Chapter 123: The Destination—Eastern Realm

In the martial arena, Mu Han’s heart pounded, and he was filled with regret.

He felt as though he had put himself in an impossible position.

If only he had known this would happen, he would never have shown off earlier. He should have launched an all-out assault instead; then he would not be in such an embarrassing predicament now.

“Isn’t the Water Fairy Sect merely an ordinary one-star power? How could it possibly nurture such a monstrous prodigy?”

Mu Han swallowed several pills, his expression dark and uncertain.

After thinking it over, he decided he could not afford to lose face. Raising his voice, he said, “Indeed, the younger generation is formidable. But I was holding back earlier. Now, it is time to show you what I can really do.”

Fearing that any delay might lead to unforeseen complications, Mu Han immediately unleashed the full power of the Crimson Moon Slash as soon as his injuries had recovered. The seven full moons behind him instantly exploded, sending countless crimson crescent blades surging forth with terrifying momentum.

This was the true offensive form of the ultimate technique.

With so many crescent-shaped blades sweeping through the air, even a peak Profound-tier demon beast would be unable to withstand them.

Mu Yue immediately summoned petals of sword aura to block the attack. Yet beneath the overwhelming barrage of crescent blades, the nine petals shattered one after another.

Fortunately, she had anticipated this. True essence surged from within her body, continuously condensing fresh petals of sword aura.

In midair, the petals were repeatedly cleaved apart by the crescent blades, but new petals quickly formed and intercepted the attacks.

For a time, the two sides became locked in a contest of true essence.

“At this rate, Mu Yue is going to lose,” someone murmured.

Mu Han, at the peak of the late Connate stage, possessed more than twice the sea of qi of Mu Yue, who was only at the mid-Connate stage. If they were competing in endurance, Mu Han was certain to emerge victorious.

Wang Shuiling stood outside the martial arena, deeply worried.

Once the battle turned into a war of attrition, the advantage of a higher cultivation realm would immediately become apparent.

Thus, although she favored Mu Yue, she had no choice but to admit that Mu Han was gradually gaining the upper hand.

“Hahaha! In a battle of endurance, you are no match for me!”

Mu Han laughed loudly, but his eyes suddenly narrowed. Several crescent-shaped blades abruptly changed direction, slicing toward Mu Yue from the side and rear.

As members of the Evil Moon Sect, they cared only about the result, never the method.

Now that he had gained the advantage, why not use a few little tricks to secure an easy victory?

“Mu Han, how despicable!”

Wang Shuiling paled and hurriedly called out, “Junior Sister, watch out!”

Qingxi’s gaze tightened.

“As expected of someone from an unorthodox sect. He will stop at nothing. Still, I have to admit that Mu Han has a very good chance of winning.”

But just as everyone believed Mu Yue was about to be defeated, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from her body. Her cultivation instantly broke through to the late Connate stage.

With her cultivation enhanced, she could draw upon a greater quantity of true essence within the same span of time, making her petals of sword aura far more powerful.

With a thunderous boom, Mu Yue suppressed Mu Han. She effortlessly evaded the crescent blades launched in the sneak attack, then swiftly fused the nine petals of sword aura into a gigantic sword and brought it crashing down.

Mu Han had no choice but to gather every crescent blade he could, yet the blow sent him flying. He landed on his back and slid more than a dozen meters across the ground before finally coming to a stop.

“I… actually lost?”

Even now, Mu Han still had not recovered from the shock.

He could never have imagined that he would be defeated by a girl barely in her teens.

The frustration was ten times more intense than when Qiu Yingying had defeated him.

“A truly heaven-blessed prodigy!”

“A late-Connate cultivator under twenty years old—she is far too powerful!”

“Do you think Mu Yue might become the first peerless genius in Cloud River Prefecture to reach the Spirit Veil realm before the age of thirty?”

No one paid any attention to Mu Han, who lay on the ground questioning his life. Instead, they turned their eyes toward the victor, Mu Yue.

Even Qingxi was astonished.

