Chapter 327 - 326: Netherworld: Opening Instakill

Ever since charging into the Sang Island Great Secret Realm on Blue Star and entering BaKi’s palace, he had never again sensed BaKi’s aura. The man had already fled to another Great Realm.

BaKi’s innate abilities were formidable. He was like a sly rabbit with three burrows; you could never know where his true weakness lay.

If a guy like that was allowed to live, he would undoubtedly become an endless source of trouble.

If BaKi managed to lay low and succeed in his cultivation, then secretly fought his way back to Blue Star, neither the Xia Country nor the Human Race would stand a chance.

After being purged by Zuo Xuan of the Nine Venerable Great Realm, Blue Star had almost no geniuses left. It would be difficult to produce even one Dao Entry Realm cultivator in the next fifty years. By then, BaKi might be on the verge of the Fusion Realm, or perhaps he would have already reached it.

’I have to be on my guard.’

As Jiang Qiu thought this, most of his attention was fixed on the Supreme Elder, monitoring his every move. Unfortunately, the man was almost completely still. He just watched the battle quietly, as calm as a corpse, much like the other elders. His mask was impassive, his eerie green eyes observing the fight.

Time passed quickly. The battles between the ordinary disciples concluded, and the Elite Disciples also finished their matches, fighting amongst themselves to determine their rankings.

Confident ordinary disciples could directly challenge an Elite Disciple, with the victor taking the loser’s place. However, few of these cross-tier challengers ever stood out; most simply became fodder.

After all, the Cultivation Resources allotted to the two statuses were completely different. Moreover, ordinary disciples had mastered very few Secret Techniques, and most only had the foundation to barely reach the Peak of the Spirit Body Realm.

Thus, this phase passed quickly, and it was time for the Direct Disciples’ competition.

"Now, the Direct Disciples from every peak participating in the Sect Grand Competition will enter! All six hundred and twenty-four of you!"

At the Duel Elder’s command, the Direct Disciples from every peak waiting in the preparation area flew to the center of the Duel Secret Realm. Disciples from the same peak gathered together, typically in groups of three or four.

With one hundred and eight Elders, it was normal to have so many Direct Disciples. Most were created through the Yin Yang Summoned Life technique, though quite a few were survivors from previous competitions. The majority were at the Dharma Realm, all with outstanding aptitude.

However, Bell Fish was the lowest-ranking Elder, so only Bai Mo and Xue went forward, which made them stand out from the crowd.

"Senior Brother, none of their Realms are as high as ours," Xue said, her gaze sweeping over the crowd and seeing through everyone’s cultivation. "But where is that Netherworld guy?"

Just as her voice fell,

HUMMM—

A figure in a black robe materialized in the sky above. Waves of Spirit Charm characteristic of the Peeping Dao Realm pulsed from his body. As he slowly descended, all eyes were fixed on him, and gasps of shock echoed through the crowd.

"Holy crap, Peeping Dao Realm?! Who is that guy? How is he so strong!"

"No way! A disciple has already broken through to the Peeping Dao Realm? Who in the world is he? I don’t recognize him at all."

All the disciples were stunned. They knew next to nothing about this person; in fact, they had no idea who he was. He didn’t match their memories of any of the strongest Direct Disciples.

Meanwhile, the very disciples who were considered the strongest were already on the field. When they sensed his aura, their expressions changed drastically. They subconsciously signaled for the disciples of their own peaks to fall back, not daring to get any closer.

In an instant, a wide area in the center of the Duel Secret Realm was cleared, leaving that single Direct Disciple standing there, utterly alone.

"GASP—"

"It feels like he’s already locked down first place. With an aura like that, who could possibly challenge him?"

"Wait a second... His pupils are vertical. I think I know who he is!"

"Who?"

"It’s Netherworld, the Supreme Elder’s Direct Disciple! He must have been in seclusion for so long that none of you remember him, right? The Supreme Elder himself even announced that his Direct Disciple would be competing for the position of Saint Heir this time."

"Oh, the Supreme Elder’s Direct Disciple!"

They rarely spoke of this Supreme Elder. He had been in seclusion for so long that most of the younger generation didn’t know his history; it was as if he belonged to a bygone era.

Everyone had been surprised when the Supreme Elder emerged from seclusion, but it hadn’t drawn much attention. Only now did the true shock of it resurface.

People began to recall the Supreme Elder’s history.

"Peak of Dao Entry Realm! He went into seclusion to seek the Fusion Realm. His power might even be comparable to the current Sect Leader. He was supposed to be the Sect Leader of the previous generation; his personal strength should be at the absolute Peak in the Hundred Ghosts Sect!"

"So that’s the Supreme Elder... No wonder his Direct Disciple is so powerful. It takes a master to teach a genius, after all."

Amidst the buzzing chatter of the crowd, the disciples on the field were gulping frantically. The pressure from a Peeping Dao Realm cultivator was terrifying; they barely dared to breathe.

The crucial thing was, this was the Sect Grand Competition—a battle royale between Direct Disciples. To survive, they had to protect their own hides and, above all, not run into Netherworld.

But if Netherworld decided to target them and kill them outright, there would be nothing they could do. The dead would be subjected to Refinement, denied any chance of reincarnation for all eternity.

"All combatants are present! The competition begins!"

With that command, and without another word, the field erupted with all kinds of Secret Techniques. The Direct Disciples couldn’t care less about their image; they immediately flew in the opposite direction of Netherworld, the muscles in their calves straining so hard that veins bulged.

The Duel Secret Realm was massive, so flying a little farther away wouldn’t be considered fleeing. The key was to stay away from the strongest combatants, especially someone like Netherworld, a Peeping Dao Realm cultivator who was in a league entirely of his own.

’Pray that he won’t kill anyone? Would this still be the Hundred Ghosts Sect if he didn’t?!’

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM—

Accompanied by a series of sonic booms, in the blink of an eye, the Direct Disciples—those seemingly untouchable geniuses—had mostly flown to the outermost edge of the arena, putting several miles between themselves and Netherworld.

However, a few arrogant Direct Disciples remained on the field. As geniuses created through the Yin Yang Summoned Life technique, how could they tolerate someone being superior to them?

’He’s only at the Peeping Dao Realm,’ they thought. ’It’s not impossible to kill someone a realm above your own!’

With this thought in mind, a sturdy young man let out a roar. The muscles on his upper body swelled, shredding his shirt and revealing his incredibly powerful physique.

A moment later.

THUD.

The man fell flat on his back. The Nether Dark Spirit Charm radiating from his body dissolved into black smoke, and his aura of life seemed to vanish with it.

A hole had been bored through his forehead, from which blood flowed freely. He died with his eyes wide open in disbelief, gone before he had even sensed the danger.

A spectator recognized him and gasped, covering their mouth. "Holy shit, isn’t that the senior brother at the Perfection level of the Dharma Realm? They said he was just one step of enlightenment away from the Peeping Dao Realm!"

"What? A guy that powerful was killed instantly? How did he do it?!"

Countless people cried out in astonishment. Even the Elders were dumbfounded. "What just happened? How did he kill him?!"

Even the Elders at the Dao Entry Realm were frowning. They could sense that a move like that would be a threat even to them—it was simply impossible to defend against.