"Appear!' Almost in that instant when He Zhong uttered that, an echo of "appear" resonated in the air.
The latter had been announced by Duan Ling Tian.
When He Zhong's True Energy Voice Transmission entered Duan Ling Tian's ear, a sense of ominous premonition rose in his heart right away. He immediately raised his guard up right away.
The moment he saw He Zhong bringing out the Dao Talisman, he knew why He Zhong was so confident. It turned out that He Zhong wanted to use the Dao Talisman against him.
Of course, he believed that He Zhong would not dare to kill him using the Dao Talisman, but he would definitely dare to cripple him like that.
Perhaps, this was He Zhong's real intention after all!
Therefore, when He Zhong took the Dao Talisman out, Duan Ling Tian also grabbed a Dao Talisman with a raise of his hand.
The second He Zhong's Dao Talisman shot towards him after he activated its force with the word "appear", Duan Ling Tian had also shouted "appear" in that gravely dangerous moment to activate the force of the Dao Talisman in his own hand.
A non-offensive Dao Talisman could be activated without the need to throw it out.
In the air, the Dao Talisman that He Zhong threw out exploded in a split second, transforming into four streaks of sharp rays that were extremely fast before charging towards Duan Ling Tian's four limbs as though they were trying to tear his four limbs off his body forcefully.
One could easily imagine that if these four streaks of sharp rays got what they were aiming for, Duan Ling Tian would have definitely become a limbless cripple.
The four streaks of sharp rays were so fast that very few of the onlookers could see it clearly.
"Two-Star offensive Dao Talisman!" Huang Cheng, the outer court elder, was one of the few people who could see the trajectory of the four streaks clearly. His eyes lit up right away as he was able to discern that He Zhong had activated a Two-Star offensive Dao Talisman. The force it contained was equivalent to the attack cast by a Mastery Saint Rudiment Stage powerhouse.
The few other outer court elders turned horrified at once. They had never thought that He Zhong would be this ruthless to the point that he would actually use a Dao Talisman to cripple Duan Ling Tian.
"Duan Ling Tian, you're destined to become a cripple after today!" The outer court deacon, Deng Wei, had a bright smile on his face as though he already could envision Duan Ling Tian having his four limbs ripped off.
If Duan Ling Tian was crippled, it would no doubt be jubilant news for him and his nephew.
However, in the next instant, those who could see the trajectory of the four streaks of sharp rays that erupted from the Two-Star offensive Dao Talisman clearly suddenly froze.
In a flash, they noticed that Duan Ling Tian had disappeared before their eyes.
From the beginning till the end, they had no idea how had he done that.
"It's a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman!" Soon, one of the outer court elders exclaimed loudly, being the first to finally realize what was happening.
Just now, he had also heard how Duan Ling Tian shouted "appear", so he realized that he had also activated a Dao Talisman.
The only Dao Talisman that could make Duan Ling Tian vanish before his eyes was a Divine Strider Talisman that was Three Stars and above.
Three Stars was the highest level Dao Talisman in the Moon Illumination Sect.
As a result, he was certain that the one that Duan Ling Tian had used was a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman,
Even though a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman cost 300,000 Merit Points and was too expensive for an ordinary outer court disciple to buy, Duan Ling Tian was no ordinary outer court disciple at all. He had earned almost two million Merit Points more than a month ago, so it would not be difficult for him to buy a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman.
A Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman!
Upon hearing the exclamation of that outer court elder, Huang Cheng and Deng Wei's faces turned grave right away.
"Impossible!" On the training field, He Zhong, who saw how the four sharp rays that he released missed their target the instant Duan Ling Tian vanished, turned appalled with disbelief in his eyes.
Just as He Zhong finally came to a halt after being shot out a distance away due to inertia, an eerily calm voice resonated timely by his ear, "Nothing is impossible!"
After activating the Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman, Duan Ling Tian whose speed was equivalent to a Paramount Saint Rudiment Stage powerhouse appeared by He Zhong's side like a phantom.
Bang!
Before the crowd watching the scene including the few outer court elders could realize what was happening, He Zhong's entire body had already been sent flying with a powerful explosion. Like an arrow that left the bowstring, he crashed violently onto the ground in distress.
Slap!
When He Zhong struggled to stand up, a crisp slap resonated in the air while a fiery palm print appeared on his face.
After spitting a mouthful of blood that contained pieces of teeth out, He Zhong gritted what was left of his teeth and announced, "Duan Ling Tian, let's fight honorably if you dare! What kind of bravery is this to make a sneak attack on me!?"
When the onlookers surrounding them heard his words, a strange expression crept upon their faces right away.
Did he just ask Duan Ling Tian to fight honorably with him?
Did he just say that Duan Ling Tian made a sneak attack on him?
Was he not the one who used the Dao Talisman first earlier?
"He Zhong is really terribly shameless! How dare he have the audacity to say such things? Right now, Duan Ling Tian is merely giving him a taste of his own medicine!" An inner court disciple swept a glance at He Zhong with disdain and remarked.
The other inner court disciples fully agreed with him.
Even the group of outer court disciples bobbed their heads to his words as well. All of them felt that He Zhong only had himself to blame.
"Honorably? Do you think you're worthy of doing so?" Duan Ling Tian's cold snort resonated in the entire training field, but nobody could see a trace of his figure at all.
