Chapter 162: "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Chen Qiu, the Sect Leader of Mock Heaven Sect."

Chapter 162: "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Chen Qiu, the Sect Leader of Mock Heaven Sect."

Letting go of a father's murderer is more terrifying than the cruel methods of demon cultivators.

Demon cultivators may be ruthless, but they still act with reason, and you can understand that they do so to enhance their cultivation.

However, letting go of a father's murderer is truly terrifying, as you can't comprehend their inner thoughts.

".

Chen Qiu gave the bearded man a meaningful glance, then lightly snapped his fingers, sending a parasitic worm into the middle-aged man's body in Death's Crossing Town. It was a small trinket he had collected over the years.

The worm could track and determine the host's life force.

Foundation Establishment Cultivators wouldn't be able to detect it.

Chen Qiu felt that the middle-aged man's behavior was abnormal. If someone suddenly went on a killing spree without reason, they would be considered possessed by demons. But if someone was inexplicably kind without reason, they would also be considered demon-possessed.

Everyone has a reason for doing good.

Whether it's out of pity for others, self-improvement, redemption for past sins, or collecting virtue points, there's always a motive.

But this kind of senseless goodness...

In a sense,

It's no different from evil.

"There really is a living saint among us."

Fatty Dragon sighed, "To be honest, being a subordinate to such a person is scary. You never know when you might be harmed by your own leader. Those few brothers are quite pitiful."

"A saint?"

Chen Qiu shook his head and whispered, "I don't think so. This person is strange. It's not pure goodness, but more like a goodness influenced by a disturbed mind."

"But the cause and effect have been resolved."

"It ends here. No matter what path he takes from now on, it's no longer my concern."

"Let's go. The Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm is about to open."

As his words fell,

Several people transformed into streams of light, flying along the Endless Snow Mountain towards the westernmost part of Quzhou. They used Scholar's flying swords for travel instead of flying boats, as they were in a hurry. In this situation, the speed of flying swords surpassed that of flying boats.

Flying swords were indeed faster than flying boats.

The best tool for traveling, without a doubt.

They traveled for an entire day.

When night fell, they finally reached the westernmost border of Quzhou. At this moment, the Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm was only an hour away from opening, at midnight.

This place was a wasteland.

But at this moment, a large crowd had gathered, making it quite lively. There were tens of thousands of people.

Among them, he spotted some familiar faces, like the Young Master of the Su Clan, the Su Clan Patriarch in the Divine Transformation Stage, and some of the Heaven's Pride he had met in the Su Clan. However, their expressions were gloomy, and anger flashed in their eyes.

Chen Qiu and Fatty Dragon walked into the crowd, taking a position at the front. Across from them stood tens of thousands of demons, identical to those that had invaded the Great Xia Kingdom.

Chen Qiu stood on the Endless Icefield, gazing into the distance. There were a hundred thousand demons, each with two hands, two feet, and nine pairs of eyes.

Their upper bodies were bare, with eight pairs of eyes embedded in their abdomens.

Their heads had no skin, as if the scalp had been forcibly peeled off.

Without a skull, the brain was exposed to the air, covered only by a thin membrane to prevent it from flying out during movement.

Among these hundred thousand demons, three Divine Transformation Stage experts stood expressionless in the sky, their formidable cultivation power unconcealed.

Behind them, Golden Core and even Nascent Soul cultivators were scattered among the demons.

A formidable lineup, indeed.

".

Chen Qiu's eyebrows furrowed slightly, and he felt a sense of retreat. He had no chance against a Divine Transformation cultivator, and even against a late-stage Nascent Soul, he would need to use his trump card for a sneak attack, with no guarantee of success. Only against an early-stage Nascent Soul would he have the upper hand.

It seemed the Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm was out of reach.

The entrance, not yet officially opened, was behind the demons, clearly indicating their intention to block the Quzhou cultivators from entering.

Oh well.

It was just one Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm; although it felt like a wasted trip, opportunities were abundant, and he wouldn't lose his life here.

On their side, he had just spotted the Su Clan Patriarch in the Divine Transformation Stage, while the demons had three. The high-level combat power was not on the same level.

Just then—

He sensed a divine sense touching his own, and his body tensed as he turned towards the source. The Su Clan Patriarch, standing at the front of the crowd, was gesturing for him to come over.

After a brief silence, Chen Qiu and Fatty Dragon walked towards the Su Clan Patriarch.

"I didn't expect you to come. I always thought you weren't from Quzhou and wouldn't care much about its honor. I didn't realize your sense of honor for Quzhou was so strong."

The Su Clan Patriarch looked at Chen Qiu with a glint of approval in his eyes, but then he sighed, "You have a sense of responsibility.

"Hmm?"

