

WHOOSH!!!

The black staff carried her away, turning into a blurry streak of light.

At a jaw-dropping speed, it instantly pierced through the dust clouds that had yet to fully settle and vanished over the horizon!

Only a fading sonic boom remained, proving she had ever been there at all.

The entire process was as fast as a flash of lightning!

Chu Fan stood stunned for a moment, then scrambled after her, shouting as he ran, "Auntie, I’m not on yet... I’m not on yet!"

Yun Bufan and Tang Tinghua watched this scene and broke into wide grins.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past.

Both of them shivered at the same time!

Almost subconsciously, they both turned their heads and glanced back at the dead, dilapidated ruins of Wind-Rising Valley, where a peak Bright Heart Realm expert lay buried.

It was empty, desolate, and strewn with jagged rocks. Only the wind whimpered.

It was as if an unseen chill was spreading out from the ruins.

"GULP." Tang Tinghua swallowed hard.

"Lord Xiao! We’re not on yet either!!"

"Lord Xiao... Chu Fan! Wait for us!!!"

The two of them screamed at the top of their lungs almost in unison, shouting toward the sky with all the strength they had ever possessed.

Their arms waved so frantically it looked like they might pop out of their sockets.

’You two just ran off on your own?!’

’And left the two of us here in these desolate mountains that were just torn apart?!’

’What are we supposed to do if more thugs from the Moon Worship Sect show up?’

However, the only reply they received was the wailing of the wind in the valley and the distant cries of a few startled birds.

Xiao Ziye was gone.

Chu Fan was gone, too.