176: Spark Token

This bit of Spiritual Qi consumption was nothing to Zhang Sheng at all!

The Primordial Chaos Heavenly Art at the Perfected State circulated on its own, replenishing tens of thousands of Spiritual Qi in his Dantian every second, endlessly.

Lian Qiu was not severely injured, but Zhang Sheng's dismissive attitude was more stifling to her than the injury itself.

What was worse, maintaining that massive Dharma Body Manifestation consumed energy like a burst dam, causing her alarm.

"Zhang Sheng! Die!" she hissed and roared.

Boom!

Countless purple thunderbolts suddenly exploded, surrounding Lian Qiu's body, instantly shredding Zhang Sheng's Kun Yuan Dragon Capturing Hand into pieces!

Immediately following that, a blinding ball of thunder rapidly condensed and expanded in the palm of her giant Dharma Body!

Zhang Sheng's pupils constricted, and alarm bells rang in his heart!

This woman... while controlling her Dharma Body Manifestation, could she actually divide her attention to activate the Startling Thunder Divine Ability?!

He focused his Divine Sense to perceive it; the destructive aura contained within that thunderball was many times stronger than before!

"I cannot let her continue to gather strength!"

Thoughts flashed like lightning; 8,991 spirit suns in Zhang Sheng's Dantian ignited simultaneously! A massive amount of Spiritual Qi surged out!

"Water Binding: Breath of Frost!"

Under the precise control of his Divine Thought, the Spell was completed instantly! At the Perfected State, it was cast as soon as the thought arose!

Splash—Crack!

Monstrous waves of water emerged from thin air around Lian Qiu's massive Dharma Body, freezing into solid ice the instant they made contact!

The ice layer spread rapidly, sealing her and the condensing thunderball together! The rumbling of the thunderball stopped abruptly!

Lian Qiu was shocked and furious. How many times had Zhang Sheng caught her off guard now? She frantically mobilized all her power, forcefully shattering the thick ice layer covering her body!

However, before the ice shards had even fallen—Hum!

The surrounding Wood-element Spiritual Qi suddenly turned violent!

Countless emerald green vines, appearing as if they were living creatures, emerged from the Void Realm like giant pythons that had smelled blood, instantly wrapping tightly around her Dharma Body!

Lian Qiu's expression changed drastically: "This isn't right! These vines... have life?!" She struggled with all her might, but her Dharma Body was bound tighter and tighter, making it difficult to break free for a moment!

"How is this possible?! Even a second-tier Heaven-Grade Spell at the Perfected State shouldn't have this kind of power!" She was inwardly horrified.

A cold smirk curled onto Zhang Sheng's lips. His hand seals did not stop, and new vines continued to generate endlessly.

This was the result of his Physical Body having been tempered by Wood-element Spiritual Qi.

Although the "Green Vine Binding Kill" was still at the Perfected State, its power had skyrocketed several times over, while the Spiritual Qi consumption had sharply decreased!

"Lian Qiu, if you have any trump card Divine Abilities left, hurry up and reveal them!" Zhang Sheng's voice was cold. "Otherwise, you won't have the chance!"

At this moment, Lian Qiu's Dharma Body had been completely locked down by countless tough green vines, unable to move!

Her heart was in turmoil. A dignified Divine Power Realm Cultivator, actually going to fall into the hands of a Divine Breath Realm Cultivator? This was simply a great humiliation!

Killing intent surged in the depths of Zhang Sheng's eyes.

But reason pulled at him—to kill her was equivalent to poking the hornet's nest that was the Eight Gods Sect, ensuring no peace forever. But if he didn't kill her? This woman was vindictive; would she let him go?

"Damn it, I'll take the gamble!" Zhang Sheng steeled his heart.

He would gamble that before the Eight Gods Sect experts arrived, he could latch onto the thigh of the Qinglan Prefecture authorities! As long as he showed enough value, the authorities might not necessarily refuse to protect him!

Once his mind was made up, the strength of the green vines' constriction suddenly increased!

Lian Qiu's Dharma Body began to twist and deform amidst teeth-aching creaking sounds!

"Bastard! Let me go! Otherwise, the Eight Gods Sect will definitely grind your bones to dust!" Lian Qiu shrieked sharply, her heart filled with stifled rage.

She had thought that with the Starfire Token, taking Zhang Sheng, this "soft persimmon," as a sacrifice to claim credit was a sure thing. Who knew she would encounter this freak!

She wanted to use other Divine Abilities to turn the tables, but unfortunately... limited by her Aptitude, she had already exhausted everything for a god-connecting treasure medicine back then, so how could she have the spare energy to cultivate other powerful Divine Abilities?

It's over... the Starfire Token she had just obtained...

At the critical moment of life and death, a flash of determination crossed Lian Qiu's eyes.

Just as the Dharma Body Manifestation was released, she did not hesitate to crush the black token in her hand!

Hum!

Just as Zhang Sheng was about to deliver the final blow, a blindingly strong light suddenly exploded before his eyes!

A round energy light shield instantly enveloped Lian Qiu, and immediately following that, the light shield, along with the person inside, disappeared into thin air without a trace!

