Volume 1 Volume 7 Chapter 35

Volume 7 Chapter 35: Building Up Power (Part 3)

At this moment, the members of Tianji Camp were working hard together, anxiously trying to break through. In their desperation, they did not notice that the terrifying Azure Dragon, which had frightened them so much, had already shifted its attention away from them and was now facing Xu Qingfan, who had appeared behind it without their notice.

However, this does not mean that their danger has ended.

In fact, Xu Qingfan’s appearance, in some ways, increased their danger.

The Azure Dragon silently faced Xu Qingfan. With the balance between good and evil energies, Xu Qingfan’s presence was almost undetectable, like an ordinary human. Yet this seemingly ordinary person made the Azure Dragon feel a strong sense of danger within.

Moreover, an ordinary person with no remarkable features could not have approached the Azure Dragon silently until they were just ten steps away before being noticed.

Floating silently in mid-air, each hand holding a long sword, Xu Qingfan looked calmly at the Azure Dragon. He seemed completely at ease, as if he would stay there forever, yet also as if he could strike with great force at any moment.

Compared to Xu Qingfan’s calmness, the Azure Dragon’s presence grew stronger. The golden flames that burned exclusively in its eyes gradually spread throughout its body, and the golden light in its eyes seemed almost tangible at that moment.

Although this human’s energy was very concealed, the Azure Dragon had mystical techniques to detect it. After gathering information for this period, it was certain that this human’s strength was only about equal to its own. However, intuitively, the Azure Dragon felt it would be best not to attack Xu Qingfan. As this feeling grew stronger, its previous certainty about Xu Qingfan’s strength began to waver.

Among the six attacking heavenly-level demon beasts, the Azure Dragon is much stronger than the other five. It is very close to reaching a higher heavenly level and could break through at any moment. However, each time a demon beast breaks through, it needs a lot of stamina and energy, which makes the process very dangerous. If it cannot face the challenge in the best condition, it could lead to dire consequences. For the Azure Dragon, the most important thing right now is to safely break through to a higher heavenly level. So, although it had to join the attack on Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands because of its long-standing ties with the Fish Dragon Clan, it has focused on conserving its strength. While the Hualong Snake Dragon rushes forward, it stays behind, not exerting much effort.

Because of this, the usually fierce Azure Dragon is now hesitating and afraid to attack.

In the end, Azure Dragon decided to test Xu Qingfan’s true strength before making a move.

The tool it used to test Xu Qingfan’s strength was the thirty-five Tianji Camp cultivators who were eager but unable to act from hundreds of feet away.

Azure Dragon continued to face Xu Qingfan, seemingly just as hesitant to attack as before, but unknowingly, a whirlpool appeared on the ocean’s surface beneath the Tianji Camp cultivators who were crashing into the surrounding mist.

As time passed, the whirlpool grew larger and more intense. When its power reached its peak, it created a tremendous suction force. Even though the thirty-five Tianji Camp members had combined their strength and transformed into mist, they were still uncontrollably pulled towards the whirlpool, set to be crushed by this terrifying force.

Just then, Xu Qingfan finally made his move.

While Azure Dragon was observing Xu Qingfan, Xu Qingfan was also watching Azure Dragon. Just as Azure Dragon was uncertain about defeating it, Xu Qingfan also lacked confidence in overcoming the Azure Dragon.

At this moment, the Azure Dragon was about to break through to a higher heavenly level and did not want to engage in unnecessary conflict. Meanwhile, Xu Qingfan’s body, having endured years of the torment from the "Qi of Demonic Death," had not fully recovered and was not suited for a prolonged battle.

However, by observing carefully, Xu Qingfan spotted the weaknesses of Azure Dragon, while Azure Dragon did not notice Xu Qingfan’s flaws.

When Xu Qingfan saw Azure Dragon attacking Tianji Camp, he smiled softly. With a slight wave of his hands, the "Qixia Sword" transformed into a colorful rainbow, flying over the Azure Dragon in front of him, heading towards the whirlpool. Where the "Qixia Sword" passed, a great power surged, and the sea level dropped by more than three feet. When it reached the whirlpool, the "Qixia Sword" shone brightly, like a giant whale drinking water, drawing in all the seawater within dozens of feet around the whirlpool, turning it into the purest Water Spirit Qi, which was absorbed into the sword, causing the sea surface to lower another three feet.

After the whirlpool was absorbed, the "Qixia Sword" turned back into a colorful light and returned to Xu Qingfan’s hand.

Only then did the cultivators of Tianji Camp notice Xu Qingfan’s appearance. They were all filled with joy and quickly flew towards him, but Azure Dragon merely stared intently at Xu Qingfan, showing no intention of stopping him.

