Chapter 221: Thunderous Ascension

The spring rain-washed night reveals a deep blue sky speckled with starlight!

Some stars shine brightly, others dimly.

Drifting with the spring breeze, thin clouds part to reveal a sparse scatter of falling stars, only to give way to a dazzling river of starlight where the clouds billow apart!

In Tinglei Alley, the dome of the sky knows no thunder.

Yet within the courtyard, muffled rumbles echo like the clashing of molten mercury—thunderous roars as if transporting blood.

A fierce wind surges, and mist bursts from every pore in relentless, curling waves.

Strands of blood-red lightning dance wildly around him, weaving into a deep, rumbling thunder within his body.

On his palms, two distinct streams of Divine Guts interlace – the true essence forged from two elite Martial Saint techniques!

“Thousand Mountain Solitary Blade and Lingxu Baqi Steps have finally reached the masterful realm!”

“These Martial Saint techniques are less taxing than Wanlong Fushen and Hun Yuan Qi Tian Gun, yet my cultivation has been sluggish due to minimal effort.”

“Now, with the nourishing power of the Dragon Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit, I have finally stepped into the master realm and refined their true essence.”

“Five streams of Divine Guts… all have been condensed! My internal organs can now be refined, twisting the refined Divine Guts into a single force.”

Li Che produced a small, black porcelain bottle.

He poured out a single, brownish-black pill; its intense medicinal aura burst forth in full force.

A Fifth-Stage Lower-Grade Three-Clawed True Dragon Blood Martial Pill!

This is the very pill he had pilfered from the great master Long Tai during the battle against City Lord Su Huai Li.

Its potent medicinal essence surged, and fierce energy roiled: even through his alchemist’s robe, it could not be contained.

Only a true great master could endure and ingest such a Fifth-Stage Martial Pill, the energy it held was simply overwhelming.

An ordinary Divine Guts Great Master would never dare take it.

But Li Che was different – his furnace-master physique had propelled him into the great master realm, and now, having mastered five Martial Saint techniques, he had condensed their true essence.

His physical form was immensely robust and powerful!

Coupled with a cleansing refining from the Dragon Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit, Li Che was confident he could withstand the pill’s potency.

After all, when he sparred with Long Tai, he clearly felt that his physical might was hardly inferior to Long Tai’s!

That is why he dared to ingest the pill.

Sitting cross-legged in the courtyard, powerful surges of Qi and blood began to roar within him.

Martial Pills, refined from demonic blood and earthly spiritual materials, are formidable concoctions.

Even in the Imperial Watch, a Fifth-Stage Martial Pill is a prized rarity – each one could deplete a Divine Guts Great Master’s fortune.

Li Che had only the opportunity to taste them thanks to Long Tai’s generosity.

They say a man must be both scholarly and martial – and that is indeed true.

If cultivation were likened to a spiritual pursuit, then in martial cultivation money is just as crucial!

A single Fifth-Stage Martial Pill is exceedingly valuable; beyond the cost of raw ingredients, it takes an alchemical master’s labor and mental strain.

All those added values mean that a Fifth-Stage Martial Pill is worth far more than a Seven-Essence Divine Crystal from the highest echelons!

Li Che chose to ingest the pill today primarily to stack up his reserves of Divine Guts!

Slow cultivation necessitates the aid of pills – supplementing martial practice with medicinal enhancements is common.

Even though every pill carries a trace of poison…

a martial fighter’s robust physique renders such toxins virtually negligible!

The Divine Guts burn like wildfire, flushing out even the most stubborn toxins lurking deep in the flesh, bone, marrow, and sinew.

He opened his mouth and swallowed the pill; as it entered his throat, its potent essence ignited like natural gas meeting a flame.

The pill tumbled down his throat, burning through his belly like a raging blaze!

In an instant, it swept through his organs and meridians like a torrent.

With a resounding thud, it struck as though a boulder had plunged into a vast lake!

A tidal wave of disruption spread within him; Li Che felt his entire body searing as if submerged in boiling water!

“Such overwhelming medicinal power!”

