An intense, unparalleled feeling took hold of Chen Fan's mind; his heart beat heavily.
On the Dragon Mountain Peak’s platform, he had felt utterly helpless against Duan Jingtian, who was overwhelmingly stronger than him. He had felt despair back then.
However, what he felt right now wasn’t that, but rather palpitations of the heart.
Although they were evenly matched, Chu Tiange had unleashed his strongest move—a vast and mighty sword light carrying the heavenly might of thunder. Even the sun, moon, and stars changed color and trembled under its influence.
The attack could kill any martial artist at the fourth level.
Chu Tiange had put every ounce of strength in it, holding nothing back. Sensing the imminent danger, Chen Fan countered without hesitation.
As he activated the Heaven Seizing Art, his original primeval vessel bloomed with a divine light. The primeval force in his primeval vessel burned, releasing endless power that surged wildly in his meridians, producing crashing noises.
Magma and lava churned inside the Heaven Seizing Furnace, erupting with a terrifying force. Chen Fan’s blood boiled, birthing an even stronger power, and coursed through his veins with vigor.
The two illusory primeval vessels revolved crazily around his original primeval vessel, projecting their immense force into it. Chen Fan's aura rolled violently, steadily rising higher and higher.
He also pushed the Myriad Elephants Divine Art to its limits, unleashing godly strength within his flesh and blood. The ancient wild elephants within him flung their trunks, emitting a dragon-elephant-like hiss.
It had been quite a while since Chen Fan had brought out every crumb of his strength.
All his powers converged on the Heaven Piercing Spear, which trembled and hummed like it had a spirit and could sense the formidable force emanating from Chen Fan. The spear's vibrations induced shaking in the surrounding space, accompanied by a tearing sound.
A single note came out from Chen Fan’s mouth. His movement was similarly simple. His arm violently thrust forward, propelling the Heaven Piercing Spear.
The friction produced a sharp noise as the air exploded above the spear. A wild surge of white air current tossed and turned the space like turbulent sea waves.
A resounding rumble echoed, akin to an asteroid colliding with the land, a deity clashing with a devil, or the sun colliding with a star.
The Heaven Piercing Spear clashed with the thunderous sword stream, causing an explosion that silenced all other sounds in the world.
The fighting between the elite disciples of the various sects and the blood-sucking bandits had stopped.
All gazes converged on the clash, witnessing a mushroom cloud rising from the imperial palace, reaching a towering height of a thousand feet and shaking the heavens.
Terrifying air currents whistled and swept over them. Buildings collapsed and crumbled under the fierce impact, turning into ruins.
The space shook violently. Shockwaves visible to the naked eye rolled out, rushing like a river stream, sweeping in all directions.
Everything was about to be destroyed under this force.
Near the imperial palace, some hiding bandits let out miserable cries affected by the fallout. Some even exploded, turning into bloody mist.
“Quickly retreat!” shouted some experts, their faces pale.
The fierce shockwaves were rapidly rolling out for about a dozen miles away, reaching the ongoing battle between the blood-sucking bandit army and disciples from the various sects.
Some couldn't evade in time, so both the blood-sucking bandits and the disciples spewed fresh blood from the impact as if struck by lightning. They had sustained some heavy injuries.
Weaker combatants and injured Yuanfu realm experts roared indignantly and perished from the impact, becoming history.
Countless eyes stared in shock at the terrifying storm rolling over. Everyone's complexion turned pale as if they had narrowly escaped the gates of hell.
“This... is too terrifying!”
“Chu Tiange and Xue Chongtian are actually this powerful. Neither is giving ground to the other. I'm afraid both are just half a step away from reaching the fifth level.”
“No, the other person can’t be Xue Chongtian! He practices the Blood Demon Cultivation Technique. His moves should fill the sky with blood shadows and be incredibly sinister. However, the earlier attack showed no sign of evil qi.”
“You’re right! The other person is not Xue Chongtian! Could it be a genius disciple of some sect?”
Discussions echoed as people squinted, trying to guess who Chu Tiange was fighting.
The geniuses of the various sects knew about each other. Chu Tiange was a genius among the elite disciples of the Spring Autumn Sect. So, a prominent figure like him was naturally well-known among the disciples of the other sects.
However, they knew nothing about the other fighter, Chen Fan.
The fierce wind storm gradually calmed down in the skies above the imperial palace, revealing Chen Fan and Chu Tiange.
Their clothing lay in tatters from the collision of formidable forces, and both panted heavily, their blood and qi in tumult.
They had employed their strongest moves earlier, but neither managed to gain an advantage—they were evenly matched.
Underneath his mask, Chen Fan stared at Chu Tiange grimly and smiled. “Chu Tiange, you’re powerful, as expected. Unfortunately, you aren’t strong enough to kill me. I can’t kill you, either, but I will soon be able to!
"Alright, I'll spare your life for now. I'll collect it in the future!" said Chen Fan as he swiftly moved, sweeping away into the distance. Continuing the fight with Chu Tiange wouldn't yield a positive outcome; both would be significantly weakened instead, benefiting others.
Although Chen Fan wanted to kill Chu Tiange very much, the latter was too strong. He could only force a draw even after unleashing his full power. Killing Chu Tiange now was beyond his capability, but it would be possible after advancing to the third level.
Chen Fan turned into a streak of light and shot into the distance.
Chu Tiange’s complicated expressions changed a few times. He gave chase and yelled loudly, “Luo Ling, Ying Tian, stop him with our men!”
Chu Tiange was arrogant and proud by nature. He found the draw against someone in the second level of the Yuanfu realm a great humiliation.
Driven by the desire to hold Chen Fan back and kill him, he rallied his companions. Despite the exhaustion from their earlier clash, Chu Tiange believed that by joining forces, they could eliminate Chen Fan.
The Heaven’s Alliance elite disciples, dressed in blue, purple, and other colors, responded to Chu Tiange's shout. Eager to prove themselves, they swiftly moved, coordinating their attacks to stop Chen Fan.
Chen Fan smirked coldly at their audacity. They dared to chase him with only first and second-level cultivation!
Chen Fan thrust his spear out. Heaven and earth resonated, and the wind and clouds changed colors.
Their attacks all shattered. A terrifying force erupted, slamming into the Heaven’s Alliance members.
The blue- and purple-clad youths were at the forefront like a skewer of sugar-coated hawthorn candy.
Chen Fan pierced them with the Heaven Piercing Spear, shaking his arm to unleash explosive strength. The three met a miserable end—exploding without a chance to cry out, leaving no trace behind.
Chen Fan harrumphed coldly with an invincible, ferocious might. The others’ faces went pale, retreating in fear.
With a swish, Chen Fan melded into the darkness, disappearing without a trace.