12: Chapter 12 Thirty-Six Floors

"You're right. No matter how you argue, you are all going to die today!"

Zhang Jian's eyes were fierce. He didn't care at all about Zhou Ling's angry rebuke. As soon as he finished speaking, he charged toward Zhou Ling first.

"Bang!"

"Clang!"

"Boom!"

The two sides instantly clashed in a chaotic battle. Sword light and palm winds intertwined, and the roar of clashing Qi echoed through the forest.

Xiang Tian hid behind a large tree with Xiahou Yu and Duanmu Hongdie, peeking out to observe the battle. A smile curled at the corner of his mouth: "Once they are both exhausted, we can reap the benefits."

His left arm was around Xiahou Yu's waist, while his right hand held Duanmu Hongdie's hand. With a beauty on each side, he was quite content.

"Reaping the benefits isn't that easy." Duanmu Hongdie shook her head, her expression grave. "Of the ten at the Peak of the Qi Condensation Realm in this Secret Realm, two have yet to appear. You've met Senior Brother Liu Jian; his strength is unfathomable. You might not be able to beat him."

"And who is the other one?" Xiang Tian asked curiously.

"It's Jin Yuan." Duanmu Hongdie's voice dropped a few decibels. "I castrated him before, but in his shame, he comprehended a powerful Cultivation Technique and his strength has improved by leaps and bounds."

"Oh? Could it be the Sunflower Manual?" Xiang Tian immediately associated it with Dongfang Bubai from the Wuxia novels of his past life and blurted it out subconsciously.

"Huh? How did you know?" Duanmu Hongdie looked at him in surprise. "This Cultivation Technique is indeed called the Sunflower Manual. He comprehended it during his month of seclusion. Now, apart from Senior Brother Liu Jian, who can exchange a few moves with him, others must work together to contend with him."

"So he's already become that strong." Xiang Tian rubbed his chin, thoughtful.

"That's not right. Aren't there ten people? Even counting you, that's only nine!" Xiang Tian looked at Duanmu Hongdie strangely.

Counting on his fingers, there still weren't ten people.

"Eh?" Duanmu Hongdie was also confused. "I… I don't know who the last person is either."

"If you don't know, then you don't know! Whoever it is, I will beat them up." Xiang Tian was quite confident in himself.

"Stop bragging. Jin Yuan will likely seek revenge on me, so you…" Duanmu Hongdie turned to look at Xiang Tian, her expression complex. She wasn't sure if this man was willing to confront the powerful Jin Yuan for her sake.

"Don't worry, I don't believe he's stronger than me." Xiang Tian patted his chest. "Just based on the fact that you castrated him, he can't compare to me. Not to mention… I've already slept with you."

"You… are asking for a beating!" Duanmu Hongdie's cheeks flushed red, and she reached out to pinch Xiang Tian's arm.

The two were fooling around behind the tree, while the battle on the other side was nearing its end.

"Chen Xian, you've lost an arm, yet you're still so stubborn. I'm truly impressed!" Ding Feng held Chen Xian's other severed arm, his tone mocking.

Chen Xian was covered in blood, yet he still stood straight. He snorted, "Do whatever you want to me, stop the nonsense!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. I heard this Chen Xian still wanted to pursue Little Yu." Duanmu Hongdie watched Chen Xian in the arena and whispered to Xiahou Yu.

"Sister Duanmu, I never agreed to him. It was just his own wishful thinking." Xiahou Yu immediately retorted.

"Both his arms are ruined now. His life is completely over." Xiang Tian sighed.

"Look, everyone! It seems there's a turning point!" Xiahou Yu suddenly pointed at the battlefield and exclaimed.

The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw a man wearing red robes and dressed like a woman suddenly appear on the battlefield. He held his fingers in an orchid gesture, and between his fingertips, he pinched a long, thin embroidery needle, his posture seductive.

"It's Jin Yuan!" Duanmu Hongdie recognized the person at a glance.

"You don't have to tell me, I could have guessed." Xiang Tian watched Jin Yuan with interest, wanting to see what kind of skills this person who practiced the "Sunflower Manual" actually had.

"Hand over the Storage Pouches in your hands, and I can spare your lives." Jin Yuan's voice was feminine, making one's scalp tingle.

"You dead sissy…" A Disciple beside Ding Feng couldn't help but curse, but before he finished, an embroidery needle pierced directly through his head.

This speed!!

Ding Feng's brows were locked tight. He hadn't even seen the trajectory of the embroidery needle.

"Senior Brother Jin, this is my Storage Pouch." Zhou Ling saw this and dared not resist anymore. He hurriedly threw his Storage Pouch to Jin Yuan, his tone fawning. "Can I go now?"

"Get lost." Jin Yuan waved his hand. Zhou Ling felt as if he had been granted amnesty and ran away as fast as he could.

"Jin Yuan, Zhou Ling might fear you, but we don't!" Ding Feng gritted his teeth and shouted to Du Yong and Zhang Jian beside him, "Zhang Jian, Du Yong, come with me, let's kill this freak!"

The three immediately charged toward Jin Yuan, and the four were instantly locked in battle.

"This castrated man…" A Disciple brought by Ding Feng muttered, but the next second, his throat was pierced by an embroidery needle, and he died on the spot.