He felt as though the pill had transformed into a second heart in his abdomen, pumping out torrents of blood with each beat, forcefully smashing against his meridians and organs!

Boom—!!!

Like a high-pressure cooker, his pores burst open as countless streams of scorching heat blasted in every direction!

It was overwhelmingly intense!

The pill’s potency was extraordinarily fierce!

Li Che’s body, tempered by the Dragon Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit’s refining, was anything but ordinary – even among Divine Guts Great Masters, his peerless physique stood at the pinnacle!

Even among Divine Guts Great Masters, his body was unrivaled!

Thud—!

Boom, boom—!!

Li Che sat cross-legged with his eyes closed as a dense blood-mist quickly filled the entire courtyard.

His heart and the pill seemed to beat as one – every pulse ushered in torrents of blood through his meridians.

A gleam flickered on his brow-pill mark.

His nascent primordial spirit scanned the surroundings; a pill radiating golden light was soaked by his stomach acid!

With a single thought, his stomach churned, and in an instant, the pill was forcefully crushed by his stomach walls, shattering its alchemical robe in a burst!

Li Che’s face tensed as the pill exploded like fireworks in his stomach, bursting and darting violently like a rocket’s barrage!

Even his mighty body recoiled in searing pain, his abdomen twisted like a vise – the pill’s explosive power magnified tenfold the moment its robe shattered!

So the earlier release of power was only the prelude!

“This medicinal power… is incredibly ferocious!”

“Not even a great master who has achieved unity with the heavens could withstand it so easily!”

Li Che panted repeatedly as fierce currents of Qi swept away the blood-mist!

He leaped upward, his fists clenched; streams of Divine Guts burst forth in midair, exploding into a phantom of the Dragon Elephant!

A roar like that of a gigantic dragon and an elephant echoed!

Li Che began throwing punches, refining his inner furnace by practicing his Martial Saint techniques!

The heat was blistering, the intensity relentless!

The effect of a Fifth-Stage Pill was incomparable to that of Sixth- or Seventh-Stage ones – Li Che had taken Sixth-Stage Pills before, but they paled in comparison to this Fifth-Stage effect!

Chit-chit-chit—

Li Che’s entire body felt like it was ablaze, his flesh heating up rapidly!

Blood surged and roared with each beat, as if propelled by a relentless storm; the boiling blood thumped like non-stop distant thunder!

He turned blood red, as if carved from a gigantic blood diamond!

Whoosh—!

Within the courtyard, as the wind howled, Li Che thrust his fists forward; his self-created Martial Saint technique, Myriad Transformations of Dragon Elephant, was performed with sublime mastery!

With Thousand Mountain Solitary Blade and Lingxu Baqi Steps now in the master realm, his fusion of techniques had grown even more formidable.

There was a hint it might even reach perfection!

Boom—!

A punch was thrown, the refined Divine Guts roared like a dragon!

His fingers spread wide as the Xuankin Eight-Treasure Thunder Dragon Staff materialized in his hand; the sound of wind and thunder exploded as the staff’s multiple images revolved around him!

The Hun Yuan Qi Tian Gun merged with Lingxu Baqi Steps.

Countless staff silhouettes filled the courtyard, intermingled with Li Che’s figure so fast it was impossible to track his movements!

The true essence of the Thousand Mountain Solitary Blade was refined as Li Che focused on purifying his spleen!

And Lingxu Baqi Steps extracted the Divine Guts as he refined his liver!

Thus, each internal organ now had its corresponding refined Divine Guts!

Under the powerful impact of the Fifth-Stage Martial Pill,

Li Che absorbed the pill’s energy and refined his Divine Guts!

He continuously condensed the Divine Guts from Thousand Mountain Solitary Blade and Lingxu Baqi Steps, chasing after the ever-increasing number from Myriad Transformations of Dragon Elephant!

This pill’s potency was immense – Li Che didn’t use it to directly impact the Divine Guts from Myriad Transformations of Dragon Elephant, but to boost the overall quantity!

