He did whatever Jiang Che said, no longer daring to act out of line in the slightest.
"Let’s go."
Jiang Che packed away the last bag of gold notes and spoke calmly to Fang Muye.
Just as the two were about to turn and leave.
Suddenly, Jiang Che’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt!
The lingering sense of danger in his heart suddenly erupted to its peak!
"Who?!" he roared, whipping his head around!
There, on the only path back, a ghostly figure stood, having appeared at some unknown time without a sound, blocking their way!
The man was dressed in black, his face hidden in the shadows of a hood. But the terrifying, abyss-like pressure emanating from him instantly made Jiang Che and Fang Muye feel as if they had plunged into an icy cavern!
True Master Realm!
The man slowly raised his head, revealing a pair of ice-cold, emotionless eyes. He spoke in a raspy voice:
"Kid, we... meet again!"
In that instant, Jiang Che’s pupils contracted violently!
This aura...
This voice...
It was the very same person he had encountered in the Abyss of Ten Thousand Poisons—one of the Shadow Demon’s four Guardians, an expert at the First Layer of the True Master Realm—
Ghost Hand Rakshasa!
Beside him, Fang Muye’s face instantly turned deathly pale, as white as a sheet, when he saw who it was. Every trace of color had drained from it!
True Master Realm!
It was... a True Master Realm expert from the Demon Sect!
A tide of bone-chilling despair instantly washed over him, drowning all his reason!
’It’s over...’
’This time... we’re completely finished!’
His hands trembled uncontrollably.
It was the purest form of fear, a primal instinct in the face of death!
As for Jiang Che, he quickly composed himself after the initial, violent shock.
His gaze, sharp as a hawk’s, swept across the surroundings.
’There’s no one else...’
’He’s alone.’
Suddenly, a bold, almost insane idea struck him like a bolt of lightning!
Ghost Hand Rakshasa clearly hadn’t noticed the subtle psychological shift between the two men.
His gaze had already bypassed the trembling Fang Muye, locking onto Jiang Che like a viper.
"Heh... heh heh..." He let out a dry, raspy laugh, his eyes under the hood filled with the cat-and-mouse glee and venomous hatred. "Last time, in the Abyss of Ten Thousand Poisons, you were lucky enough to escape. Today... let’s see where you run!"
A vast, majestic True Qi pressure descended like an invisible mountain, crashing down upon them!
In the very instant Ghost Hand Rakshasa and Jiang Che’s auras locked in a standoff!
The situation took a sudden turn!
"Jiang Che! Don’t worry! I’ll go get help to save you!!!"
Fang Muye suddenly let out an earth-shattering roar!
Along with his roar, he bit the tip of his tongue without hesitation!
At the same time, the Wind Spirit Boots on his feet erupted with an unprecedentedly brilliant cyan light!
A Liufeng Courtyard Secret Technique—Blood Style Chasing Wind!
He was actually burning his own blood essence to activate a life-saving Secret Technique for escaping!
In an instant, his speed skyrocketed to an unbelievable level, making him even faster than an ordinary True Master Realm expert!
He transformed into a streak of cyan light and fled madly toward the valley exit without looking back!
He was so fast that he vanished around a bend in the valley in the blink of an eye, leaving only a fading echo behind...
...
Within the valley, a dead silence fell.
Jiang Che: "..."
Ghost Hand Rakshasa: "..."
The two of them watched Fang Muye’s back disappear faster than a startled rabbit. They both fell into a strange, speechless silence.
After a moment, Ghost Hand Rakshasa looked away from the escape route and sneered at Jiang Che, his voice dripping with contempt and ridicule:
"Heh, you see that, kid? This is one of your so-called prestigious Righteous Sects! The chief disciple of the Cangyun Sect, no less! Fleeing from battle, selling out his friend to save his own skin... nothing but a pack of gutless, treacherous rats who cling to life! What right do you have to call yourselves righteous?"
Hearing this, Jiang Che slowly raised his head. His deep eyes held no trace of fear, only an icy calm.
"He does not represent the Cangyun Sect."
"Furthermore..." Jiang Che’s voice grew even colder. "You dregs of the Demon Sect treat human life as if it were worthless, massacring villages and wiping out entire families on a whim. Your deeds are a thousand, ten thousand times more evil than him fleeing for his life!"
"What right do you have to stand there and pontificate about righteousness and evil?!"
Ghost Hand Rakshasa was momentarily choked by his words, then flew into a humiliating rage.
"Good! A sharp-tongued brat, are we!" He laughed, furious. "It doesn’t matter if you’re a smooth talker or a self-righteous hero. Today, you die here!"
"I wouldn’t be so sure," Jiang Che said calmly, slowly assuming the classic opening stance of the Nine Heavens Azure Cloud Technique.
Seeing his composed demeanor, a flash of surprise crossed Ghost Hand Rakshasa’s eyes before morphing into a savage grin.
"Oh? A mere cultivator at the Peak of Refining Organ Realm dares to challenge a True Master? Kid, you’ve got some backbone! Fine! On account of that backbone, this old man will be merciful and leave your corpse intact!"
The moment his voice fell, his withered palm shot out!
A giant ghost hand the size of a millstone, formed from pure black True Qi, materialized from thin air. It carried a terrifying pressure, as if it could crush mountains, as it clawed down toward Jiang Che!
In that instant, the battle erupted!
Facing the black ghost hand that descended, blotting out the sky.
Jiang Che’s eyes narrowed, showing no sign of retreat!
He roared, unleashing the full Majestic Strength of his Peak of Refining Organ Realm cultivation. Without dodging or evading, he met the giant ghost hand with a fearless punch of his own!
BOOM!!!
Fist met palm with a thunderous, muffled explosion!
However, the outcome was worlds apart!
Jiang Che felt a strange, corrosive power, as vast as the sea, instantly shatter his Body-Protecting Qi!
That power was True Qi!
Compared to Strength, True Qi seemed to exist on a higher dimension!
It was not only more condensed and domineering, but it also possessed a life-like "vitality," frantically drilling into his meridians and attempting to corrode his internal organs!
"PUH—!"
As if struck by a sledgehammer, Jiang Che coughed up a violent spray of blood. He shot backward like a cannonball, slamming hard into a solid rock face dozens of yards away, the impact shaking the entire valley!
"Cough... cough, cough..."
He struggled to his feet amidst the rubble, feeling as if his bones had been shattered and his organs were on fire.
’So this... is the power of the True Master Realm?!’
’A single, casual blow—I didn’t even touch his physical body—and I’m already this severely injured!’
’The gap between the Refining Organ and True Master realms is truly as vast as the one between the clouds and the mud!’
"Oh? You’re not dead?" A hint of surprise flashed in Ghost Hand Rakshasa’s eyes. "Your physical body is quite tough, much more so than a typical cultivator at the Peak of the Refining Organ Realm. A pity... before me, you’re still nothing more than a slightly stronger ant!"
He walked toward Jiang Che step by step, with the leisure of a man taking a stroll through a garden.
Every footstep seemed to land on Jiang Che’s heart, creating immense psychological pressure.
Jiang Che watched the figure approach like the grim reaper, yet his eyes showed not a hint of fear.
He forcefully suppressed his roiling Qi and Blood. The moment his enemy, underestimating him, grew careless, a cold glint erupted in his eyes!
’Now’s my chance!’
’Twentyfold Strike!’
"Azure Dragon... Annihilation!!!"
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