Chapter 363: Heir of the Divine King

The situation before the Longevity Hall had almost stunned Ji Man. It was completely different from what he had anticipated!

He had joined forces with Zhong Li, the fourth-ranked expert on the Hidden Dragon Rankings. It was safe to say that as long as they didn’t run into Jiang Mu, the Heir of the Divine King, or Saint Heir Si Bai, they could do as they pleased within the Heaven-Reaching Tower.

But now, the situation had turned into this. His side was being beaten so badly they couldn’t even fight back.

However, Ji Man was not some brainlessly arrogant fool. He had now completely accepted the reality of the situation.

This Chen Jiutian’s combat power was unexpectedly high. He had hidden his strength extremely well. In terms of pure power and foundation, he was even a notch stronger than Ji Man himself.

Qingchen was another surprise, a dark horse who could actually suppress Zhong Li in their fight.

And that Xiao Jing was a complete waste. He came from the Langya Xiao Family, and the Ji Family of Celestial Bright City had even given him a great deal of resources, yet he couldn’t even defeat a Martial Artist who was just a Loose Cultivator.

If the fight continued like this, even if he used all his trump cards and managed to beat this Chen Jiutian, the others on his side wouldn’t be able to hold on.

Most importantly, the purpose of his trip wasn’t a battle of pride. He had been entrusted by someone to retrieve an item from within the Longevity Hall.

The terms offered by that person were something neither the Ji Family of Celestial Bright City nor the True Martial Temple could refuse. Therefore, he had to obtain the item inside!

His rank on the Hidden Dragon Rankings was important, and so was his reputation, but neither was as important as the interests of his Ji Family in Celestial Bright City.

Celestial Bright City had endured for so long because of its most important core principle: the Ji Family taught its disciples from a young age that the family’s interests must come first in all things.

Therefore, his trump cards couldn’t be wasted on a contest of strength against this Chen Jiutian. They had to be saved for seizing the item in the Longevity Hall.

At this moment, Ji Man was surrounded by nine phoenixes and protected by the Celestial Phoenix Body Protection Secret Technique. No matter how formidable Chen Yuan’s own power was, he couldn’t break through it quickly.

However, Chen Yuan’s attacks were heavy and powerful. He shattered the power of the nine phoenixes one after another, forcing Ji Man to retreat again and again until he was almost at the edge of the Longevity Hall’s entrance.

Just then, the Fire Phoenix power around Ji Man suddenly blazed. The energy surged and erupted, detonating with immense force!

Seizing the opportunity, Ji Man’s figure rapidly pulled back, and a golden feather appeared in his hand.

This was a true Phoenix Feather. A Ninth Realm Celestial Profound expert from the Ji Family had blessed it with a Nine Phoenix Talisman Seal, and it contained formidable might.

The next moment, Ji Man poured his power into the Phoenix Feather. Instantly, a phoenix cry echoed through the heavens as it transformed into a hundred-zhang-tall Fire Phoenix that blotted out the sun and roared toward Chen Yuan!

After using the Phoenix Feather, Ji Man’s face turned slightly pale.

Although this Phoenix Feather was not a Divine Artifact Incarnation, the cost of activating the Fire Phoenix power within it was still astonishingly high.

But Ji Man didn’t hesitate for a moment. With a flicker of movement, he shot straight into the Longevity Hall.

At the same time, Ji Man shouted to Zhong Li, “Stop getting tangled up with Qingchen! Go into the Longevity Hall and get the Life Stone first!”

But Zhong Li seemed not to have heard. His eyes were bloodshot, and Profound Yellow Power surged around him. Like an ancient beast, he attacked Qingchen with crazed ferocity.

Qingchen, however, moved with an ethereal grace. His Dao Essence Origin Power easily suppressed his opponent’s strength, shaking the foundation of his True Martial Profound Skill.

“Idiot!”

Ji Man cursed angrily but paid Zhong Li no more mind.

It was clear Zhong Li had lost his cool and was dead set on determining who was superior between him and Qingchen.

