Chapter Fifty-Six: The Tripartite Standoff

Luan birds hovered in the sky, black flames scorching the firmament, while bloated and ferocious Nanshe serpents filled the entire riverbed across the earth.

Chen Xuan wore an exceptionally solemn expression. Treading on the serpent's body, he felt like a tiny boat caught in a storm, facing the constant danger of capsizing.

The elderly man surnamed Lu narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "Young man, this old man admits that your superior celestial *qi* is extraordinary—Cui Laoqi was almost overthrown by it in a gutter. But I advise you not to waste your efforts... Trouble requires only one."

Having swum upstream through the river, he had witnessed with his own eyes how Chen Xuan's single strike had nearly obliterated Cui Laoqi, who stood at the half-step Dao-Storehouse realm. A fierce shock had jolted his heart.

Because had he been in Cui Laoqi's place, caught off guard, he too would have fallen victim to it.

This young man wielded an unfamiliar, specialized celestial *qi*, one not evolved from the mythical beasts of the mountains and seas like standard superior celestial *qi*.

Yet its power was utterly bizarre, impossible to guard against, and inferior to neither Cui Laoqi's *Luan-bird Qi* nor his own *Nanshe Qi*.

Beads of sweat covered the palms of Chen Xuan's hands as he said in a deep voice, "Are you afraid? If you're afraid, clear the path."

At this moment, facing figures who had pushed the Apotheosis realm to its absolute limits, his nominal strength held no advantage whatsoever... After all, his time spent cultivating was simply too short.

Hearing this, the elderly man surnamed Lu's expression turned cold. He rebuked sternly, "Spare me the clever words. Let the person behind you come out and speak. Your strength is insufficient to take away the ancient immortals' relics. If you do not hand them over, death is your only option... This old man will ascend to the Dao-Storehouse realm right here, and I can kill you with the flick of a finger."

He believed Chen Xuan was not acting alone, for only a major faction could have forced the Destiny Child, Liu Jiao, to bow his head and voluntarily surrender the final ancient immortal relic.

Chen Xuan met his gaze tit-for-tat, declaring bluntly, "Go ahead and try. See for yourself whether you can walk out of this Peach Blossom Spring today!"

In truth, doubts lingered in his heart as well.

When the old white-shelled turtle of the Southern Wasteland had assigned him this mission, he had been nothing more than a humble tier-two Apotheosis cultivator.

If that old turtle had arranged no contingency plans and truly pinned all its hopes on him alone...

The difficulty was no less than the Nine-Headed Insect subordinate ordering minor demons to eliminate Tang Sanzang and his disciples on the journey to the West.

Where was the backup?

Chen Xuan did not know if any backup existed.

Initially, he had vaguely suspected that the sword-carrying tiger demon might be an ally, because the great demon of the Southern Wasteland who had fought alongside the old turtle against Red Crow City's Scarlet Crow was a tiger, and the sword-carrying tiger demon was suspected to be its descendant. But now, it seemed the other party had their own agenda.

Right at that moment, a cold, detached mental voice echoed in his mind: "I have arrived."

Yan Yushu.

On the horizon ahead, a figure clad in a black dress with peerless beauty materialized.

Further away, a large group of orthodox aristocratic cultivators from Red Crow City—numbering a good fifty or sixty people—was hurriedly rushing toward this direction.

The direction Chen Xuan had chosen to flee happened to coincide with Yan Yushu's path.

The elderly man surnamed Lu turned his head to look, his expression changing drastically as he shouted demandingly, "Six Desires Heaven, you want a piece of the pie as well!"

Realizing the situation was turning unfavorable, he sensed a palpable danger emanating from Yan Yushu.

The ascetic monks of the Floating Temple at the triple Apotheosis realm whom she had devoured could not be counted on one hand; her strength had long since reached the peak of the Apotheosis realm... surpassing even that of Chen Xuan.

As Yan Yushu joined the battlefield, her hair cascaded like a waterfall. Her gentle gaze now appeared frigid, her killing intent locked directly onto Chen Xuan:

"Why ever not?"

Her stance was blatant; anyone could see that she intended to seize the ancient immortal relic from Chen Xuan's hands as well.

