Volcanic Age

Tang Family.

Twenty-Seven.

Diancang Sect.

Thirty-Two.

Fifty-nine warriors in total—sixty, including Zhou Xuchuan.

The search party was facing one hundred and fifty cannibalistic tribesmen. However, their morale wasn't low, it was high.

"You barbaric bastards!"

"Although I don't know what kind of sorcery this is, it's useless!"

The members of the Diancang Sect, as if releasing their pent-up anger from being imprisoned, brandished the swords provided by the Tang Family, their expressions brimming with hostility.

Some were almost frothing at the mouth, wanting revenge for their disciple brothers who were killed during the attack on their camp earlier.

"Split into three groups of twenty!"

Zhou Xuchuan took the lead and commanded. The Tang Family and the Diancang Sect followed his orders without question.

The search party was divided into three groups, each led by Zhou Xuchuan, Tang Hui, and Duan Hecheng.

"Our target, the summit!"

Zhou Xuchuan was fired up as if he was trying to dispel the ominous atmosphere that filled the temple.

"Let's go!"

Tap, tap, tap!

Sixty warriors simultaneously flew forward. Despite the fact that there were a lot of people moving, their footsteps were nearly silent due to their footwork techniques.

"Grahh!!!"

A guttural roar filled with bloodlust and madness erupted from the cannibalistic tribe. Their reasoning and sanity had disappeared.

It was quite a spectacular sight, seeing one hundred and fifty warriors rushing at them from above and beside the temple while roaring.

"You dare!"

Tang Hui stretched out her left arm and threw a Flying Knife. The thin thread on her wrist drew a straight line and aimed for a tribesman's neck. The dagger attached on the other end pierced his neck with a squelch, landing exactly where she aimed. ȓἈ𐌽Ò𐌱ЁS̈

"Ugh!"

However, the tribesman had no intention of stopping.

Although she had severed his carotid, somehow, the tribesman still charged forward like a wild boar.

Tang Hui frowned and twisted her wrist, wrapping the thread around the tribesman's neck before tightening her grip.

Shing!

If it were normal thread, it would have snapped. However, this thread was made of Heavenly Silk and couldn't be cut or broken by an average human. It was strong enough to take the tension she imbued into it.

The tribesman's neck was severed cleanly.

As Tang Hui pulled her Flying Knife back, the other tribesmen rushed in.

"Miss!"

Her guard, Yuan Dashi, tried to approach her quickly. However, Tang Hui motioned for him to stay away, and without even batting an eyelash, she easily dodged the Jungle Blade that was flying toward her with minimal movement.

"Ugh!"

The tribesman before her may not have had any reasoning left, but his instincts in battle remained as a result of his extensive training. Even though he only had instincts, he was able to mindlessly intuit where his enemy would move after dodging his original attack. The warrior turned his body and swung his Jungle Blade widely.

Thrum.

He was definitely under the influence of sorcery as his strength and speed suddenly increased. However, Tang Hui didn't panic and just struck back.

Bang!

The tribesman froze after being hit in the abdomen with a palm. Not feeling any pain didn't mean he was invincible. The Tang Family's pride, the Crimson Lotus Poison Palm, penetrated deep into his body and paralyzed his muscles and nerves.

The poison eventually spread through his blood vessels to his brain and heart, ending his life.

"I'm fine." Tang Hui said, gesturing to the front with her chin.

"Understood!"

Still, as her guard, he was concerned and didn't go too far, making sure to fight the tribesmen while staying near Tang Hui.

"Show them the power of the Diancang Sect!"

Duan Hecheng blurred through the air before reappearing. He was using the Flicking String Step, which was known to be the best movement technique for instantaneous movement.

The cannibalistic tribesman's Jungle Blade only cut empty air.

Then, the Seventh Young Master of Diancang unleashed the Sunshooting Sword Art.

Felling the Sun as it Manifests!

The first thing the tribesman saw wasn't Duan Hecheng, but the blade of a sword.

Squelch!

It moved at a speed that couldn't be seen with the naked eye. As its name suggested, the sword shot out and moved with a terrifying, piercing force.

The eeriest part was how it accurately aimed for the target's acupoints. The tribesman died instantly after being stabbed in an acupoint.

"Roar!!"

"Die!"

Three more cannibalistic tribesmen rushed in.

