Chapter 147 The Qilin Overwhelms Li Cangtian, Dragon Tiger Sect Arrives at the Battlefield
"And that is to twist your head right off!"
Before the last syllable fell, the figure had already vanished.
Only the patch of ground he had stepped on suddenly collapsed three inches, with gravel exploding upward into the air.
Immediately following that.
Boom—!
A delayed sonic boom cloud erupted in mid-air, and a pale shockwave swept across the field, flipping over all the scrap metal from abandoned cars over a dozen meters away.
Li Cangtian only felt the scene before his eyes blur as a scorching, forceful wind rushed toward his face.
He let out a hoarse roar, his fly-whisk dancing wildly.
This High Grade Magical Artifact, refined for sixty years, saw its three thousand silver threads instantly pull taut, transforming into a wall of pale needles to protect his body.
His left hand even crushed a life-saving jade talisman, and a pitch-black "Profundity Yin Heart-Protecting Mirror" manifested out of thin air, oozing a sinister Yin energy as heavy as a mountain.
With such defenses, even withstanding a full-strength strike from a Cultivator of the same rank would be no problem.
But what he faced was an ancient Vicious Beast wearing human skin.
"Shatter for me!"
Zhou Ran's Move remained unchanged, direct and straightforward.
The Qilin totem on his left arm glowed a dripping red, and following an arrogantly straight trajectory, his punch slammed into the wall of needles.
Crack!
Crack!
Crack!
The silver threads of the fly-whisk, which were sharp enough to cut gold and jade, were incredibly fragile the moment they touched the qilin arm, disintegrating inch by inch and fluttering through the air.
The force of the punch drove straight through, ruthlessly smashing into the heart-protecting mirror.
Crack.
There was no resistance whatsoever.
That Low Grade Spiritual Artifact, claimed to be indestructible, turned into dust on the spot!
The punch's force penetrated his body.
Li Cangtian's chest instantly collapsed, the clothes on his back exploded, and a burst of vivid, tragic blood mist erupted.
He was like someone hit head-on by the front of a speeding high-speed train; his scream got stuck in his throat as he was sent flying backward like a blurred afterimage.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
He smashed through three concrete overpass pillars in succession until he crashed right through the bed of a heavy-duty dump truck, only then barely stopping his momentum.
Silence.
The entire field fell silent.
From the moment Zhou Ran threw the punch to the moment Li Cangtian was embedded in the scrap metal, it had only been the blink of an eye.
In the distance, the one-eyed commander of the Black Mamba Mercenary Group let the cigar fall from his mouth into the dust.
This is Huaxia Kung Fu?
This is fucking more powerful than an S-rank Awakened!
"Shit!
Fire!
Full coverage fire!!"
The Cyclops roared hysterically; his years of battlefield intuition told him that he must never let this monster get close.
Zzzzt—!
Twelve Stinger missiles ignited instantly, trailing grayish-white exhaust flames as they formed a Grim Reaper's scythe, sealing off all space around Zhou Ran—up, down, left, and right.
At the same time.
Twenty Gatling machine guns finished preheating, their six barrels spinning frantically as a metal storm poured out, turning the area where Zhou Ran stood into a sea of fire.
"Boss!
We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna die!"
Bai Xuan gripped Zhou Ran's collarbone tightly, half his body burrowing into his flesh, his mushroom cap shedding debris from sheer terror.
"This is modern technology!
It's no joke!
Even a Golden Core Cultivator can't withstand an RPG!"
Zhou Ran didn't pay any attention, simply standing before the sea of fire.
The zanpakuto hung toward the ground, its edge scraping the pavement and sending sparks flying.
He looked up, his Purple-Gold Demonic Eyes reflecting the incoming swarm of missiles, completely unfazed.
He didn't even bother to make a Move to dodge.
He just took a step forward.
"Technology?"
Zhou Ran showed a look of mockery.
"Too slow."
Just as the first missile was less than three feet from his forehead, at the very moment the infrared sensor on the warhead flashed red.
Clang—!
A clear, resonant sword hum drowned out all the noise of the battlefield.
"Infinite Celestial Worthy, this humble Daoist has arrived!"
From above the heavens, golden light suddenly burst forth.
It was not sunlight.
It was a golden Innate Eight Trigrams Diagram covering a radius of a hundred meters, pressing down from thin air!
Qian, Kan, Gen, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Dui.
The eight golden characters, each as large as a bushel, circulated endlessly, as a vast Daoist righteous Qi forcibly propped up an absolute defense in front of Zhou Ran.
Thud, thud, thud, thud—!
The twelve missiles slammed into the golden light barrier, exploding into brilliant orange-red fireballs.
Shrapnel flew everywhere, and shockwaves raged.
But that seemingly thin layer of golden light didn't even budge!