In the sky, Cui Laoqi atop the Luan bird gradually regained clarity in his eyes. The formidable willpower honed through decades of dedicated cultivation finally broke free from the influence of the *Yellow Millet Qi*. At this moment, a heaven-shaking transformation occurred in his entire aura as his voice boomed like thunder:

"Anyone else? If not, then... let the battle begin!"

"Whoosh!"

Chen Xuan twisted his neck. As his vital energy surged and ebbed, the *Yellow Millet Qi* spread across his entire body like millions of cyan-gold threads, instantly pushing his momentum to its absolute peak.

Among all present, he possessed the weakest strength and the fewest trump cards; only by going all out could he carve out a path to survival!

"Rial!"

Chen Xuan slightly hunched his posture and instantly lunged forward. His fish-fork struck the scales on the Nanshe's body, spraying dazzling sparks. Treading upon the serpent's spine, he charged straight toward the elderly man surnamed Lu.

In the end, all matters boiled down to raw strength to determine the outcome.

"Aargh!"

The Nanshe raised its massive head in a piercing screech and lunged downward, its blood-red maw snapping at Chen Xuan as a turbulent, surging flood-virtue energy permeated the air.

"Clang!"

Chen Xuan swept his fork in all directions, shattering a sharp, saber-like serpent fang. The majestic *Yellow Millet Qi* plunged straight into the serpent's mouth. Instantly, the Nanshe fell into a daze, its eyes glazing over as its forked tongue hung slack and slanted outward like a scarlet carpet.

"Swish! Swish!"

Chen Xuan thrust his fork like a dragon, piercing the sky with sharp, cyan-gold fork-light that riddled the serpent's tongue with countless holes, blood gushing like a waterfall.

Pierce! Pierce! Pierce!

The Nanshe's massive body collapsed like a tall tower, shattering the *Nanshe Qi*!

"Young man, you truly possess some skill..."

The elderly man surnamed Lu materialized behind Chen Xuan, his robes billowing in the wind. On his aged face, dense patches of fine black scales pierced through his skin, growing outward from the corners of his eyes: "But now that this old man unleashes the Dao-Storehouse technique, how do you plan to counter it?"

Snake-like scales also sprouted between his five fingers, and like a streak of black lightning, he lunged viciously toward Chen Xuan.

"Neither human nor beast, a half-baked human Dao-Storehouse, and you dare show off!"

Brilliant light erupted from within Chen Xuan's body. At this moment, not only the *Yellow Millet Qi*, but the white, red, and cyan celestial *qi* erupted simultaneously. The powers of the three tricks—white ape, cyan deer, and fire bird—resonated together, golden rice ears exuded fragrance, and brandishing his refined iron fish-fork, he slashed obliquely like a four-colored lunar crescent.

This was a supreme strike capable of cutting down any cultivator of the same rank!

"Boom!"

The elderly man surnamed Lu was sent flying backward for over twenty meters. Landing on the ground, he raised his trembling arm in astonishment to find some of the black scales on his hand flipped and shattered, leaving a bloody, dripping wound.

A look of shock crossed his face as he muttered, "The simultaneous eruption of four celestial *qi*, and they can actually coexist—only a peerless prodigy could achieve this. It seems today, I cannot let you live!"

The elderly man felt it was utterly inconceivable, deeming the talent Chen Xuan displayed so monstrous that his future achievements would be boundless. Yet, because both sides had already struck with lethal force, an irreconcilable enmity had been forged.

Even if Chen Xuan were shielded by a powerful faction, he could not pull back his hand today; he had to walk this dark path to the very end and eradicate the roots of future trouble.

"Hah..."

Chen Xuan was also knocked backward from the impact, his brow furrowing into a deep vertical crease. For his absolute strongest strike, unleashed with every ounce of his strength, had merely inflicted a minor injury upon his foe.

His options were exhausted.

He realized he was no match for this person whatsoever...

Even a sliver of Dao-Storehouse power remained Dao-Storehouse power, something an Apotheosis cultivator could not possibly rival.

"Rumble!"

In the sky, the battle continued in parallel. Cui Laoqi steered a mountain-sized Luan bird to pounce downward toward the earth, but halfway there, an equally massive black fish intercepted and crashed straight into it. Black rain cascaded in torrents, and the two giant beasts collided as they struck the ground, causing mountains to shatter and the earth to split. Water and fire conflicted fiercely, sending white mist billowing into the air.