However, just as those Tianji Camp cultivators passed by Azure Dragon, countless water columns suddenly rose up from the sea, moving at least ten times faster than before, bearing down on the Tianji Camp cultivators with immense force. Though the Tianji Camp cultivators were somewhat prepared, the speed of the water columns was just too fast. They had no time to defend themselves and could only watch helplessly as the water columns approached, unable to even let out a brief shout of surprise.

Just as the group of Tianji Camp cultivators were about to be struck down by the water columns, a sudden darkness filled the air, and a tremendous killing intent filled a hundred-foot radius. The Tianji Camp cultivators, who had closed their eyes awaiting death, found that the water columns aimed at them had vanished without a trace.

On the other side, a flash of black light appeared in Xu Qingfan’s right hand, and the "World Defying Sword" returned to his grip.

"Why are you not leaving quickly?"

With Xu Qingfan’s calm voice ringing out, the cultivators of Tianji Camp realized that the strange sea mist surrounding them had been scattered by the power of Xu Qingfan’s sword moments before. The world felt vast and open at that moment.

Seeing this scene, the cultivators from Tianji Camp were all very happy. They hurriedly bowed to Xu Qingfan and then quickly fled into the distance, not daring to stay for a moment. The battle between Xu Qingfan and Azure Dragon was something they could not participate in, and even watching it was extremely dangerous.

This time, Azure Dragon allowed the Tianji Camp cultivators to leave. It only focused on the two God Weapons in Xu Qingfan’s hands, filled with wariness and made no attempt to stop them.

In the previous few tests, Azure Dragon did not use its full strength. To it, the cultivators from Tianji Camp were just like ants; it did not matter whether it killed them or not. However, through these tests, it gained a deeper understanding of Xu Qingfan’s strength.

Xu Qingfan had reached the peak stage of human cultivators. In terms of individual strength, he was slightly weaker than Azure Dragon, but the two treasures in Xu Qingfan’s hands were incredibly powerful. Once they fought, it was hard to predict who would win.

Noticing Azure Dragon’s caution, Xu Qingfan suddenly smiled and asked, "You already know my strength, Your Excellency. In this situation, do you still wish to continue fighting?"

Unlike most cultivators in the world, through his encounters with the kylin, Xu Qingfan knew that these heavenly-level demon beasts had intelligence similar to humans and could communicate.

This is a good thing. Sometimes, intelligent beings are easier to deal with than simply wild beasts, as they have concerns, fears, and deeper desires.

After a moment of silence, a calm voice that sounded like an old man echoed in Xu Qingfan’s mind.

"If you wish to cease fighting, then if you and your subordinates lay down your weapons, I will lead all the East Sea Demon Monsters away. From then on, we will never trouble each other, how does that sound?"

Xu Qingfan shook his head and smiled, saying, "It’s impossible. I do have the intention to cease fighting, but only regarding you. The other East Sea Demon Monsters must remain; since they have come to attack my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, they should be prepared to be killed."

"Why do you only want to cease fighting with me? Is it because you are not confident in defeating me?"

Azure Dragon asked.

Xu Qingfan shook his head again and slowly said, "This is indeed one reason, but more importantly, you have never attacked my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, giving me a reason to spare you. Otherwise, even if our strengths are equal, if we fought, it would surely cause a terrible disaster in the surrounding hundreds of miles, including the seas of my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands. But as the lord of an island, I would still choose to let you go."

Hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, there was anger in Azure Dragon’s voice as he said, "You should know that it was your men who first attacked my East Sea clan!"

Xu Qingfan smiled slightly and showed no concern for Azure Dragon’s anger. He simply said, "It’s strange that your demon beast clan is discussing reason with me, a human. Isn’t it the rule you uphold to eat the weak? Those who are weaker than you were killed by my disciples, so what can be done? My disciples can kill your East Sea clan, but your East Sea clan cannot attack my Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands."

His calm tone held completely overpowering content.

Upon hearing Xu Qingfan’s words, Azure Dragon became calm and stared coldly at this seemingly small human, whose presence was growing increasingly strong.

As Azure Dragon’s aura continued to grow, the waters of the East Sea seemed to boil and churn, with the turmoil spreading for hundreds of miles. Beneath Xu Qingfan’s feet, a great amount of Water Spirit Qi gathered, faintly transforming into several blue dragons that swam deeper in the sea.

Under the power of the Azure Dragon, except for the dragon transforming and the flood dragon still battling against the two increasingly shrinking cloud dragons in the sky, the fierce battle between Chou and the Fish Dragon Beast to the west of the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, all other demon beasts and cultivators could not help but stop their attacks, feeling as if a thousand-pound stone was pressing down on them, making it incredibly difficult to breathe.

