Chapter 246 Detonation

At this moment, Wenqin was having trouble comprehending the situation.

What exactly happened just now?

Looking down, he could feel a slight ache at the sight of his bloodstained hand. But even that feeling was minute as compared to the confusion in his heart.

And then it struck him.

Despite benefiting from the boost that came from the Cauldron of Draconic Force, he had lost the clash against Nanlu Tianzi.

Objectively speaking, it was not a huge loss.

After being sent flying from the impact, he had managed to quickly regain his balance right after, stopping himself in mid-air.

But that did not change the fact that he lost.

Wenqin's perception swept out, but he did not focus on Lu Tianzi. Instead, he was trying to observe the reactions of everyone watching the fight.

As he had expected, there was absolute shock in everyone's eyes.

Just like him, no one expected him to lose that clash. Not a single person did.

Yet it had still happened.

But how?

Activation of his primal beast bloodline?

Mosha did the same thing as well, and it changed nothing.

So what made this Nanlu Tianzi so special?

Or was it a fluke?

Wenqin's gaze finally landed upon Lu Tianzi once more. Lu Tianzi was doing the same, and their gazes matched.

Yet another shudder went down Wenqin's spine.

It was at this moment that Wenqin finally realised that there was something fundamentally different about Lu Tianzi, something that clearly differentiated him from Mosha.

The current Lu Tianzi gave off a feeling of absolute dominance, as though he stood at the apex of the food chain and everything else only existed to serve his purpose. This feeling was something that Wenqin did not get from Mosha.

There was no mistaking it. Lu Tianzi's beastial bloodline was of a completely different level!

Could it be… an ancient beast bloodline?

No, that was impossible.

Not to mention the fact that no ancient beasts had appeared in the recent history. Even if they did, no one would be able to take them down. How, then, would a mere Essence Condensation realm martial artist be able to obtain their bloodline?

Since that was the case, there was only one explanation for things.

Lu Tianzi's beastial bloodline was one that stood at the very peak of primal beasts.

Wenqin subconsciously let out a sigh of relief.

As long as things were as he had deduced, then the situation was still under control. After all, all he did was lose a single exchange.

The fight was far from over.

With a thought, countless energy threads from the Cauldron of Draconic Force reached towards his arm, wrapping around it like a cocoon.

It was the same move that had knocked out Mosha, Wenqin's strongest attack.

By concentrating the Essence energy within the countless invisible energy threads into a single attack, he could burst forth with a surge of power far above his level. This was something that had been made possible only because he possessed a treasure like the Cauldron of Draconic Force.

Let's see you deal with this!

Wenqin no longer hesitated, charging forward once more towards Lu Tianzi.

This time, Lu Tianzi did not simply stand there and wait for Wenqin to approach. Instead, he took the initiative and moved towards Wenqin as well.

However, in contrast to the charging Wenqin, Lu Tianzi's steps were slow and unhurried, almost as if he was taking a casual stroll.

"Damn you!" Wenqin felt like he was being completely looked down upon.

He is the greatest talent of the Dragon Cauldron Kingdom, someone known to be the most likely successor for the Dragon Cauldron Overlord!

Yet in front of all these people, Nanlu Tianzi dared to treat him with such disdain?

Unforgivable!

If he left this lying down, how would others see him in the future?

He would forever be known as the person who had lost to someone two boundaries below him!

There was absolutely no way he would allow that to happen!

Wenqin drove the Slaughter Essence in his inner world to the limit, determined to put all of his strength behind this next strike.

Lu Tianzi's talon-like hand held the Moon Culler firmly. When Wenqin arrived before him, Lu Tianzi slashed out, once again expressionlessly.

He had definitely sensed the power behind Wenqin's attack. However, he was not too worried.

After all, his opponent was merely an insect at the Origin Core realm.

…Wait, what did he just think in his head?

Whatever, there is no point in trying to remember all that stuff. It was probably just something unimportant anyway.

The Moon Culler continued forward, and finally clashed against Wenqin's fist with a loud bang.

There was the usual storm of energy undulations upon impact, but there was something different this time.

