Chapter 697: Pay-To-Win VS Cheating (I)

The instant the sealing formation shattered, flames mingled with terrifying demonic qi, and the vast, powerful yao will swept outward in every direction. Several powerful figures fled from the inferno in a sorry state.

"Hiss, those two monsters are terrifying!" Wang Zhengtian burst out of the flames, covered in soot and still shaken by the experience.

He repeatedly teleported over short distances, fleeing in panic from the battlefield of the Deity Transformation realm experts. Even he did not dare approach a battle between beings of this level. Doing so would be no different from courting death.

An enormous yao apparition over a hundred meters tall let out a deafening roar and swung its six thick, vicious arms at the Vermilion Bird apparition in the void. Although Wang Zhengtian was curious about the terrifying battle raging behind him, he fled without so much as looking back.

Damn it, the battle is simply too terrifying.

I wonder whether those youngsters managed to escape. In a battle this terrifying, even the slightest delay could leave them caught in the aftermath, and that would be extremely dangerous, Wang Zhengtian thought.

However, Wang Zhengtian could no longer spare any attention for Lin Zheyu and the others. The terrifying energy shockwaves generated by the battle between the mighty Deity Transformation realm experts were spreading outward at an astonishing speed. Everything in their path was reduced to ashes. Even the densely packed yao were utterly annihilated by the aftermath.

Sensing the terrifying energy fluctuations coming from the distance, Lin Zheyu narrowed his eyes as the urge to approach and watch the battle arose within him. "Take the others and leave first. We'll regroup at Demon-Suppressing City!"

However, he quickly forced down that impulse. The difference in strength was simply too vast. Neither Jing Xinyue nor the two yao were in the early Deity Transformation realm. They were at least in the middle stage, if not even stronger.

Bai Lin nodded and cautioned him. "All right. Be careful!"

"Take care!" Zong Linjing said earnestly.

Lin Zheyu nodded to them before his figure flickered and merged into the void beneath their astonished eyes.

"Fellow Xiao's attainments in spatial laws are truly astonishing. Just how did he cultivate them? I'm genuinely envious," Bai Lin could not help remarking.

He issued a solemn instruction to the other Martial Alliance disciples, then swiftly led them away. The stronghold had already fallen, and whatever happened next no longer concerned them.

***

Concealed in the darkness, Shi Tianyun smiled faintly as he watched Lin Zheyu head deeper into the demon cave. "As expected of a genius from the Martial Alliance. To think you still intend to hunt yao under these circumstances. You've certainly got guts! It seems I underestimated you before."

He was in an excellent mood. Now that Xiao Yu had separated from Bai Lin and Zong Linjing, hunting him would be much easier. There was no longer any need to devise a way to separate them.

"Follow him. He's probably going to hunt yao. Watch for an opening and ambush him when the opportunity presents itself. I'll support you from the shadows and prevent him from escaping," Shi Tianyun said calmly.

To think he and his accomplice had previously devised several different plans. He had never expected Xiao Yu to make things so convenient by venturing deeper into the demon cave alone.

"Leave it to me. Apart from a handful of exceptionally gifted Golden Core realm geniuses, no Golden Core realm cultivator has ever survived one of my ambushes," the burly man declared confidently. The totem technique he cultivated was rather unusual, allowing him to approach his enemies soundlessly before suddenly launching a lethal attack.

Sensing the burly man's contempt for Lin Zheyu, Shi Tianyun frowned and deliberately cautioned him. "This man has awakened a spirit divine ability and possesses extraordinary spiritual perception. You must not underestimate him."

"Extraordinary spiritual perception? Could it possibly be powerful enough to detect a Shadow Dragon? In the same realm, the totem technique I cultivate is only slightly inferior to a Shadow Dragon's concealment. So what if he has awakened a spirit divine ability? He's still nothing more than a crude martial artist," the burly man said disdainfully.

Although the fighting style of barbarian totem warriors closely resembled that of martial artists, their differing totem techniques granted them all manner of strange and unusual abilities. Consequently, totem warriors looked down upon martial artists. Like immortal cultivators, they considered martial artists a crude and uncultured lot.