Duan Hecheng used the Flicking String Steps again, leaving behind an afterimage as he disappeared. Then, he continued using the techniques of the Sunshooting Sword Art, stabbing outward in rapid succession.

Swish, swish, swish!

Dazzling beams of light shot out. The warriors who had been charging forward with a mad momentum fell forward after being repeatedly stabbed.

"Die!"

"We'll show you the power of the Diancang Sect!"

It wasn't just Duan Hecheng who was active. The other disciples of the Diancang Sect also had excellent martial arts.

While their techniques weren't as impressive as the Sunshooting Sword Art, which, as the sect's foundational technique, was only taught to the direct disciples, they were still impressive quick sword techniques.

"Tang Family Guard! Duck!"

"Ugh!"

As the Central Plains forces split into three groups, those of the Tang Family and the Diancang Sect mixed together, improvising and helping each other.

The Diancang Sect isn't famous for its practical techniques for nothing.

To think they're matching our moves so well even though they're merely improvising!

How incredible.

The warriors of the Tang Family were simply amazed by the Diancang Sect's disciples' movements.

As expected of the Diancang Sect.

Zhou Xuchuan couldn't help but be impressed. Thinking back to the Era of War and Chaos, he thought of the Diancang Sect that roamed the battlefield.

The fame of the Diancang Sect hadn't come from nothing. No, its roots were right on the battlefield itself.

He's grown stronger since the last time I saw him.

Zhou Xuchuan glanced at Duan Hecheng as he easily dealt with four cannibalistic tribesmen.

He should be nearing the Harmony Realm now. It was worth saving him in Poisonblood Valley. Seeing how much help he is right now, it really is fortunate.

For some reason, the Seventh Young Master was always in danger whenever he saw him. However, this wasn't that bad. In the end, he could still be helpful like this.

Good. If he's this strong, I'll be able to leave it to him.

There was no need to worry too much about the other groups. Tang Hui and Duan Hecheng were doing better than he had thought.

"I'll be speeding things up, so follow me closely!"

Zhou Xuchuan slid across the ground.

Bang!

As if he himself was one of the techniques of the Sunshooting Sword Art, his body seemed to turn into an arrow and shoot out, leaving chaos in his wake.

His Mount Hua's Sword Technique quickly cut down the cannibalistic tribesmen that had rushed in before they could get close.

Meanwhile, the search party members in Zhou Xuchuan's group thought that they were dying, too.

Are you saying you want to go even faster right now?

He's not called the Plum Blossom Order Sword for nothing!

Is he planning on handling everything himself?

The warriors of the Cannibal Tribe were by no means weak. Even by the standards of the Central Plains, not a single one of them was a weakling. Most were around the First or Second Class.

Some of their experts had even reached the Completion Stage of the Peak Realm, making them difficult to deal with. Moreover, this was worsened because they had been strengthened by sorcery.

However, the monster standing in front of them, the Hero of the Mount Hua Sect, seemed completely unfazed as he easily dealt with everything before him.

Not only that, he continued to indiscriminately use sword qi and aura, to the point where it made one wonder just how much qi he actually possessed.

In any case, the search party members of Zhou Xuchuan's group were barely able to keep up with his terrifying speed, and their mouths were left dry and parched.

He didn't give them time to rest, even for a moment. If they slowed down even a little, Zhou Xuchuan would end up completely outpacing them. He moved so quickly that it made them feel as though they would fall behind if they lost focus, making them squeeze out all of their strength.

Because of his actions, a gap was created between the three groups. While Tang Hui and Duan Hecheng's groups were slowly advancing in front of the stairs leading to the temple, Zhou Xuchuan's group had already reached the middle of the stairs and was progressing rapidly.

"Stay right there! I'm going to bring these Central Plains people right up to you and splatter your brains everywhere!"

The temple was steep, but that didn't bother them. They moved as freely as if they were on level ground.

"ROAR!"

The higher they climbed, the stronger the warriors became.

There weren't any Second or First Class warriors anymore. Most of them were in the Peak Realm or even the Transcendent Realm. While they may have been few, they were all incredibly strong.

The most impressive of them all was a seven-foot warrior. He had many tattoos on his body, as if to prove his strength.

The pictures and letters drawn all over his body twitched as if reacting to an ominous light, which was a strange sight.

Clang!