It was crucial; to achieve a state where every Divine Guts merged into a unified five-element form, he couldn’t neglect any aspect.

With a snap of his fingers!

A black chess piece shot out, swelling in the courtyard like a storm, transforming into the visage of Xue Dufu wearing a white mask reminiscent of Bai Wuchang!

Xue Dufu had changed drastically – his physique now massive and swollen like an overinflated balloon.

The moment Xue Dufu appeared, Li Che struck with his staff!

Relentless and merciless – the kill shot was brutal!

After all, Xue Dufu was already dead; even if struck down, he could reassemble himself.

“Come on! My master!”

“Oh! Kill me if you must!”

……

……

The starry night spreads out like a glittering river.

A cool spring breeze caresses the land.

In the Inner City, within a sprawling mansion,

the Demon Child dons a black undershirt, with a purple infernal lotus mark on his brow that emits a subtle glow.

Barefoot and small yet unnervingly mature, he strolls about the courtyard with his hands clasped behind his back.

Lifting his hand to clutch his chest, his dark eye circles reveal a hint of ferocity.

“This is dangerous… very dangerous…”

“I’m under surveillance again!”

“Underworld Ogre!”

The Demon Child gritted his teeth, his expression twisted in anger.

He hadn’t expected that the vicious underlings of the Underworld, fresh off their arrival in Daocheng, would immediately strike him.

They had cost him three of his most trusted curse-bound undead warriors!

Remember, these curse-bound undead warriors rival the might of a truly united great master!

Even within the Corpse God Sect, they were among the rarest disciples!

Training even one such warrior required an enormous sacrifice – and now three had been lost in one fell swoop.

But even after the loss, the Demon Child felt no safety!

There was not the slightest bit of security left!

Frustration overwhelmed him – he wanted to summon every ounce of power at his disposal…

He vowed to kill everyone from the Underworld!

Underworld Ogre, Ma Mian, and even the Divine Monkey – he wished to take them all down!

He knew all too well what had happened the previous night – City Lord Su Huai Li had been savagely butchered by Underworld Ogre right before You Liqing’s eyes.

The Underworld… were outrageously arrogant!

“This is Daocheng… what gives the Underworld the right to act so arrogantly?!”

The Demon Child flopped onto the doorstep, teeth gritted in anger.

In these days, he hadn’t even had time to indulge in pleasures.

He hadn’t even had a chance to devise a hunting plan for Li Nuǎnxi…

Now, Li Nuǎnxi had entered the Orthodox Mountain Gate of Qianyuan Divine Sect.

“This is troublesome…”

“My lady has entered the Orthodox Mountain Gate; who knows when she’ll emerge… Capturing her and bringing her back to Jizhou seems nearly impossible.”

The Demon Child exhaled, spread his arms, and collapsed onto the ground.

“Unless I deploy an undercover agent from within Qianyuan Divine Sect…”

“But there is only one such agent – someone too vital to expose. If the moment arises, they must work wonders.”

A cunning glint flashed in the Demon Child’s eyes.

“That agent… would be completely unexpected!”

“Hehe…”

“So if this agent is exposed because of a little girl, it simply wouldn’t be worth it.” The Demon Child’s dark eye bags trembled slightly.

Suddenly,

the Demon Child sat up from the ground.

In the main hall, swirling black mist roiled upward.

From within the mist emerged a figure.

Dressed in a white robe and wearing a white mask with the blood-written character ‘6’, the Corpse God Envoy appeared.

A Sixfold Corpse God Envoy!

Moreover, the golden patterns on his sleeve showed three circles.

A high-ranking Sixfold Corpse God Envoy!

Such a figure was among the strongest in the Corpse God Sect headquarters!

“Lord Demon Child.”

Upon seeing the high-ranking envoy, the Demon Child instantly perked up as his counterpart respectfully saluted him.

“You’ve finally arrived! With you here, I can finally relax a bit.”

“Daocheng is rather dangerous – the Time-Space Corpse Technique must be used at the right moment to enter Daocheng safely,” the envoy said calmly.