Her cultivation speed is far too fast. She is almost catching up with me.

It seems my cheat is still not powerful enough!

I need to find some time to prepare for an attempt at the peak of the Connate stage.

Qingxi made her plans in silence.

“Everyone, now that the challenge has ended, please return to the hall so that we may discuss how to deal with the fiends from the Eastern Region.”

Shen Qianzhong spoke with graceful composure, his voice gentle. Upon hearing him, many people immediately returned to the main hall.

Mu Han, who had been lying motionless on the ground, suddenly sat upright. A trace of coldness entered his gaze as he looked at Mu Yue.

Although he had suffered an unexpected defeat, Mu Han was no ordinary person. He was a prodigy who had risen above ten thousand others.

He opened his folding fan and, despite his injuries, walked into the hall with an unhurried, composed stride.

But he did not return to Table Thirty-One.

Having been defeated by someone who was not even on the Rising Star List, he would be cast off the list entirely. Though Shen Qianzhong had allowed him to remain at that long table out of consideration for his status, Mu Han knew that he no longer had the qualifications to sit there.

He casually chose a corner and leaned against the wall, his eyes narrowing slightly. Like a venomous snake lying in wait, he endured the humiliation and bided his time.

Through his scanning ability, Qingxi knew every move Mu Han made.

As expected of a supreme prodigy from an unorthodox sect like the Evil Moon Sect. He looks impulsive, but in truth he is remarkably patient—a ruthless character.

Qingxi silently added Mu Han to her mental list of people to watch.

People like him had to be guarded against carefully.

Otherwise, one careless moment might be enough for them to sink their fangs in deeply.

The gathering continued.

Yet most people remained absorbed in Mu Yue’s formidable strength and had little interest in discussing how to resist the fiends.

Moreover, Wang Shuiling and Qiu Yingying had revealed the truth, so everyone now knew that the Golden Veil fiend from the Eastern Region had already fallen.

In their eyes, that fallen fiend had certainly been the leader of the fiends in the Eastern Region.

This meant that the Eastern Region’s fiends were now without a leader. Although several Spirit Veil and Origin Veil experts remained, the threat they posed had been greatly reduced.

“This is an opportunity we absolutely cannot miss!” one of the prodigies declared.

“The fiend army in the Central Region has left even the three Heavenly List Kings temporarily helpless. The other regions each have Golden Veil experts stationed there, making them difficult to attack for the time being. But the leader of the Eastern Region has been slain by an earth demon beast. It is our best point of breakthrough.”

“I agree!”

Another person voiced his support.

“Senior Sister, did the leader of the fiends really die in such a miserable way?” Qingxi asked Qiu Yingying. She knew that earth demon beasts inhabited the Ancient Luo Lands.

Any expert at the Spirit Veil realm or above who entered that place would awaken the earth demon beasts.

In Qingxi’s view, that fiend must have coveted the ley lines beneath the Ancient Luo Lands and descended there for that reason. In the end, he had inexplicably lost his life.

“It is absolutely true. Wang Shuiling and I happened to witness the entire event that day. Even now, the memory remains vivid.”

At the recollection of the earth demon beast’s mountain-sized claws, she suddenly felt terribly insignificant.

Compared with a king-level demon beast, she was still far too weak.

There was an old saying in Cloud River Prefecture:

“Below the king level, all are ants.”

Even after advancing to the Golden Veil realm, one was no more than a single slap away from death before a king-level expert.

Before long, the discussion reached its decisive stage.

The overwhelming majority of the prodigies believed that the matter had to be reported to the sects’ senior authorities as quickly as possible.

As long as several Origin Veil experts took action and restrained the fiends of the same level, the prodigies of the younger generation could seize the opportunity to launch a fierce assault on the remaining fiends.

Thinking of the rewards for the top ten on the secondary list of the Demon-Suppressing Ranking, everyone was already eager to act.

Bang!

Suddenly, a figure crashed through the main doors and entered the hall.

Everyone was startled and turned around in unison.