Furious, Cui Laoqi roared, "Vixen, why are you attacking me? Have you lost your mind?!"

atop the giant fish, Yan Yushu's robes fluttered, her flawless snow-white face devoid of any blemish. Biting her red lips, she said coldly, "If I don't knock the two of you out, how can I ever claim the ancient immortals' relics!"

She was fiercely aggressive, viewing only Cui Laoqi and the elderly man surnamed Lu as her true rivals, and had decided to eliminate the greatest threats first.

Cui Laoqi was left speechless, for he had been attempting the exact same thing. Had Yan Yushu not intervened, his previous attack would not only have targeted Chen Xuan but encompassed the elderly man surnamed Lu as well.

There was only one relic; everyone else was an enemy.

"The ownership of the ancient immortals' relics belongs solely to the Cui and Lu families... Immortal Fairy Yan possesses superior celestial *qi*, but lacks Dao-Storehouse power, falling short in the end," muttered a Red Crow City cultivator among the many who had gathered along the perimeter of the battlefield.

"This young man's strength is also formidable, but it's a pity he is too young to contend with the older generation of cultivators," sighed a cultivator who had hurried over from the ancient village, expressing regret and deeming the Cui and Lu families' bullying of the junior despicable.

The two geniuses of the younger generation could not yet contend with the genius of the older generation, and in the end, they could only suffer the bitter taste of defeat.

In truth, ever since the young cultivator gifted with the relics by Liu Jiao descended the mountain, certain rumors had begun to spread... Because these major factions had consistently failed to see Chen Xuan come down the mountain, suspicion had grown in their hearts, almost driving them to launch a forcible assault on the upper village to investigate... Fortunately, Chen Xuan had departed in time, preventing the flames of war from being drawn into the ancient village.

The outcome was about to be decided.

The communication talisman on Chen Xuan's body vibrated, and Yan Yushu's mental voice arrived: "You go first."

"Alright, see you later."

Chen Xuan was remarkably decisive. He put away his fish-fork and turned away from the battlefield without a backward glance.

Leaving like a defeated hound was no disgrace. His cultivation time had only been a little over a month; if he could directly surpass the Destiny Child Yan Yushu and steamroll Cui Laoqi and the elderly man surnamed Lu—who had cultivated for decades—that would be an unnatural, world-shocking absurdity... Back in their youth, Cui and Lu had also been peerless prodigies among tens of thousands.

Yet, practitioners of martial arts must follow their heart's desires; being bullied without the ability to exact revenge meant restless nights of sleep... As a master standing at the pinnacle of martial arts, Chen Xuan felt this even more acutely.

"The supreme powerhouses of the Cui and Lu families are bound to be guarding the outside world. Even if I miraculously escape the Peach Blossom Spring, what of it? I can only swallow this grievance by crushing my teeth and hiding them in my stomach, unable to exact vengeance for decades."

Chen Xuan muttered inwardly, a heavy pent-up frustration breeding within his chest.

Yet, another path remained open.

If he could not annihilate these two old fellows within the Peach Blossom Spring today, he, Chen Xuan, would write his name backward from this day forward!

Staring at Chen Xuan's retreating back, Cui Laoqi raged, "The ancient immortals' relics have been taken away."

Yan Yushu's pretty face turned frosty, her temperament completely at odds with her usual soft and gentle demeanor. She said coldly, "One quarter of an hour. The three of us will decide the winner; the victor gets everything."

There was still nearly a hundred miles left from this place to the boundary of the Peach Blossom Spring; Chen Xuan would not be able to flee far before being overtaken.

The elderly man surnamed Lu also cast a profound gaze at Chen Xuan's retreating figure, intending to pursue him, but realizing he was locked onto by Yan Yushu, he turned back instead, nodding with a chuckle:

"Haha, the little vixen makes a valid point, but since you are no match for us two old fellows, you are bound to be the first one eliminated."

He held immense confidence in his own strength, believing he would be the ultimate victor.

Having arrived at the scene and briefly observed the situation, the clansmen of the Cui and Lu families immediately set off in pursuit of the direction Chen Xuan had fled.

"After him!"