Zhang Sheng's Divine Sense instantly swept across a radius of a thousand miles, but he found nothing!

"Teleportation?" He furrowed his brows, recalling Lian Qiu's final action. "No! It was that token!"

"Damn it!" Zhang Sheng's expression darkened.

Lian Qiu had escaped! Not only was his strength completely exposed, but this woman would definitely bring back even more formidable reinforcements!

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhang Sheng pushed his speed to the limit, turning into a stream of light as he shot toward Tiangu City!

...

Hundreds of thousands of miles away, the space fluctuated, and Lian Qiu's disheveled figure appeared, stumbling.

"Damn Zhang Sheng!" She looked at her empty hand, her heart bleeding.

The Starfire Token she had worked so hard to obtain through the organization's assessment was just gone like that!

This was not only a token to contact the organization, but it also contained a spatial imprint from a Star God Realm Expert; it was a trump card for saving her life!

"To get another Starfire Token... I'll have to perform a monumental meritorious service!" Lian Qiu was so worried she was almost going crazy.

What Zhang Sheng could never have imagined was that not only would Lian Qiu not seek help from the Eight Gods Sect, but she would also go to great lengths to cover up this matter!

...

Under the massive city gate of Tiangu City.

As soon as Zhang Sheng's figure landed, the captain of the city gate guards came up to greet him, his tone carrying a hint of surprise and playfulness: "Kid, you're quite tough! To be able to come back alive from under the hands of a Divine Power Realm Cultivator, you have some skill!"

It was the same captain Zhang Sheng had sought help from earlier.

At this moment, a guard nearby saw Zhang Sheng's face clearly, his eyes widening abruptly, and he hurriedly transmitted his voice to the captain: "Captain! It's him, Zhang Sheng! The one on the fledgling tiger ranking!"

"I know, isn't he ranked ninety-thousand-something..." the captain replied subconsciously, but when he opened the "omniscient jade slip" he carried with him to check, his voice stopped abruptly, and he gasped!

The Jade Slip clearly displayed: "fledgling tiger ranking update: Zhang Sheng has defeated the Divine Power Realm Cultivator Lian Qiu head-on, his ranking has jumped to 9527th place!"

Zhang Sheng took out two hundred spirit crystals and handed them over, but the guard hesitated and did not take them.

Zhang Sheng keenly perceived that the few of them were communicating rapidly using Divine Sense.

The captain quickly flew closer, a warm smile piling up on his face: "Brother Zhang Sheng! Congratulations on entering the top ten thousand of the fledgling tiger ranking! From now on, Tiangu City is permanently open to you for free, and all entry, exit, and stay fees are waived! This is the treatment that geniuses in the top ten thousand deserve!"

"Top ten thousand?" Zhang Sheng's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately sank his Divine Sense into his own omniscient jade slip.

Seeing the glaring ranking update and the brief description, he felt a sense of awe in his heart: "The power behind this omniscient guide... their information-gathering capability is simply terrifying!"

He had no interest in wasting words with these guards who were arrogant before and obsequious now; he nodded and walked straight into the city.

Just looking at them one more time felt repulsive.

The teleportation hall.

"Lord Zhang Sheng, I am truly sorry," the Cultivator guarding the teleportation array said with a troubled face, "the teleportation array to Heavenly Injury City in Qinglan Prefecture... is currently under maintenance. Please wait a moment."

Zhang Sheng frowned and looked at the perfectly intact, glowing array platform: "Maintenance? The array platform is clearly intact; where are the maintenance personnel?"

"Uh... it's like this," the Cultivator said, sweat appearing on his forehead, explaining with a stiff scalp, "what needs maintenance is... the receiving array at Heavenly Injury City on the other side."

Zhang Sheng was speechless. Fine, I'll count it as my bad luck.

"Then I will change my route to Tianxing City, and then transfer to the Central Command City of Qinglan Prefecture." He immediately changed his plan.

"This... Lord Zhang Sheng," the Cultivator's eyes darted away, his voice lowering even further, "the teleportation array over at Tianxing City... also, also has some problems, and is temporarily impassable..."

Zhang Sheng's eyes turned cold. Could this excuse be any more clumsy?

Just at this moment—Boom!

An aura as heavy as a mountain and as overbearing as a Vicious Beast descended with a crash, instantly shrouding the entire teleportation hall!

A vigorous and heavy voice, seemingly carrying a metallic tremor, came from the entrance: "Good! A hero emerges from the youth! Truly, hearing of your name is not as good as seeing you in person!"

Everyone's gaze was instantly drawn over. A figure blocked the light at the entrance of the hall.

The newcomer was shockingly burly, nearly two meters tall, with broad shoulders and a wide back; his knotted, bulging muscles seemed to be cast from raw iron, filled with an explosive sense of primal power.

He just stood there, like a primordial Vicious Beast wearing a human form, and a sense of oppression rushed toward them.

"Allow me to introduce myself," the newcomer's gaze was like lightning, shooting straight at Zhang Sheng, "Tiangu City Lord—Ye Guyun!"