Sensing the overwhelming power of the Azure Dragon, Xu Qingfan was secretly shocked, realizing this was the true strength of the Azure Dragon, but his expression did not change; he still wore a faint smile as he continued to observe the Azure Dragon’s movements.

As the might of the Azure Dragon reached its peak, the heavens and the earth changed, the clouds gathered, and darkness fell. Its body, radiating with golden flames, looked like a golden sun, gradually floating from the sea into the air, coldly staring at Xu Qingfan, ready to strike at any moment.

"Since that’s the case, I will fight you. Although neither of us is certain of victory, we can still protect ourselves. I am curious to see how long your little islands can withstand the force generated by our battle."

The voice of the Azure Dragon was filled with threats.

However, at that moment, a sudden change occurred on Tianji Island in the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands.

The spirit energy of the heavens and the earth suddenly surged with a powerful wave, gathering toward that place. Countless rays of spiritual light fell from above, breaking through the dark clouds in the sky because of the Azure Dragon’s power, creating an enchanting scene of celestial music and colorful light.

At the same time, a mighty long howl suddenly came from Tianji Island, and with this howl, a unique and balanced force spread out around it.

Because this force was so overwhelming, very few people noticed that five other forces erupted simultaneously on Tianji Island. Although these five forces were much weaker compared to the first one, in relative terms, they were still extraordinarily strong.

Seeing this scene, a hint of joy flashed in Xu Qingfan’s eyes. The time had either come, or he was drawn by the power of the Azure Dragon. Wang Zegang, who had been in seclusion for ten years, finally broke through to the Mahayana Stage at this moment. At the same time, with Wang Zegang’s enlightenment, the Unity of Sky and Earth gathered Spirit Qi, allowing five guardians, including Dongfang Quan, who were also refining artifacts in seclusion on Tianji Island, to successfully emerge as well.

In fact, when leaving the island, Xu Qingfan had already noticed that Wang Zegang was on the verge of breaking through, but he never expected the timing to be so perfect.

Xu Qingfan smiled slightly and nodded to the Azure Dragon, saying, "Thank you, sir. Under your aura’s guidance, one of my Taoist friends has achieved enlightenment ahead of time."

On Tianji Island, the sound of long howls continued without interruption, lasting for a good long while.

Suddenly, a black and white spiraling beam of light shot out from Tianji Island, flying towards Tianshu Island, targeting the transformed dragon and flood dragon that were on the verge of completely defeating the two cloud dragons.

Following this beam of light were five slightly smaller beams, each shining with the five colors of gold, green, blue, red, and yellow, representing the elements of nature.

The flood dragon and transformed dragon had just completely defeated the two cloud dragons and were preparing to attack the remaining "Disaster Cloud" when the six beams of light arrived, and both sides quickly engaged in a fierce battle.

"Roar…"

A painful dragon’s roar suddenly echoed through the skies. Startled, the Azure Dragon turned to see that the Fish Dragon Beast, which was battling with Chou, was now surrounded by the black mist released by Chou. It darted left and right but couldn’t escape at all.

Just at that moment, the long-hidden Yaoguang Island saw the misty sea barrier around it suddenly disappear. From the island, a huge black cloud rose up. Upon closer look, it was a gathering of countless crow-like demon beasts, as if the God of Death had come to the world. Although they did not have any powerful presence, their sight startled everyone.

At this moment, among the six heavenly-level demon beasts, the last one, the Fish Dragon Beast, was attacking not far from Yaoguang Island. After the black cloud appeared, it seemed hesitant, as if it did not understand the current situation, and did not know what to do. But when it saw the Fish Dragon Beast, it finally found a target and began to surround it.

The sudden changes left Azure Dragon feeling overwhelmed. In just a short time, the Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands, which had been mostly defensive, suddenly threw all their skilled fighters into a full counterattack.

After decades of hard work, in this moment, the strength that Rainbow Spirit Seven Islands had built up over the years finally revealed itself to the world.

Although at this moment, the witnesses were just a group of East Sea Demon Monsters.

"After forty years of patience, my power has finally grown. It is time to return."

Xu Qingfan silently watched this scene, thinking to himself.

With a slight smile, Xu Qingfan turned to Azure Dragon and said, "Since you want to fight, then I will join you for a grand battle."

As he spoke, the presence that Xu Qingfan had held back for many years suddenly burst forth. Endless black and white mist surrounded him, and among the hazy two-colored fog, the sounds of dragons and phoenixes resounded. Shadows of dragons and phoenixes flew and glided through the black mist. At the same time, Xu Qingfan’s figure became blurred, and two clones, Xu Ying and Xu Zhiyuan, appeared suddenly, forming a triangle that surrounded Azure Dragon.