"Watch your mouths. Some things shouldn't be said carelessly." Jin Yuan swept his icy gaze over the remaining Disciples. Those people were so scared they hurriedly covered their mouths with their hands, not daring to even breathe hard.

"Bang!"

"Boom!"

On the battlefield, the four were fighting fiercely, and the fluctuations of Qi were becoming increasingly violent.

Xiang Tian and the two women watched from behind the tree for a long time, gradually losing interest. Without realizing it, the three of them leaned against each other and fell asleep.

When they woke up again, only one person was left standing on the battlefield.

It wasn't the trio of Ding Feng, nor was it Jin Yuan, but Senior Brother Liu Jian!

"Senior Brother, you really are good at hiding. Didn't you say before that you disdained fighting for things?" Jin Yuan lay on the ground, covered in blood, looking at Senior Brother Liu Jian with a mocking tone.

Senior Brother Liu Jian bent down to pick up the scattered Storage Pouches on the ground, his tone flat. "I didn't fight for them; I just came to pick up the leftovers."

"You really are a damn despicable person!" Jin Yuan couldn't help but curse.

"You actually dare to curse me? It seems you still have some energy left." Senior Brother Liu Jian's eyes turned cold, and he raised his sword to stab Jin Yuan.

"Clang!"

Just as the tip of the sword was about to pierce Jin Yuan, a golden light suddenly flashed, deflecting Senior Brother Liu Jian's sword.

"Who is it?" Senior Brother Liu Jian frowned, scanning the surroundings. "I don't recall there being any expert in this Secret Realm who could block my sword."

"Senior Brother, we meet again." Xiang Tian walked out from behind the tree, his expression calm.

"Junior Brother Xiang Tian? Why are you here?" Senior Brother Liu Jian looked surprised. "With your strength, how could you possibly reach the center of the Secret Realm? You should have been eliminated halfway there."

"Senior Brother, isn't it you who guided me here?" Xiang Tian raised an eyebrow. "As for my strength, that's just the strength you thought I had. I've already bragged to my wives that I would let them take the top three spots, so naturally, I won't break my promise."

As soon as he finished speaking, nine golden petals emerged from around his body, rotating around him.

"Hmm? A companion treasure?" Senior Brother Liu Jian's eyes narrowed; he obviously hadn't expected Xiang Tian to have such an Opportunity.

Jin Yuan, lying on the ground, was also shocked when he saw Xiang Tian.

He knew Xiang Tian's previous strength all too well; he was simply a useless waste through and through.

He even suspected that Xiang Tian had been subject to Possession, otherwise, how could he have suddenly become so strong?

"Junior Brother Xiang Tian, thank you for saving my life." Jin Yuan took a deep breath and thanked Xiang Tian. "If I can get out alive, I will definitely repay you in the future."

When Xiang Tian heard this, he inexplicably got goosebumps and quickly waved his hand. "No need to thank me. Get up quickly. If we want to take him down, we have to cooperate."

He wasn't stupid enough to confront the powerful Senior Brother Liu Jian alone. Saving Jin Yuan was meant to recruit an ally in the first place.

Jin Yuan gritted his teeth, struggled to climb up from the ground, and wiped the blood off his face. "I can still fight!"

"Very good!" Xiang Tian breathed a sigh of relief, turned to look at Senior Brother Liu Jian, "Senior Brother, are you ready? We should start the fight!"

Senior Brother Liu Jian snorted coldly, raised his sword, and stabbed toward Xiang Tian. "Ignorant boy, today I'll let you know what true strength is!"

"Clang!"

Xiang Tian immediately controlled the Nine-Petal Golden Lotus and shot it toward Senior Brother Liu Jian.

Jin Yuan didn't hesitate either; the embroidery needles flew from his fingertips, coordinating with the Nine-Petal Golden Lotus to rotate around Senior Brother Liu Jian, launching continuous attacks.

"Clang! Clang!"

The sound of metal clashing rang out one after another, but Senior Brother Liu Jian remained at ease, easily blocking all attacks.

"This won't work. I have to join the fray myself!" Xiang Tian gripped the qingling sword and charged toward Senior Brother Liu Jian. "Take this sword!"

"Clang!"

When the two swords collided, Xiang Tian felt his arm go numb, almost losing his grip on the sword.

"System! We are both at the Peak of the Qi Condensation Realm, why is he so strong?"

[Host, he is not at the Peak of the Qi Condensation Realm, but at the tenth layer of the Qi Condensation Realm!]

"Ah? There are ten layers to the Qi Condensation Realm?" Xiang Tian was stunned; he had always thought the Qi Condensation Realm only had nine layers.

[Who told you the Qi Condensation Realm only has nine layers?]

While dodging Senior Brother Liu Jian's attacks, Xiang Tian asked, "Are there higher Ranks?"

[Of course. To be precise, the Qi Condensation Realm has thirty-six layers, but in reality, only the first twelve layers increase combat power; the subsequent twenty-four layers are just for stabilizing the Foundation and do not increase strength.]

"Damn, why make it so complicated?" Xiang Tian grumbled, once again using his sword to block Senior Brother Liu Jian's attack, but his heart grew increasingly grave.

Senior Brother Liu Jian, at the tenth layer of the Qi Condensation Realm, was far stronger than he had imagined. Relying only on himself and Jin Yuan, it would be very difficult to win.