The countless energy threads that had been wrapped around Wenqin's arm unwound rapidly, cutting forward as they did and shredding away Lu Tianzi's materialised Slaughter Essence.

Hmm?

Lu Tianzi finally let out a look of surprise, though only for the slightest of moments.

Even if it is only by a bit, he is certainly losing the exchange. At this rate, his materialised Slaughter Essence would be completely stripped away, and he might even suffer some injuries because of that.

It can't be helped then…

Slaughter Essence churned within Lu Tianzi's inner world as he summoned forth a new surge of Essence energy, driving it into the Moon Culler.

Returning Wraith Sword.

With a single smooth motion, Lu Tianzi completed the swing of his sword, and at the same time, sent Wenqin flying once more.

Wenqin widened his eyes in shock.

What the fuck?

But before he even had the time to think about the earlier exchange, Wenqin felt his hair stand on ends as a sense of unease swept over him. He suddenly had an intense feeling that danger was heading towards him from behind.

He was not wrong.

Sword light gathered in the air behind him, and without any warning, slashed down towards him. It contained the exact same power as Lu Tianzi's earlier strike, the one that had won Lu Tianzi the clash.

Seeing this, Wenqin felt his heart skip a beat in fear.

What the fuck??

Right now, Wenqin was still in the motion of being sent flying by Lu Tianzi. There was simply no way for him to dodge this attack.

Wenqin forcefully turned his body around, gathering his strength in his arm as he prepared to deal with the sword light. With the energy threads around his arm expended from the previous clash, new threads of energy immediately shot out from the Cauldron of Draconic Force, wrapping around his arm.

Wenqin might have lost the previous clash somehow, but he was not hurt too heavily either. As long as he dealt with this second wave of attack, he should be able to regain his bearings somehow.

But just as he was thinking that, Wenqin felt his surroundings lose colour, descending into a world of complete darkness.

This illusion attack again?

Wenqin scoffed.

He had already experienced this earlier when facing Mosha. Even though Lu Tianzi had not used it again up till now, Wenqin had certainly not forgotten about it. He had been prepared for it all along.

Closing his eyes, Wenqin instantly gathered his Essence energy in his mind. With a single thought, the Essence energy in his mind broke out in a storm, cleansing his mind of all stray thoughts.

Break!

Wenqin's eyes shot open, and at that moment, he could not help but curse in his heart.

What the fuck???

Before his eyes, it was still complete darkness.

All he could feel with his perception was a ghastly apparition charging towards him from behind.

There was no doubt about it. He had failed to extricate himself from the illusion!

"Damn it!" Wenqin roared in indignance.

Earlier, he had broken out of the illusion with ease despite being caught off guard.

Now that he had been prepared for it, he was unexpectedly unable to break out of it?

What kind of screwed up logic was that?

The ghastly apparition continued to draw nearer, but Wenqin knew that it was not the main problem.

The main problem was the one in front of him, the approaching sword light that he could no longer even sense with his perception.

There was no doubt about it.

He had lost, and against someone with a lower cultivation level too.

But even if he had lost the fight, that did not mean he would just take the attacks like a sitting duck!

"Come!" Wenqin shouted.

The Cauldron of Draconic Force moved at his will.

The huge bronze cauldron opened its lid as it shot forward, swallowing Wenqin whole. After that, the lid closed firmly, forming an impenetrable defence around Wenqin.

Bang-! Bang-!

Both of Lu Tianzi's attacks landed squarely on the Cauldron of Draconic Force from both sides.

The impact rang loudly in everyone's ears, but that was all it did.

The attacks cleared, and the treasure cauldron remained floating in the air, not a single dent on its surface.

The Cauldron of Draconic Force was indeed deserving of being a half-step Overlord rank treasure. It had held steady when faced with the terrifying two pronged attack from Marshal Xianming's group just now, and it certainly did not fail to do so this time as well.

As long as Wenqin had the option of hiding in it, there was simply no way to take him down!

Once the coast was clear, the lid opened and Wenqin flew out from within, his expression dark and solemn.

"I have to admit that I have underestimated you, Nanlu Tianzi. You are much stronger than what I have expected, incomprehensibly so. But our fight ends here," Wenqin announced while floating higher and higher into the air. "When we meet again, I will make sure to truly crush you into the ground as revenge for today's loss."