“I’m aware of your troubles, Lord Demon Child… the Underworld and our Corpse God Sect are locked in an endless struggle.”

“Ever since Underworld Ogre emerged from Feilei City with a reputation for slaughtering our disciples – be it the Lingying Sect in Feilei City or the eclectic gangs in Jingguang City –

he has waged a murderous rampage against our Sect ever since he entered Daocheng…”

The envoy’s voice, rasping behind his white mask, carried a grave tone.

“Indeed… several allied gangs that we had infiltrated have been ruthlessly torn apart by Underworld Ogre without any regard for principles!”

“That Ogre is vicious beyond measure!”

The Demon Child cursed under his breath.

“Mechanical Art, toxins, relentless Qi refining – ruthless and devious; a truly formidable foe.”

“He even possesses the means to see through our Corpse God Sect’s Undead Curse Seal disguise – that is his greatest flaw!”

“If my calculations are correct, Lord Demon Child… your position should already be known to him.”

“I know, but once Underworld Ogre strikes in Daocheng, he won’t dare hit twice… Do you think the Dao Master of the City Lord’s Residence is naive?”

“And what about the Temple Guardian Division and the Imperial Watch…”

“A surprise strike is one thing, but repeated assaults… even the Divine Seed great masters would be roused.”

The Demon Child bared his teeth: “Let him strike – his firework displays won’t kill me. I have my curse-bound undead warriors to block him, but if he comes again… he’ll die for sure!”

“I don’t believe even a Divine Seed great master could catch him!”

The Corpse God Envoy gave a soft laugh.

“Lord Demon Child, you could contact the Lie Shen Pavilion and have their blood-faced assassins hunt the Underworld scum…”

The envoy’s words fell into silence.

At that, the Demon Child’s eyes brightened!

“Yes! Although the Underworld has ruined Lie Shen Pavilion’s networks in Jingguang Mansion,

the assassins at Lie Shen Pavilion care little for the dead – they’re even colder than our Corpse God Sect!”

“It appears that to incite Lie Shen Pavilion into action against the Underworld, one must offer a hefty incentive.”

The Demon Child’s dark circles trembled as he said, “Contact Lie Shen Pavilion for me – and demand a high price. As long as the Underworld is eradicated, everything will be worth it!”

“Also, I have one demand: kill Underworld Ogre and bring me his head.”

“I want to see what kind of face lies behind that mask!”

Upon hearing this, the Sixfold Corpse God Envoy smiled softly.

With his white robe billowing, dark energy surged until within a breath he completely enveloped his figure.

The high-ranking envoy then activated the Time-Space Corpse Technique, moving with an agility that defied expectations!

……

……

A piercing cry—!

A silver eagle circled high above, its wings slicing through the night sky, before plummeting at breakneck speed!

Its broad wings thundered as it landed in the headquarters of the Temple Guardian Division in Daocheng.

Covering a vast area, the HQ had to register every Bizarre Temple due to their sheer number.

Thus, mountains of paperwork filled the office.

Documents on the status of various temples – from the two, three, sixteen, to the ninety-eight seven levels…

Records of every Bizarre Temple, details of the protective incantations and the strength of demonic forces were meticulously documented in the Temple Guardian Division,

even including maps of the Bizarre Temple, gathered at great cost by divine emissaries.

The silver eagle descended gracefully; a man in plain black clothes snapped his fingers and sent a blood-red pill tumbling into the eagle’s beak.

Then, he retrieved a note from the eagle’s talons, slowly unrolling it.

After a brief cry from the eagle, it spread its wings and kicked up a storm before vanishing into the night.

The man scanned the note with steely eyes.

Moments later, he raised his hand and said,

“Send Zhu Chaoyang and Xie Jing from Jingguang Mansion Headquarters over here.”

His words faded away.

A shadow in black stood with his hands behind his back.

“Jingguang Mansion… did another Bizarre Temple just vanish?”

“How coincidental – is it the work of the Bizarre Temple or someone’s deliberate act to wipe out a Bizarre Temple?”