As for the dense metal storm, after entering the range of the Eight Trigrams diagram, it was as if it had fallen into a swamp; its kinetic energy vanished, and the bullets fell to the ground with a series of clinks and clangs.
The smoke cleared.
In mid-air, a purple-robed Old Daoist Priest held a fly-whisk, every step he took producing a lotus.
Behind him, seven young Daoists carried long swords on their backs, forming a Big Dipper Seven Stars Array, their Sword Qi piercing the sky.
The newcomer was none other than Zhang Xuansu of Longhu Mountain.
The Old Daoist Priest flicked his fly-whisk with an ethereal grace, but his voice was full of vigor, making the eardrums of the mercenaries buzz.
"Foreign barbarians, carrying a few fire-sticks, dare to run wild in my Great Xia's territory?"
In the ruins.
Li Cangtian crawled out covered in blood and filth, staring up at the figure in the air, his eyes nearly bursting from their sockets.
"Zhang Xuansu!
You old bull-nose!
Longhu Mountain has been sealed for a hundred years, and today you come to wade into these muddy waters too?!"
"When the road is uneven, someone will level it; when demons run wild, someone will manage them."
Zhang Xuansu landed, not giving Li Cangtian a single glance, and turned to give Zhou Ran a deep Daoist bow, his posture extremely humble.
"Little Friend Zhou, this humble Daoist has arrived late."
"Not too late, your timing was quite precise."
Zhou Ran glanced at the Eight Trigrams array above his head and gave a cold laugh.
"This turtle shell isn't bad, it's quite tough."
Zhang Xuansu gave a bitter smile and shook his head, not taking offense.
His gaze turned toward the mercenaries in the distance who were still changing ammo belts, a cold light flashing in the depths of his eyes.
"Little Friend Zhou should focus on slaying demons; leave these small fry playing with gunpowder to this humble Daoist."
Knowing he was no match for Li Cangtian, he turned to strike at the Black Mamba Group instead.
After speaking, he waved his sleeve, and the seven swords behind him all flew out.
"Disciples, let them see what Daoist methods are!"
"Remember, believe in science; this is physical salvation!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The seven Flying Swords turned into streaks of light, lunging straight at the mercenary positions, immediately raising a storm of blood and gore.
The well-trained mercenary group immediately raised their riot shields, tangling with the Flying Swords.
With his rear concerns resolved.
Zhou Ran turned back.
Those Purple-Gold Demonic Eyes locked onto the struggling Li Cangtian.
Like a hunter locking onto a dying beast.
He was in a wretched state now, his Daoist robes shredded, his hair disheveled, and a large part of his chest collapsed.
But in his eyes, besides terror, there was more of a kind of venomous resentment.
"Good...
What a powerful Physical Body!"
Li Cangtian wiped the bloody froth from the corner of his mouth and grinned hideously:
"I underestimated you. You aren't in the Qi Condensation stage at all, you're a Body Cultivator!
And an extremely rare Hard-body Body Cultivator at that!"
"Zhou Ran, you are indeed strong."
"But your biggest mistake, your absolute biggest mistake, was to run out of spiritual energy at this time!"
In Li Cangtian's cloudy old eyes, a sharp light blazed.
He could see it.
Although Zhou Ran's offensive was fierce, his aura was extremely unstable.
That was the weakness after forcibly overdrawing one's potential.
That punch just now, though domineering, clearly lacked follow-up power.
Otherwise, Li Cangtian would already be a corpse.
"Running out of spiritual energy?"
Zhou Ran stopped in his tracks and tilted his head as if he were listening to a joke.
"To kill an old dog like you, why would I need spiritual energy?"
"I have this hand, and that's enough."
He raised his left arm, his fingers clutching the air.
The air was compressed and exploded between his fingers and palm, making a series of crisp popping sounds.
"Arrogant and ignorant!"
Li Cangtian roared, his hands forming a bizarre hand seal.
"Today, I shall let you witness the supreme treasure of my Wuji Sect!"
Ding-ling-ling—
A crisp and pleasant, yet scalp-numbing sound of a bell abruptly rang out.
Li Cangtian spat out a thumb-sized copper bell from his mouth.
That copper bell grew with the wind, instantly becoming the size of a washbasin, hovering above his head.
The body of the bell was covered with hideous ghost faces, surrounded by black energy and gusts of Yin wind.
Soul-Snaring Bell!
This was a Demonic Weapon that the successive Sect Heads of the Wuji Sect had refined for hundreds of years!
It specialized in attacking the Divine Soul!
Even a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, upon hearing this bell, would have their Divine Soul shattered in an instant, turning into a walking corpse.
"Kneel for this seat!"
Li Cangtian spat a mouthful of essence blood onto the bell.