After activating the Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman, Duan Ling Tian's speed was equivalent to a Paramount Saint Rudiment Stage Martial or a Dao Cultivator. On top of that, it could last for 15 minutes. When he was moving, nobody except the inner court elders from the Moon Illumination Sect or above could catch his trail.
A few outer court elders could also only catch a residual trace of an image when Duan Ling Tian made his move.
Other than that, they could not see Duan Ling Tian's figure clearly at all.
Slap!
Another crisp slap resonated in the air. The other side of He Zhong's face turned swollen as well, causing his entire face turned to become like a pig's head. That handsome face of his was nowhere to be seen.
"Duan Ling Tian, how dare you humiliate me in such a way!? Do you know who my master is?" He Zhong snarled.
"I'm not interested to know who your master is, but I know that you want to cripple me. In that case, I'll cripple you too!" Duan Ling Tian's voice was extremely ruthless, frightening He Zhong so much that his face turned pale right away before he hastily called out, "I admit my…"
He wanted to admit his defeat. Unfortunately, before the word "defeat" managed to leave his lips, he had suffered another slap from Duan Ling Tian and was forced to swallow the word back down before it even managed to leave his mouth.
Following that attempt, every time he wanted to open his mouth to admit his defeat, he would be cut off by Duan Ling Tian's slap.
In the end, he became completely obedient.
"Duan Ling Tian, if you don't cripple me, I promise that I won't go against you anymore!" Under the watchful gaze of others, He Zhong completely succumbed.
He was afraid.
If he were crippled by Duan Ling Tian, he would no longer have any future ahead of him.
In the face of this crisis that was related to his future, He Zhong had no choice but to bow his arrogant head.
"Won't go against me anymore?" Duan Ling Tian smirked with disdain. "Do you think I'll believe you?"
Right now, he completely held the power of authority in his hand. With a speed that was equivalent to a Paramount Saint Rudiment Stage powerhouse, he could make He Zhong shiver with terror just by his swiftness alone.
Among all the martial arts in the world, only speed was the dealbreaker, especially when Duan Ling Tian was so ridiculously fast now!
"I'll swear on it now!" Afraid that Duan Ling Tian would suddenly attack him, He Zhong hastily broke the skin on his finger and swore on a blood oath, the Tribulation Oath, that he would no longer go against him in the future.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
…
Nine thunderous roars reverberated, deafening the ears as they corresponded with He Zhong's oath.
"Your resolution is admirable!" Duan Ling Tian sneered again. "However, today, you almost crippled my four limbs and even made me wast my precious Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman. Do you really think that everything from today can just be canceled by your oath alone?"
Taking a deep breath, He Zhong replied, "I can compensate you with a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman."
"It's just reasonable for you to compensate me with a Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman. On top of that, if you want to safeguard your four limbs, I'd like to see how sincere you are then," Duan Ling Tian added nonchalantly.
Even though he itched to cripple He Zhong's four limbs to give him a taste of his own medicine, the moment he recalled that the chief culprit of this matter was Liu Huan and that nothing would change even if he crippled He Zhong, he dismissed the idea at once and came up with another solution.
Extortion!
"What do you want?" He Zhong looked at Duan Ling Tian vigilantly.
"One million Merit Points to buy back your four limbs," Duan Ling Tian replied indifferently, "I think that your four limbs are worthy of these many Merit Points, aren't they?"
A million Merit Points!
The moment the words left Duan Ling Tian's mouth, the entire crowd burst into an uproar.
"My god! This Duan Ling Tian actually has such a huge appetite! He actually asked for a million Merit Points from He Zhong straightaway!" Many inner court disciples clicked their tongues in disapproval. It was obvious that they were shocked by his demands.
"Senior Brother Duan Ling Tian asked for so many Merit Points, but I don't think Senior Brother He Zhong can take that much out, can he?" Many outer court disciples muttered with stunned faces.
Even the outer court elders and deacons present at the scene were taken aback by Duan Ling Tian's exorbitant demand.
One million Merit Points! None of them could even take out that many Merit Points at one go.
Even though He Zhong knew that Duan Ling Tian would demand an exorbitant price, it had also never crossed his mind that he would have such a tremendous appetite, asking for one million Merit Points straightaway.
At once, He Zhong's face turned glum. "I don't have that many Merit Points."
"Of course, I know you don't have that many Merit Points. You should just ask the person who asked you to come to come up with those Merit Points… I think he has no reason not to pay this sum to buy back your four limbs, has he?" Duan Ling Tian smirked.
"Even if he doesn't give a damn about the relationship between you and him, he'd still give some face to your master and do something for you for helping him to do this, won't he?" Duan Ling Tian told He Zhong through True Energy Voice Transmission.
"Y-You actually know about that?" He Zhong was stunned. It turned out that Duan Ling Tian had already long known about his background.
At that moment, a sense of being thwarted rose in his heart right away.
"Uncle, it looks like you'll have to sacrifice a little this time." Right now, He Zhong's face was filled with despair and a wry smile.
"Swear that you'll hand a million Merit Points and one Three-Star Divine Strider Talisman to me by tomorrow. If you don't, you'll be punished by the thunder penalty till death claims you!" Duan Ling Tian cast an icy glance at He Zhong.