A terrifying aura burst forth from the golden-robed old man.
"[Reptilian] Ahahaha…. You little creep! You have been tricked!"
Ignoring the incoming dark blade, the golden-robed old man suddenly unleashed his full power as a real powerhouse at the peak Martial Grandmaster realm, engulfing Aiden with a gigantic golden palm.
"[Reptilian] Even if I have to die, I'll take you with me, you little b*stard!"
"[Reptilian] Oh no… Not good!" The elderly uncle beside Tai Liu suddenly trembled, his heart skipped a beat and he turned pale with fright when he saw that.
Others might not read the situation clearly, but he understood it well given his experience.
At first, the young man, Aiden saw that he could not take down the golden-robed old man and began attacking the latter mentally to break the stalemate.
Initially the plan did not seem to work as the golden-robed old man was unmoved.
However the golden robed old man still underestimated that little fella and his craftiness. After just a few sentences, the golden-robed old man was enraged and revealed an opening.
There was naturally no way Aiden would let the opportunity go as he took advantage of the situation and charged forward.
But in reality, that opening was revealed by the golden-robed old man intentionally!
That was the reason why he said that Aiden was tricked.
The golden-robed old man was waiting for Aiden to rush forward with no room to retreat before killing the latter by unleashing his power as a peak Martial Grandmaster! Though this attack would be the very last he would unleash in this world and life, he still ultimately decided to go along with it and hope to bring this hateful little reptilian along with him to the afterlife.
"[Reptilian] This… Haih, too bad." The elderly uncle sighed and shook his head. "He is still too inexperienced after all…"
Yet, before he could even finish his sigh, a soft laugh came from the battlefield.
"[Reptilian] Hahahaha! Old worm, the one that was tricked… was not me, but you!"
It was Aiden's gleeful cackle that resounded.
Although he was initially at the battlefield, by the time his sentence was completed, Aiden had already appeared far away from where he was.
*BOOM!*
The golden-robed old man's palm slammed onto the ground, creating a clear palm print.
He missed! His ultimate attack ultimately missed its mark!
What happened stunned all the bystanding martial artists once more.
Standing from afar, Aiden looked at the golden-robed old man with a mocking gaze and a fake smile.
At that instant, just as his attack was completed, the golden-robed old man aged considerably. In just mere moments his face seemed to have shrivelled up, as if countless decades have finally put their toll, their destined burden under its host.
Before the golden robed old man could offer a jest or retort, his body was claimed by the merciless Time and his lifeless husk of body fell to the ground with a loud dull thud.
After pondering for a while, the elderly uncle came to a realization.
p Initially, he thought that Aiden was tricked by the golden-robed old man's intentional opening.
However, the truth was completely different! In reality, Aiden had also read the golden-robed old man's intentions and pretended to charge forward before escaping far away after the latter unleashed his power as a peak Martial Grandmaster.
It was a bloodless battle of psychological warfare. A single mistake and he would have lost everything and died on the spot!
Both parties schemed and fought several times but in the end, the seemingly unassuming tattered gray robed youngster, Aiden came out on top and baited the terrifying Guardian Elder to his very own death!
The old man's expression was complicated at that time.
Although the golden-robed old man did not die in the hands of his hated enemy, Aiden, he was still the reason why the former had to utilize his last residues of power and no longer resist his destiny.
The fact that a Guardian Elder was not able to kill a seemingly average Martial Knight or at most an early stage Martial Master despite sacrificing his own life was rather sorrowful.
In reality, Aiden had also taken an extremely huge risk in that battle!
The moment the Guardian Elder unleashed his power as a peak Martial Grandmaster, Aiden was not a match for him at all in his current state and form. Not unless he would risk everything!
In the Grade 2 elixir cave abode, he only managed to defend against the skinny old man by using all his trump cards. Even then, he was still injured.
Given Aiden's current condition, there was absolutely no way he could have withstood another attack of a peak Martial Grandmaster level.
That was the reason why he was fighting the golden-robed old man for so long. Eventually, he made use of his spirit perception and spotted the golden-robed old man's killing intent a moment earlier, allowing him to retreat and bait the latter to his death!
Aiden was almost completely exhausted and he would not have been able to hold on if not for his extremely strong regeneration capabilities. Taxing his already depleting reserves to also keep his health in check was like burning a rope from two ends!
After baiting the golden robed old man to his death, Aiden finally heaved a sigh of relief.
After a slight pause, his eyes flashed with a cold glint. He came before the central ziggurat where the Azure Myst Sect was still stationed together with his captains and asked softly.
"[Reptilian] Has anyone seen Pei Syriac just a few moments ago?"
"[Reptilian] Y-yeah! He escaped into the valley." A disciple nodded.
If Pei Syriac did not die today, he would ultimately be an uncertain source of trouble for Aiden in the future! Not to mention that before this, none of the previous battles against the two Guardian Elders brought Aiden any benefits.
At the very least, he wanted to use that arrogant bastard of a Draconic Skink to gain some benefits and recoup his losses.
Tai Liu was nervous and stepped forward quickly, persuading. "[Reptilian] Please, Aiden, listen to me! You are so weak right now, don't take the risk. Also, even if you give chase now, you might not be able to catch up with him. He escaped with all his power… he could be far away already!"
However, Aiden shook his head and in a flash, darted into the Fog Infested Valley without explaining anything.
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared before everyone.
Madam Dara was still receiving her mysterious inheritance.
The disciples of Azure Myst Sect discussed the battle from earlier with soft voices and excited expressions.
Although the Guardian Elder was at the end of his life and only had a single chance to strike, he was still a peak Martial Grandmaster no matter what!
That was a battle between a Martial Knight stage warrior and a peak Martial Grandmaster powerhouse! A tale for the legends!
This kind of talk was enough for the Azure Myst Sect disciples to brag about it for many years after returning to the sect.
At this moment, a group of disciples were passing not too far away and were discussing animatedly. Their excited voices could be clearly heard even from several streets away.
"[Reptilian] What's the background of that gray robed man? He's way too ruthless!"
"[Reptilian] That's right! I saw with my very own eyes how he squashed the chosen successor of the Malefic Demons Clan to death like an ant!"
"What use is the their so called 'Dark Lord'? Even his assigned Guardian Elder of the Malefic Demons Clan died for nothing!"
The Azure Myst Sect disciples were stunned when they heard that.
Following Tai Liu turned towards the group and asked. "[Reptilian] Fellow warriors, may I bother you with my question for a moment? Could you tell me what is going on with the Malefic Demons Clan?"
Taking a moment to wait till the group stopped and turned in her direction she asked again. "[Reptilian] I couldn't help but overhear your discussion… What has all that got to do with Aiden?"
"[Reptilian] Huh? You don't know about it yet?" The girl who was talking before looked at her with an odd look.
Tai Liu and the others had remained around Madam Dara the entire time and did not know about everything that happened in the Grade 2 elixir cave abode.
The girl then explained.
"[Reptilian] A perfect Breakthrough Elixir appeared in a cave abode in the depths of the ruins and this grey robed man… the one you called Aiden suddenly appeared and stole it while killing Yang Zahn on the spot!"
"[Reptilian] Hah!" A wave of shock and astonishment could be heard from the crowd.
The girl continued.
"[Reptilian] After that, the Malefic Demons Clan's guardian elder stepped up and attacked! Still, against all odds that mysterious hero took on everything! The Malefic Demons Clan is now completely destroyed."
This time round, it was completely silent. Nobody uttered a word…