“If it’s the latter, then who is truly to blame for this disappearance?”

“This is… a loophole.”

“I think… I’ve caught a hint of a loophole…”

The dark-clad figure snapped his fingers.

“Get me a complete list of everyone in Daocheng admitted through Jingguang Mansion.”

“And… gather all intelligence on the Underworld too.”

In the darkness, another figure flickered and vanished.

……

……

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—

Heat surged and roiled within the courtyard.

Li Che exhaled a breath of turbid air; beneath his ruddy skin, sparkling lights danced as every pore emitted searing heat, warping the very air.

“My Myriad Transformations of Dragon Elephant has reached twenty-five streams of Divine Guts, though only five have improved; not many in number… Yet the Divine Guts from Wanlong Fushen and Hun Yuan Qi Tian Gun have also peaked at twenty-five, while Thousand Mountain Solitary Blade and Lingxu Baqi Steps only muster ten.”

“What a pity… the pill’s effect has been exhausted.”

“If only I had a few more…”

Li Che rose; his bones crackled like a storm of thunder from beyond the clouds!

He raised his hand, and in that instant,

five streams of Divine Guts surged violently from his internal organs, exploding in resounding bursts!

They converged like five lightning bolts into one unified force!

Like five radiant beams of godly light, they tore through the air, shattering the turbulent vortex!

“So powerful!”

Li Che’s eyes trembled with excitement!

His fingers clenched; five-colored Divine Guts intertwined around his fist. With one punch, a brilliant burst of light and heat erupted –

Wanlong Fushen!

Raging like dragons roaring, his fist scattered the surrounding air into fragments!

“Stronger than the former Trinary Divine Guts! In strength, it might even surpass Long Tai’s innate Divine Guts!”

“The suppression of true Divine Guts by refined Divine Guts… such a phenomenon is exceedingly rare.”

“Unless the true Divine Guts are honed using Divine Seed martial arts – otherwise, I’ll always have the edge in sheer power!”

Li Che’s eyes shone brilliantly.

“But there’s a drawback: my advantage lies in the explosive force of five-element Divine Guts, yet in terms of toughness and endurance, they fall short of innate Divine Guts.”

“If my opponent were to wear mine away…”

“Hmm?! That might just exhaust him completely…”

Li Che recalled that with the Dragon Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit, his recovery far outpaced that of ordinary martial artists.

He made no move to restrain his Qi.

Tearing through the air, a jade talisman fell out.

“Divine Seed Martial Arts… Blood Croc Cleave, the damaged Divine Seed martial art!”

“Its rank still surpasses that of any Martial Saint technique.”

Li Che’s Divine Perception exploded as his spirit poured into the jade talisman, beginning to absorb the secrets of this Divine Seed Martial Art.

Roar—!!!

In an instant, his spirit shuddered as a massive, blood-colored crocodile came bursting forth, delivering a crushing slap!

The impact made the very air tremble as though about to burst apart.

Li Che’s brow-pill mark pulsed.

“An illusion… or perhaps a will akin to sword intent.”

His mind absorbed every detail of this Divine Seed Martial Art.

Every muscle and bone of his body resonated as if immersed in a swirling fog of Qi—

In the blink of an eye, a blood-red crocodile surged forth!

But as it burst into motion, it exploded into a dense blood-mist.

“Challenging, but manageable.”

“Divine Seed Martial Arts are still martial arts; nothing can outmatch mine!”

A smile curled on Li Che’s lips.

Then, in the next moment,

the smile on his face vanished abruptly.

His body swelled like a tower, bursting upwards like a mountain!

His black hair whipped wildly, and his eyes flashed with electric brilliance!

“Huff.”

“Inhale—!!!”

After a soft exhalation, Li Che drew a deep breath; in an instant, the blood-mist pervading the courtyard was absorbed into his body.

With his two fingers together, he tore through the air.

He grabbed his bamboo hat, placed it on his head, and donned his freshly carved Cute Cow Mask over his face.

He instructed his Painted Immortal clones to continue refining their divine essence.