In truth, if Chen Yuan had been the one to fight, suppress, and even defeat Zhong Li today, he wouldn’t have become so crazed.

For years, the outside world had always said that he, Zhong Li of the True Martial Temple, was the leader of the Daoist Sect’s younger generation. Even he himself believed it.

But now, he had been defeated by Qingchen in front of everyone. He could already imagine what the outside world would say.

They would say he, Zhong Li, was nothing special. The only reason he had sat on the throne as the leader of the Daoist Sect’s younger generation for so long was that Qingchen hadn’t bothered to act.

Now that Qingchen had made a move, he would have to step aside immediately. The title of the Daoist Sect’s top young talent was merely something Qingchen couldn’t be bothered with and had let him have.

In truth, Zhong Li cared even less about his rank on the Hidden Dragon Rankings than Ji Man did. What he cared about was people saying he was inferior to Qingchen!

However, the instant Ji Man stepped into the Longevity Hall, the mournful cry of a Fire Phoenix sounded from behind him.

Ji Man looked back and saw a massive Black Dragon roaring between heaven and earth. It was wreathed in Chaotic Xuanhuang Qi, its battle intent soared to the sky, and its Yin Yang Attack Formation was powerful enough to change the color of the world!

The Fire Phoenix formed from the Phoenix Feather was entangled by the Black Dragon, which was tearing at it ferociously. A huge amount of power bled out from it.

In just a few moments, the Fire Phoenix had been completely devoured and dissipated by the Black Dragon’s assault.

Chen Yuan’s face was also a little pale, but he was in much better shape than when he had first used the Black Dragon Temple technique.

After refining that sliver of Red Lotus Saint Mother’s True Spirit, Chen Yuan’s Spiritual Power had grown significantly. Now, after using both the Doroduma Barrier-Breaking Curse and the Black Dragon Temple technique, his Spiritual Power could still hold out.

So, without stopping at all, he charged straight for Ji Man.

The Gouli Blood Flame Divine Seal came crashing down. Blood flames filled the sky—Sky-Sundering God-Burning.

Ji Man’s expenditure of energy was even greater than Chen Yuan’s. He never imagined that even after using the Fire Phoenix Feather, he still couldn’t stop Chen Yuan.

He hastily met Chen Yuan’s attack with a palm strike of his own, only to be sent flying into the Longevity Hall, coughing up blood from the force of the Gouli Blood Flame Divine Seal.

This scene of Ji Man being struck by Chen Yuan’s palm and coughing up blood was witnessed by many of the Martial Artists outside. The expressions on their faces were all a bit strange.

Outside the Heaven-Reaching Tower earlier, they had all seen Ji Man’s ostentatious display. He had arrived in a grand chariot, surrounded by a throng of attendants and guards. His pomp was second only to the Northwest Two Cities, putting him in a different league from the other powers.

After entering the Heaven-Reaching Tower, Ji Man had been just as tyrannical. Any ruins he took a fancy to, he would immediately seal the entrance and explore leisurely, driving away anyone else who tried to even watch from the side.

Just like a moment ago. They were the ones who had put in the effort to break the array, but the moment Ji Man arrived, he tried to claim the place for himself, telling them all to get lost and not even allowing them to watch.

And what about now? He was still sent coughing up blood by a single palm from Chen Yuan.

So much for being of noble imperial blood, a descendant of the first Human Race Dynasty. He wasn’t all that special after all.

But at this moment, Ji Man couldn’t be bothered with their gazes.

After being knocked back and coughing up blood, Ji Man grunted coldly. An Array Plate flew from his hand, transforming into a Grand Array that blocked the entrance to the Longevity Hall.

Ji Man then rushed directly to the Grand Array in the center. At the nine nodes of the array were nine magnificent coffins. Ji Man’s Inner Strength erupted, and he blasted one of the coffins with his palm.

The array inside the Longevity Hall was meant to provide Spiritual Qi and Vitality to these coffins, but there were still some defensive arrays left around them, though their power was generally not strong.

Under the force of his palm, the coffin was immediately blasted open, revealing a long-decayed, desiccated corpse inside.

