Desolate Devouring Art

Liu Wuxie refused to act recklessly and kept his attention fixed upon the Heart Bridge. Ghost Pupil had already awakened, extending his vision along the narrow span toward the crimson gate on the opposite side. That was the entrance to the Heart Palace, and the Divine Fire Core waited beyond it.

Terrifying flames surged from the abyss beneath the Heart Bridge, sending powerful ripples through the surrounding space.

The cultivator crossing the bridge began swaying. Near the center, the Heart Bridge narrowed even further and lost much of its earlier elasticity. He had to step cautiously, as if balancing upon a thin hemp rope, where the slightest mistake would send him plummeting into the abyss.

The cultivators gathered at the edge held their breath, their palms growing damp as they watched him advance.

A powerful gale suddenly erupted from the abyss, causing the Heart Bridge to sway with even greater violence.

"Be careful," shouted one of the man's companions.

"Geng Zhun, come back," the others called, urging him to retreat before the heartfire erupted.

Recognizing the danger, Geng Zhun gritted his teeth and sprinted toward the opposite side. Just as he came within ten meters of safety, heartfire roared from the abyss and swallowed him whole. He vanished before he could release a single scream, leaving no trace behind.

The cultivators gathered at the edge of the bridge instinctively retreated several steps. Every one of them had felt the terrifying destructive power from the heartfire. Even a cultivator at the pinnacle of the Profound Immortal Realm would perish if a single wisp touched their body.

"What horrifying flames," many exclaimed.

Several cultivators patted their chests, their faces still pale with fear. At that moment, they felt fortunate that they had not attempted to cross the Heart Bridge themselves.

Geng Zhun had been a high-level Profound Immortal. If even he could not cross the bridge, Spirit Immortals and True Immortals stood no chance whatsoever.

Several cultivators at the pinnacle of the Profound Immortal Realm were present, yet all of them hesitated. None could identify a reliable method of crossing safely, and no one was willing to gamble with their life.

Within fifteen minutes, six to seven thousand cultivators arrived, nearly filling the entire region.

"Young Master, the Shen Clan has sent us a message. They intend to surround the area and inspect every True Immortal here," a Zhu Clan disciple reported.

The Shen Clan had proposed searching for Liu Wuxie while everyone remained gathered in one place. In their eyes, this was the perfect opportunity to eliminate him. That was also why Shen Can had ordered Shen San to regroup with him.

If Liu Wuxie was hiding among the crowd, the combined forces of the Shen and Zhu Clan could root him out.

Searching six or seven thousand cultivators would ordinarily have been nearly impossible. However, relatively few True Immortals stood among them, so the two clans only needed to inspect those cultivators.

A powerful cultivator could suppress their cultivation and disguise themselves as someone weaker, but a weak cultivator could never impersonate someone stronger. No matter how flawless Liu Wuxie's disguise was, as a True Immortal, he could not pretend to be a Spirit Immortal.

The Shen Clan and Zhu Clan acted swiftly, forming an encirclement that sealed every exit.

"What are the Shen Clan and Zhu Clan planning?" someone asked, confused.

Everyone’s attention had been fixed on the Heart Bridge, so the two clans’ sudden encirclement of the area caught them completely off guard and left them bewildered.

"Liu Wuxie, I know you're hiding in this crowd," Shen San's voice thundered throughout the area. "Will you come out willingly, or do I have to drag you out myself?"

At the sound of Liu Wuxie's name, wary glances passed throughout the crowd. By now, stories of his deeds had spread among them, including the massacre in which he had slaughtered nearly a hundred experts.

The survivors could not explain precisely how Liu Wuxie had accomplished it. They remembered only a sharp pain piercing their upper dantians before losing control and attacking everyone around them.

In truth, Liu Wuxie had personally killed only a small portion of the victims. Most had died at the hands of their own companions.

"Liu Wuxie is here too?"

The crowd immediately began searching one another, and countless gazes settled upon the True Immortals.

More cultivators stepped forward and joined the Shen and Zhu Clan's encirclement. Liu Wuxie had earned widespread resentment by seizing the Divine Metal Core. Whoever killed him could claim that treasure, so many cultivators eagerly joined despite holding no personal grudge against him.

Within only three breaths, hundreds of cultivators completed the encirclement and sealed the remaining escape routes.

Most cultivators, however, remained on the sidelines and watched. Treasures naturally belonged to those powerful enough to claim them, and Liu Wuxie had obtained the Divine Metal Core through his own abilities.

"Everyone, please excuse our conduct," Shen San apologized, cupping his fists toward the crowd. "Our only objective is finding Liu Wuxie. Anyone above the True Immortal Realm may move to the other side."

The Shen Clan wielded considerable power, but even they did not dare antagonize everyone present.

"I'd like to see how Liu Wuxie intends to hide this time."

Those without any involvement saw no reason to interfere, especially when such an entertaining spectacle was unfolding before them.

"Liu Wuxie, you should come out while you still have the chance," Wei Wenbin said, stepping forward with a cruel smile as he joined the Shen Clan's encirclement.

Every cultivator above the True Immortal Realm moved to the left.

The encirclement steadily tightened around the remaining True Immortals. Although the treatment angered them, their low cultivation gave them no choice but to endure it.

Besides, they weren't concerned. Once the inspection confirmed their identities, the two clans would naturally release them.

Liu Wuxie remained near the Heart Bridge, murderous intent flickering deep within his eyes.