Chen Qiu furrowed his brows, momentarily confused by the statement. He shook his head and replied calmly, "Su Clan Leader, I don't understand what you mean. I've heard that there's a Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm here, and I came to see if I could find some opportunities."

He held a certain level of respect for the Su Clan Leader.

Whether it was due to his cultivation or the fact that he had obtained a Divine Transformation Body from the Su Clan, Chen Qiu held a high regard for the Su Clan Leader.

However, it seemed that the situation had taken an unexpected turn.

The Su Clan Leader glanced at Chen Qiu, seeing the sincerity in his expression, and after a brief pause, he explained in a soft voice, "Quzhou borders the 'Demon State' to the west, and this state is not part of the ten states of the Xuantian Continent."

"It's a small region."

"Bordering the sea, one-third of its territory consists of various islands. The Demon State has over three thousand islands, scattered along the western coastal area, while the eastern part of the Demon State borders the western region of Quzhou."

"The border area often sees conflicts. Over the years, there have been constant battles between the Demon Race and Quzhou cultivators, resulting in deep-seated enmity. The balance of power has remained in Quzhou's favor, as the overall strength of the Demon State is inferior."

"However, a few months ago, a Nascent Soul cultivator from the Demon Race broke through to the Divine Transformation Stage!"

"This changed the situation drastically."

"Quzhou only has three Divine Transformation masters, while the Demon Race now has four. With their superior combat power, the Demon State has been provoking Quzhou over the past few months, attempting to initiate a war between the two states."

"Their goal is to seize Quzhou's territory."

"For instance, the Demon Race has forcefully occupied a Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm that appeared within Quzhou's territory. They are demanding that Quzhou send a Heaven's Pride cultivator to fight against them. If Quzhou's Heaven's Pride wins, they will allow Quzhou cultivators to enter this Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm."

"Quzhou's Heaven's Pride lost, and the Demon Race has a powerful Heaven's Pride."

"I thought you came here to join the battle."

"Hmm." Standing by the side, the Young Master of the Su Clan, Su Ya, sighed and said, "I was defeated the fastest. The Demon Race's Heaven's Pride is formidable. I couldn't beat him, and even Li Shi'er..."

At that moment, he suddenly remembered the grudge between Li Shi'er and Chen Qiu, and immediately stopped speaking.

Li Shi'er.

Recognized as Quzhou's strongest Heaven's Pride, he was unmatched in both talent and effort among all the Heaven's Pride! If not for some unexpected events, he could have even placed second or first in the preliminary screening realm on the Heaven's Pride Road.

But even Li Shi'er was defeated.

"Chen Qiu."

Just then—

Li Shi'er, who had been standing aside with a long sword in his embrace and bloodstains at the corners of his mouth, suddenly opened his eyes. Instead of looking at Chen Qiu, he gazed at the Demon Race cultivator in the distance and said in a cold, measured tone.

"Do you remember me? I'm Li Shi'er, a direct disciple of the Dao Sword Sect!"

"In the preliminary screening realm on the Heaven's Pride Road, you called me an ant and said you saw the decline of this generation's Heaven's Pride in me."

"Although I don't want to admit it, I watched the shadow stone that Su Ya gave me. In the shadow stone, I saw your journey through the Su Clan's heritage realm, and your combat power was indeed formidable, far surpassing mine."

"We do have some unresolved issues."

"But if you can defeat that Demon Race's Heaven's Pride today, I'll consider our grudge settled. Of course, I know you might not care about this. Before you appeared, I held the top position for a long time, and I understand that the first place never concerns themselves with who comes second."

"I don't know if you're from Zhongzhou, but I hope that since you're in Quzhou, you can lend your strength to Quzhou."

"Consider it my plea."

"I can't help."

Chen Qiu glanced at Li Shi'er and shook his head. "The Demon Race has three Divine Transformation masters. We only have the Su Clan Leader on our side. Even if I win, those three Demon Race Divine Transformation masters will surely intervene. We can't withstand them."

He remembered Li Shi'er.

But he never expected to meet him again.

"Hmm."

The Su Clan Leader nodded with a complicated expression and then continued in a soft voice, "The situation is even more dangerous than you imagine. Currently, Quzhou only has me as a Divine Transformation master. The other two Divine Transformation masters entered a Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm a few months ago and returned severely injured. They are still recovering and have almost no combat power."

"This information is highly confidential, and the Demon State is unaware of it."

"But a few days ago, Demon State cultivators killed a direct disciple of the Qi Sect in the border area. The Qi Sect is one of the few powers in Quzhou with a Divine Transformation master."

"The Demon State was prepared for retaliation, but the Qi Sect hasn't shown any response during this time."

"So, the Demon State suspects that the Qi Sect's elder might have met with an accident."

"That's why they are using this Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm to provoke us."