The desiccated corpse was wearing a lavish Divine Pattern Daoist Robe, but a single golden horn grew from its forehead.

But the people of the Endless Immortal Palace would stop at nothing in their pursuit of longevity. Beings like the Master of the Beast Taming Hall or the Master of the Ten Thousand Gu Hall could no longer be considered human at all.

This corpse in the Daoist Robe merely had a horn on its head, which was actually quite normal by comparison.

What was most eye-catching was a thumb-sized Crystal Stone on the corpse’s chest.

The Crystal Stone was only the size of a thumb, but it radiated a profound and mysterious power.

It felt like Vitality, yet it wasn’t. It felt like the aura of death, yet it wasn’t. It even contained a portion of Primordial Spirit Power, somewhat similar to the True Spirit of the Red Lotus Saint Mother that Chen Yuan had devoured.

Seeing this Crystal Stone, Ji Man’s eyes lit up. “The Life Stone!”

Just as Ji Man was about to use his True Qi to pull the Life Stone toward him, a Mulan Continuous Jail-Piercing Arrow suddenly shot through the air!

The arrow blasted Ji Man back. He looked around and saw that Cui Xuanye had, at some unknown point, broken his Array Plate, allowing Chen Yuan to quickly enter the Longevity Hall as well.

The Life Stone fell to the ground. Ji Man immediately stepped forward to snatch it, and Chen Yuan also made his move.

But just then, an overwhelmingly powerful suction force suddenly appeared. The Life Stone instantly flew through the air and landed in someone’s hand.

Chen Yuan and Ji Man both looked back. The newcomer wore a dark blue brocade robe. He was ruggedly handsome, and the aura around him was as solid as a mountain. A golden mark, like a vertical eye, was on his brow.

This was none other than Jiang Mu, ranked second on the Hidden Dragon Rankings, the Heir of the Divine King from Unrivaled City.

“I never thought a treasure like the Life Stone could still be found in the Endless Immortal Palace. Tsk tsk, the hoard these madmen from the Endless Immortal Palace accumulated ten thousand years ago really was substantial.”

Jiang Mu examined the Life Stone in his hand, then stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at Chen Yuan and Ji Man.

“No need to fight anymore. I’ll be taking all the Life Stones in this Longevity Hall.”

With Jiang Mu’s arrival, Zhong Li and Qingchen couldn’t continue their fight either and entered the hall at the same time.

Qingchen’s aura was still stable and calm, but Zhong Li’s face was pale. His Inner Viscera had been injured by Qingchen’s Dao Essence. Even with his astonishing Profound Skill, he hadn’t been able to temper his internal organs to be as tough as his physical body.

Hearing Jiang Mu’s words, Ji Man’s brow twitched, and his expression darkened. “Jiang Mu! This isn’t your Unrivaled City! You can’t be so tyrannical here! The Ji Family of Celestial Bright City wants this Life Stone!”

Before, he and Zhong Li had joined forces and tyrannically tried to claim the Longevity Hall for themselves.

Now the roles were reversed with Jiang Mu, giving Ji Man a taste of his own medicine.

A cold smile touched the corners of Chen Yuan’s mouth.

‘These top experts on the Hidden Dragon Rankings are all trying to outdo each other in arrogance,’ he thought. ‘I just wonder if their strength is as impressive.’

With Jiang Mu’s arrival, Chen Yuan was no longer in a hurry. The one who should be anxious now was Ji Man.

Jiang Mu looked at Ji Man, his expression indifferent. “Ji Man, don’t forget your place!

“It’s one thing to parade that ridiculous title of ‘descendant of the first Human Race Dynasty’ in front of others, but to bring up the Ji Family of Celestial Bright City in front of me… are you telling a joke?

“Go ask your Ji Family ancestors what their station was ten thousand years ago. They were nothing but low-level servants who did menial chores in my Unrivaled City!

“They received some Cultivation Techniques as a reward from my Unrivaled City, went out into the world, stumbled upon some opportunities, and established a Dynasty. And they thought it was their destiny? What a joke!”