His opponent's strength had risen by far too much after his beastial bloodline activation. Even if Wenqin stayed any longer, he simply could not see how he could win.

Since that was the case, Wenqin no longer wished to stay and invite further humiliation.

Watching as Lu Tianzi's figure gradually become smaller before his eyes, Wenqin could not help but feel a slight sense of relief.

He was an Origin Core realm martial artist after all, and possessed the ability of flight. So long as he had this advantage over Lu Tianzi, he could leave the fight anytime he wanted.

Yes, it was a shameful retreat.

But by leaving right now, he could still act as though he possessed the intiative. This way, at least those watching might not think too badly of him.

After all, even though he lost two clashes in a row and was forced to use the Cauldron of Draconic Force for defence, the injuries he had sustained were still relatively light, not nearly enough to ruin his valiant posture.

At this point, Wenqin had already started thinking about the damage control that he had to do after this, all so as to take care of his reputation despite the loss. But a sudden sense of unease put an end to his thoughts.

Looking down once more, Wenqin felt a sudden urge to curse out loud.

With a powerful flap, the single left wing on Lu Tianzi had propelled him into the air, and he was now charging straight towards Wenqin!

Lu Tianzi's speed was faster than Wenqin's by far. On top of the fact that Wenqin had been distracted earlier, and thus had not tried to escape with his top speed, Lu Tianzi caught up in an instant.

Once again, Lu Tianzi slashed out with the Moon Culler.

And once again, the Cauldron of Draconic Force moved towards Wenqin.

"How ridiculous! What do you think you can achieve by doing this?" Wenqin roared in anger.

He was not worried about suffering any injuries from this. Even if Lu Tianzi stubbornly pursued him, Wenqin could simply stay within the treasure cauldron no matter how long it took.

However, this would mean acting like a coward in front of the masses, and it would greatly impact his reputation!

Seeing the treasure cauldron approach, Lu Tianzi's face was as calm as ever, not showing any signs of fluster.

With a flick of his left hand, an orb appeared before him, drawn out of his spatial ring.

This was none other than the Burning Heavens Orb, the treasure that Chiren had relied upon when fighting against Lu Tianzi. After his death, it had fallen into the hands of Nanlan Qianxue, who in turn passed it on to Lu Tianzi.

After channelling his Slaughter Essence into the Burning Heavens Orb, Lu Tianzi casually threw it out towards the approaching Cauldron of Draconic Force.

Tossed into the air, the Burning Heavens Orb immediately gave off an intense flash of light, illuminating the surroundings as though it was a star that was about to go supernova.

This is…?

Wenqin frowned in response, but he was not kept guessing for long.

Bang-!

The Burning Heavens Orb directly exploded, sending a wave of blinding light in all directions. It was quickly followed by a wave of intense heat as flames burned through the air, accompanied by a powerful shockwave that slammed into everyone and everything in the vicinity.

Even while guarding himself from the shockwave, Wenqin could not shake off the shock that he was feeling in his heart.

Lu Tianzi had actually sacrificed an Origin Core rank treasure, detonating it like it was a bomb!

The energy stored within an Origin Core rank treasure was no trifling matter. By detonating it in one go, Lu Tianzi had managed to create a shockwave with power far beyond what he could usually muster.

And this powerful shockwave had actually knocked away the Cauldron of Draconic Force, preventing it from covering Wenqin!

Without the treasure cauldron to guard him, Wenqin was now left completely on his own.

"Fuck you!" Wenqin roared.

The treasure cauldron might have been sent away, but the countless energy threads were still attached to Wenqin, forming a cocoon around his arm.

Facing the approaching Moon Cullter, Wenqin had no choice but to meet it head on, punch out once more with all his might.

Bang-!

Wenqin's stance was blown wide apart with that clash, completely losing his balance in the air.

But that was not the end of it.

Behind him, the sword light reformed, this time much faster than before. It came down upon him before he could even react, mercilessly slashing into his back.

Slash-!

Blood spurted into the air like a fountain.

Finally, a direct hit on Wenqin!