"Do not let your guard down," Shi Tianyun repeated with a slight frown, though he did not argue with the burly man.

In his view, the burly man was indeed correct. His attainments in stealth and assassination truly rivaled those of a Shadow Dragon. This was precisely why Shi Tianyun had chosen to cooperate with him in the first place.

***

Lin Zheyu raced deeper into the demon cave. He was not moving particularly fast, maintaining a speed roughly equivalent to the mid-stage Golden Core realm. As he traveled, he occasionally hunted any yao that caught his interest. Every yao race possessed its own system of demonic patterns, and some differed from one another as greatly as heaven and earth.

Therefore, if Lin Zheyu wished to further deepen his attainments in demonic patterns, he needed to broaden his understanding of the patterns belonging to various yao races. With the demon realm launching a massive invasion, armies of yao were now surging from the deepest reaches of the demon cave like a tide. Every manner of yao race could be found among them, sparing Lin Zheyu the trouble of searching far and wide. This was the perfect opportunity to collect yao of various races.

Lin Zheyu rejected almost none of them. Whenever he encountered a yao race he had never seen before, or a familiar race at a level of strength he had not yet collected, he would cleave the creature in two with a single slash. He would then quietly take it into the Primordial Chaos Pool and suppress it within the void inside. Living yao were the best subjects for studying demonic patterns. Once dead, their usefulness was reduced by at least half.

Lin Zheyu moved with tremendous speed, resembling a top-of-the-line harvester reaping swathes of golden wheat. One yao after another was cleaved in half before it could react, then taken away and suppressed within the void inside the Primordial Chaos Pool.

Concealed in the darkness as he searched for an opening, the burly man could not help marveling inwardly, What astonishing efficiency! His attainments in spatial laws are extraordinary, and he has integrated them perfectly into his saber technique. Not only that, but his combat instincts, reaction speed, and overall fighting ability are all monstrous. If he is allowed to continue growing, his future achievements will be unimaginable!

Fortunately, his target was only in the early Shackles realm. If Lin Zheyu advanced by even one more realm, the burly man would have little confidence in successfully assassinating him. Martial artists might be crude, but their vitality was absurdly powerful. This was especially true of geniuses who had opened the three great divine repositories. Unless they were killed with a single strike, they could recover to their peak within a short time.

"This youngster is extremely cautious. Even while hunting yao, he remains highly vigilant and reveals no openings whatsoever." The burly man narrowed his eyes and remained concealed in the distance, secretly awaiting the perfect moment to strike.

***

A silver saber light streaked through the darkness like lightning, and Lin Zheyu appeared beside a yao that had been cleaved in half. With a thought, the creature's writhing body vanished just as it attempted to recover.

Still not making a move? He can even resist such a perfect opportunity?

Just now, he had subtly exposed an opening to entice the barbarian totem warrior lurking in the darkness to attack. Unfortunately, the man had not taken the bait. This barbarian totem warrior was indeed rather interesting. He seemed to possess a secret art that granted him an extremely powerful concealment ability, allowing him to merge into the void like a Shadow Dragon without revealing the slightest trace of his aura.

Lin Zheyu was very interested in the totem on his body. If he could integrate it into the Primordial Golden Body and combine it with the demonic patterns of the Shadow Dragon race, it might produce a miraculous effect.

Lin Zheyu shook his head slightly. "I really want to attack and capture him directly... Unfortunately, Shi Tianyun is far too cautious and is keeping such a great distance. If I suddenly make a move, I might alert him and let him escape."

Through his perception, Lin Zheyu could sense Shi Tianyun roaming roughly five kilometers away, monitoring this area while remaining vigilant of his surroundings. He clutched a Divine Movement Talisman in his hand and would activate it to escape at the slightest disturbance. This was why he had yet to make a move.

Lin Zheyu planned to pretend that he was unaware of the barbarian man's surveillance and allow the burly man to attack first. Then, he would feign insufficient strength while proving difficult to defeat, engaging the man as he gradually retreated to lure Shi Tianyun into attacking. Once Shi Tianyun made his move, he would strike with overwhelming speed and kill them both before they could react.