"If we show weakness now, this group of core cultivators from the Demon State will not hold back. Instead, they will directly invade Quzhou. Their true target is not this Heavenly Dao Mystic Realm but Quzhou itself."

"But—"

"With my presence, they dare not act recklessly and can only continue to provoke Quzhou to send a Heaven's Pride cultivator to fight."

"I alone cannot defeat them, but if I were to fight, I could take down one of them. They wouldn't dare to engage in a life-and-death battle with me."

"The remaining Demon Race's Divine Transformation Master is probably hiding among the crowd, waiting for us to show a hint of weakness. If we do, the Demon Race won't hold back. Instead, they'll directly charge into Changbai Mountain."

"If we win this round, it will boost Quzhou's morale and suppress the Demon Race's momentum."

"If you're confident in winning, don't worry about the aftermath. I'll protect you."

The head of the Su Clan took a deep breath and turned to Chen Qiu, speaking earnestly, "Moreover, if possible, try to win in a decisive and swift manner, completely suppressing the Demon Race's momentum. The Demon Race's Heaven's Pride has already won seven consecutive battles, and their momentum is at its peak."

"If we don't suppress this momentum, the Demon Race might directly summon their entire army, relying on their current advantage."

"At that time..."

"Quzhou will be in grave danger!"

Chen Qiu stood silently, expressionless. As a Golden Core Heaven's Pride, he naturally had the confidence to win, but the three Demon Race Divine Transformation Masters made him hesitant to get involved.

Just then—

"Hey!"

A Demon Race Heaven's Pride, standing in the middle of the two groups, was laughing arrogantly, "I heard that a Law Cultivation Heaven's Pride recently emerged in Quzhou, with a Virtue value of 9.8 billion? Where is he hiding? Come out and let me see your skills!"

"Of course, I know you can't beat my brother, but you can still compete with me. I'm not that capable, but as the Demon Race's ninth Heaven's Pride, I shouldn't be difficult to deal with, right?"

"Or are you too scared to show up?"

His words echoed.

"Hahahahahaha!"

"Hahaha!"

Over a hundred thousand Demon Race members laughed along, their Heaven's Pride having defeated seven Quzhou Heaven's Pride in a row. Their momentum was at an all-time high, and they were eager to invade Quzhou.

The three Divine Transformation Masters at the forefront of the Demon Race exchanged glances.

With such provocations, the other side remained patient. Could it be that the other two Divine Transformation Masters of Quzhou had passed away or were severely injured and recuperating? They had already spent a fortune to recruit some Quzhou cultivators to gather information about the two Divine Transformation Masters.

If it's confirmed that Su Clan's Master is the only Divine Transformation Master in Quzhou at the moment...

Without hesitation, they would immediately send their army!

"Make your move."

The Young Master of the Su Clan looked at Chen Qiu with a complex expression, "All the Heaven's Pride of Quzhou have tried, and none could defeat the Quzhou Heaven's Pride. Only you have a glimmer of hope. If you can defeat the Demon Race's Heaven's Pride, it's equivalent to indirectly saving the lives of hundreds of millions of Quzhou citizens."

"Chen Qiu," even Li Shi'er, standing nearby with a long sword in his embrace, his eyes red with bloodshot veins, turned to Chen Qiu and said earnestly, "That Demon Race's Heaven's Pride was my formidable rival in the Preliminary Screening Realm, but I heard he lost his Heaven's Pride token and didn't enter the realm, missing his chance at the Talented Path."

"Regardless of our past grudges, I'm asking you today. Cut down the Demon Race's Heaven's Pride's malevolent aura!"

Fat Dragon shrugged but didn't speak. He probably understood what Qiu-ge was considering, and it wasn't about being unable to defeat the Demon Race's Heaven's Pride. It was the obvious danger of the situation, with the three Demon Race Divine Transformation Masters standing there. Getting involved would be difficult.

At this moment—

The Heaven's Pride were still provoking and laughing, while the Quzhou cultivators stood silently, their faces grim. The two sides' momentum was starkly different, and someone took the lead.

The Demon Race's Heaven's Pride started targeting Chen Qiu, provoking him.

"Hey, where's Chen Qiu? Is he hiding? Can you inform him to come out and die quickly!"

"I understand. You're deliberately preventing Chen Qiu from participating so that you can claim later that Quzhou isn't without a Heaven's Pride who can't defeat the Demon Race's Heaven's Pride, but Chen Qiu is too proud and doesn't want to participate, right?"

"Are you making a joke?"

Standing in his spot, Chen Qiu saw the pleading gaze from the Su Clan's Master and shook his head without saying much. He opened the Heavenly Clue Umbrella and walked out from the Quzhou cultivators, heading towards the Demon Cultivator standing between the two groups.