The seven-foot warrior leaped forward while stomping hard. Seeing how he leaped off of such a steep siding, one might have thought he was trying to commit suicide. However, that wasn't the case at all.

Bang.

A shadow fell over Zhou Xuchuan's head. He looked up and saw the warrior falling precisely on top of him.

The warrior, holding a Jungle Blade that was larger than anyone else's in his right hand, slammed it down with all of his might.

Woosh.

BOOOM!

It was a destructive force similar to what would be caused by a hammer rather than a saber. The moment the seven-foot warrior fell, a storm erupted around him.

The magnificent staircase that must have been painstakingly built over dozens of years was completely destroyed, and the middle of the temple was left in utter disarray.

"Ugh!"

"S-stop him!"

The search party screamed, holding on to the ground to avoid being blown away.

However, the tribesmen that had been charging down at them weren't safe. Some of them were swept away by the gust of wind that flew out and tumbled down to the base of the temple.

"Hahahaha!"

The priest, who was looking down at them from the top, laughed.

"Even if this bastard's from the Central Plains, he's nothing compared to the greatest warrior of the tribe!"

The warrior had strength that couldn't be compared to that of a regular warrior. He could also accept multiple spells, making the amplification effect many times greater.

The priest licked his lips and smiled wickedly. His eyes, shining with an unpleasant light, showed his appetite.

A master of that level must have a lot of vitality that can be extracted from the heart and brain. I'm so excited.

While the masters of the Central Plains murim had absolutely horrible-tasting flesh, the strength that it gave him was the best. The priest, who hadn't been able to advance in his sorcery arts recently without any of this, was elated at the prospect of becoming stronger.

"Greatest warrior of the tribe. Bring that bastard over. Surely you didn't damage his head and heart, right?"

The other parts of the body may not have mattered much, but if the brain and heart were damaged badly, he wouldn't be able to absorb Zhou Xuchuan's strength properly. That was why he had ordered him to be careful.

Of course, considering it was an attack of that level, his body would have been damaged. Still, since his opponent was also a skilled expert, the priest assumed that he would have been able to hold out for a while.

"…?"

The priest's smug grin faded as he tilted his head in confusion. For some reason, his warrior wasn't moving at all.

Even if he wanted to verify what was going on, the warrior was so big that he couldn't see what was happening in front of him.

"No, you don't have to worry."

"... Impossible!"

The priest's face twisted in shock, his expression crumpling like a rag.

"My heart and brain are fine."

Squelch!

A gaping hole appeared in the warrior's broad back, carved through muscle and flesh. A sword thrust out, a faint purple aura coating its blade.

The tattoo that had been wriggling on the warrior's skin also seemed to lose its strength and stopped moving. Instead of the ominous haze that had been present before, blood seeped out of his skin.

"Mmph."

Zhou Xuchuan pulled out his sword and pushed the seven-foot warrior who was about to fall forward.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Boom!

The heavy body rolled down the stairs, making a noise every time it hit the ground.

By the time it reached the bottom, it was so battered and bloodied that it was unrecognizable.

"H-how?!"

The priest gaped in disbelief.

"He really was strong enough to be called the best in the tribe."

Zhou Xuchuan wasn't being sarcastic. He said this sincerely.

The moment he was attacked, he had not only increased his weight to secure his lower body firmly but was even forced to create a defensive qi barrier to prepare for the blow.

If he hadn't done that, even he would have ended up getting thrown back without being able to withstand the impact.

"T-t-this…?!"

Zhou Xuchuan looked at the priest, who was shaking like an aspen tree.

Compared to the warriors around him, the priest was not big. He was only about five feet tall. The only thing large about him was his ridiculously large staff.

His eye sockets were sunken, and he was skinny. His beard was messy and unkept. He was also bald.

However, his eyes were different. They burned like the pits of hell. Strangely enough, his pupils were green.

"You daaaaaaare–?!"

The priest's anger finally exploded.

Clang!

His scream didn't sound human at all. Then, the priest's body also changed, becoming like a warrior's.

His delicate muscles swelled and tensed. His tendons and blood vessels even began to bulge.

The muscles in his upper body bulged, and his physique formed an inverted triangle.

His tattoos shone like the light of an eye.

Flicker!

Suddenly, his beard caught fire.

No, his beard turned into flames and began to burn fiercely.

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