Then, stepping out,

he executed a masterful Lingxu Baqi Steps!

Like a fleeting spark, he appeared atop the courtyard’s high wall.

With each stride, his movements left behind a blur of fading afterimages along the path.

……

……

Late at night, when the wind howls and the heavens are high,

Li Che, wearing an Ogre Mask and his Black Robe fluttering in the wind,

was resolute: he would not show mercy to anyone who dared target his daughter.

For she was his fatal flaw – any who harbored ill will would meet their end!

This was the wrath of a righteous, devoted father.

“Su Family… Su Chuyang.”

“Corpse God Sect… Demon Child.”

The murderous gleam under Li Che’s mask radiated pure intent.

Tonight, the night was exquisitely beautiful.

Having just broken through his limits,

Li Che knew all too well that friends accustomed to killing would understand… Tonight, it was murder time!

The Cosmic Chessboard expanded outward from his brow.

Clenching his fist, a Feilei Chess Piece materialized in his palm.

As his Painted Immortal clones dispersed into inky mist, Li Che reclaimed their positions.

The magnificent mansion was, however, not as grand as it had been bombarded by the Guanyin Lotus Main Battle Tank previously.

Staring at the tightly shut main gate of the residence, now sunk in eerie silence,

the Demon Child remained within the mansion.

This Demon Child – who audaciously eyed his daughter, calling her ‘my lady’ –

was a battle-hardened warrior among the Yellow-Haired fighters!

And still, with not a shred of remorse, he planned to scheme against his daughter!

Earlier, Li Che, enveloped by his Cosmic Chessboard, had detected a powerful Time-Space Corpse Technique aura.

He then saw a black mist vortex near the Demon Child, from which a Sixfold Corpse God Envoy emerged.

“A Sixfold Corpse God Envoy… roughly equivalent to Breath Retention Transformation or an unrivaled great master of the top three floral realms.”

“The Corpse God Sect certainly has its talents – to infiltrate Daocheng with a Sixfold Corpse God Envoy is daring indeed. Once discovered, the Divine Guard Army, the Temple Guardian Division, and the Divine Sect would all converge on him.”

Yet Li Che felt no fear, for through the Cosmic Chessboard and the Big Dipper’s perspective, he saw the envoy, transported by the Time-Space Corpse Technique, leave once more.

“Seems he’s off to liaise with Lie Shen Pavilion’s assassins to deal with the Underworld…”

A subtle smile curved Li Che’s lips beneath his mask.

At that moment, tired of waiting,

he decided to try his hand at taking down the Demon Child while the Sixfold Corpse God Envoy was absent.

Li Che did not underestimate the Corpse God Sect’s Demon Child.

He would only confront him personally after his cultivation breakthrough…

after all, the Corpse God Sect was willing to sacrifice three curse-bound undead warriors for him,

which proved his importance and status in their eyes.

With a snap of his fingers, a scroll erupted.

Then, Ma Mian sprang forth, clutching the Xiangong Fire God Barrett.

Li Che snapped his fingers again, and the air tore apart as a slender red Dragon Tooth Bullet manifested.

Adorned with a symbol of the Black and White Yin Yang Fish,

this was none other than the Black and White Collapse Desolation Dragon Tooth Bullet recently developed by his Painted Immortal clones.

Ma Mian caught the slender bullet, snatched it into the Fire God Barrett,

and Li Che stood rooted, his Cosmic Chessboard expanding!

In an instant,

within the courtyard, the Demon Child – with dark circles around his eyes – awaited the return of the Corpse God Envoy at the threshold.

Suddenly, a searing burn from the infernal lotus mark on his brow chilled his very bones!

A deathlike sensation, suffocating as a choking haze, assaulted him!

“Protect me! Hurry, protect me!”

“He’s coming!”

“He’s here!”

Seven-thousand words – I didn’t manage to finish before midnight. Running a bit late due to a strong reaction from my antibiotics and another all-nighter. Tomorrow, I promise a quicker finish! Keep reading, everyone! Let’s help Old Li hit ten thousand orders! Many thanks from Old Li!