The two clans had exhausted every possible means to kill him. Their persistence only strengthened his resolve to obtain the Divine Fire Core, regardless of the cost. Once he gathered all five cores, their deaths would become inevitable.

Within fifteen minutes, only slightly more than five hundred True Immortals remained scattered conspicuously across the center.

"Everyone, release your immortal energy and cooperate with the inspection," Shen San instructed. "Once we confirm you aren't Liu Wuxie, you'll be free to leave this area."

A fierce battle would inevitably erupt after they exposed Liu Wuxie. Any uninvolved cultivator standing nearby risked being caught in the aftermath. For that reason, many True Immortals immediately released their immortal energy.

After verifying their identities, Shen San allowed another two hundred cultivators to leave and tightened the encirclement further.

"Do you think Liu Wuxie is really among them?" the cultivators outside the encirclement began asking, their attention shifting away from the Heart Bridge.

"Almost certainly. Nearly everyone who entered the Ancient Origin Spatial Realm has gathered here," someone replied.

Given the numbers, more than ninety percent of the cultivators who had entered the Ancient Origin Spatial Realm were now assembled in this region.

"They say Liu Wuxie never makes mistakes and possesses the cunning of a fox. But even the cleverest fox eventually falls one step behind an experienced hunter," people remarked.

Word of Liu Wuxie’s exploits quickly swept through the crowd as several cultivators from Fourfold City recounted how he had destroyed the Wen Clan and toppled the Shadow Divination Gate.

Many had known almost nothing about his accomplishments until that day. After hearing the stories, they drew sharp breaths. Even someone at the pinnacle of the Origin Immortal Realm might have failed to suppress so many enemies alone.

Although Liu Wuxie had borrowed Ye Guhai's power, the City Lord Mansion's forces would never have been sufficient to destroy the Wen Clan.

As more True Immortals left the encirclement, Wei Wenbin and Jiang Hongran burst into laughter. At long last, they would have the opportunity to kill Liu Wuxie and vent the resentment that had tormented them for so long.

"Attack!" Shen Can ordered the experts of both clans.

Only seventy to eighty True Immortals remained trapped inside. Shen Can would rather slaughter a hundred innocent people than allow Liu Wuxie to escape. To ensure that no one slipped through their net, he ordered the clans to attack everyone still inside.

Furious curses erupted from the trapped cultivators. They had merely been slower to release their immortal energy, yet the Shen Clan was already trying to kill them.

Shen San blasted more than ten True Immortals into the abyss. The Shen Clan had resorted to every conceivable method to achieve its objective, and its actions had already crossed into madness.

Liu Wuxie did not counterattack immediately. He waited with calculated patience, watching for an opportunity to approach the Heart Bridge. His only path was to step onto the bridge, reach the opposite side before everyone else, and seize the Divine Fire Core.

His earlier stillness had not come from delayed reactions. He had been using Ghost Pupil and Divine Tribulation Pupil to study the abyss. Before long, he discovered a distinct pattern in the heartfire's eruptions. Even the swaying of the Heart Bridge followed a calculable rhythm. Once he deciphered that pattern, he could cross safely.

Every fragment of information gathered by the two divine pupils flowed into the Heavenly Dao Book, which immediately began deciphering their findings.

Meanwhile, Shen San and the others were closing in, their attacks already bearing down upon the trapped cultivators.

Liu Wuxie fixed his gaze upon the Zhu Clan's True Immortals and Spirit Immortals. A cold smirk touched his lips as he slowly licked them. His blood surged with unprecedented excitement. The tiger slumbering within his heart had finally begun to awaken.

Since arriving in the celestial realm, Liu Wuxie had constantly restrained himself. As his cultivation rose, however, his fangs gradually emerged.

The Bloodthirst Blade appeared in his hand.

"It's Liu Wuxie!" Shen San exclaimed.

He recognized the Bloodthirst Blade instantly. They had fought inside the pericardium, where Liu Wuxie had wielded that same weapon, leaving a deep impression upon him.

Countless gazes converged from every direction and locked onto Liu Wuxie.

"He's only at the eighth-level True Immortal Realm, yet he still dares resist? He should've surrendered obediently," the surrounding Spirit Immortals sneered, amused by what they saw as futile defiance.

Until now, Liu Wuxie had secured his victories through unorthodox methods. Before absolute strength, those tricks would become worthless.

As the disciples of both clans closed in, the crimson mark upon the Bloodthirst Blade began to flow, releasing an appalling aura. Unease swept through the crowd, as though an ancient beast had fixed its gaze upon them.

Liu Wuxie even began suspecting that the crimson mark on the Bloodthirst Blade had formed from the blood of a divine beast.

"What a pity. A prodigy like him is about to die," someone commented.

Many high-level Profound Immortals shook their heads with regret. Even they had to admit that the miracles Liu Wuxie had created over the past few months had overturned everything they believed they knew.

"Mountain Blade! Instant Flash!"

Two entirely different blade techniques unfolded from the hands of one man. Most cultivators practiced immortal arts that were either overwhelmingly ferocious or incomparably fluid. Few could master both styles, much less unleash them together.

Yet Liu Wuxie fused ferocity and fluidity into perfect harmony, combining Mountain Blade's crushing force with Instant Flash's flowing speed.

Since breaking through to the eighth-level True Immortal Realm, he had yet to enjoy a battle to his heart's content.

"Slash!" Liu Wuxie roared.

The crimson mark on the Bloodthirst Blade flashed as Liu Wuxie mobilized every strand of immortal energy within the Desolate World and brought the weapon down. The instant the blade descended, the ground began trembling violently.

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