The Su Clan's Master had already taken the Divine Transformation Body, and it would be awkward to ignore this now.

Although he didn't want to be dragged into this chaos, once he made his move, no one could rival him.

It was nightfall.

Just as the Demon Race wondered why Chen Qiu opened his umbrella when it wasn't raining, as Chen Qiu took his first step, his spiritual energy surged out, and dark clouds instantly covered the sky, bringing a raging typhoon and rain to a halt!

The rain pounded on everyone.

A small bead containing hundreds of thousands of thunder dragons slowly spun around his body, looking harmless but radiating a terrifying explosive power.

In the midst of the storm—

Chen Qiu's Golden Core instantly appeared outside his body and shot towards the Demon Race's Heaven's Pride who had been provoking in the middle of the two groups, easily piercing his Dantian and shattering his Golden Core on the spot.

Just like that, with a casual strike.

The Demon Race Heaven's Pride who had just provoked him with his words met his end in the blink of an eye.

The ninth Heaven's Pride of the Demon Race, his eyes widened in disbelief, his body staggering as he stood in place. He struggled to lower his head, gazing at the terrifying wound that had pierced his abdomen. He lifted his head to look at Chen Qiu, whose lips quivered slightly. Before he could say anything, his eyes began to lose focus, and his body, beyond his control, fell backward, slamming heavily into the rain.

The blood that flowed out quickly dispersed in the typhoon storm.

For Golden Core Cultivators, a shattered core meant certain death.

But if the Golden Core shattered too quickly, the person might still have a fleeting moment of consciousness, albeit only for that brief moment.

"Boom!"

The body of the ninth Heaven's Pride of the Demon Race landed heavily in the rain, splashing water in all directions.

At that moment, Chen Qiu, with his steady stride, slowly came to a halt. He stood there, raising the edge of his umbrella, his expression unmoved by the instant kill of the ninth Heaven's Pride of the Demon Race. He allowed his black robe to flutter in the raging storm, making a loud rustling sound.

With a calm gaze, he looked at the distant group of Demon Race Cultivators, and his voice, clear and indifferent, rang in everyone's ears amidst the storm.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Chen Qiu, the Sect Leader of the Mock Heaven Sect."

"I heard you were looking for me."

"I'm here."

At that moment, everyone was a bit taken aback, including the Quzhou Cultivators and the Demon Race members. They all stared at the scene before them with a sense of awe, most of them aware that the ninth Heaven's Pride of the Demon Race was no match for Chen Qiu.

But...

Wasn't that too easy a death?!

Just then!

"Die!!"

Suddenly, a Demon Race Heaven's Pride, wielding a pair of axes, roared and charged towards Chen Qiu at an incredible speed. It was so fast that the naked eye couldn't capture it, and in the blink of an eye, the axes slammed heavily onto Chen Qiu's umbrella.

"Boom!"

The impact created a deafening crash.

Chen Qiu stood firmly in place, not even a corner of his robe fluttering. He glanced at the Demon Race Heaven's Pride who had struck his Heavenly Clue Umbrella, and heaved a sigh.

A strand of golden light flashed by once more.

The Demon Race Heaven's Pride's eyes, once filled with anger, began to lose focus. His Golden Core had shattered without anyone noticing, and with a gentle push from Chen Qiu, his body fell heavily into the pool of blood.

He was dead beyond a doubt.

Another one-hit kill.

The power of a Twelfth Stage Golden Core was truly terrifying! In the entire world, there was no one whose Golden Core could withstand a full-power strike from his Golden Core.

Even among those with the Twelfth Stage Golden Core, those with lower cultivation levels couldn't endure it. With both the Twelfth Stage Golden Core and Golden Core Perfection, it could be said that his Golden Core was currently the strongest among all Golden Cores, without a doubt.

"Sigh."

Chen Qiu stood in the storm, holding his Heavenly Clue Umbrella, and stared at the Demon Race members in the distance. His voice, once again, rang clearly and calmly in everyone's ears, "I heard the Demon Race had a very powerful Heaven's Pride. Where is he hiding?"

"Don't send him off, let's finish them together if necessary."

"It's a waste of time."

"Brother Qiu, kill them all!!"

"Stomp those damn Demon Race Heaven's Pride into the ground!"

At this moment, the morale of the Quzhou Cultivators was also boosted after witnessing Chen Qiu's consecutive instant kills of two Demon Race Heaven's Pride. Excitement, fervor, and bloodlust reappeared on everyone's faces. Among them, the most excited was the Young Master of the Su Clan, who was clenching his fists, veins popping out on his neck as he shouted, "Let those dog-piss Demon Race Heaven's Pride witness what a true Heaven's Pride is!"

"A bunch of jumping clowns!"

Fat Dragon, who was also cheering for Brother Qiu, glanced at the Young Master of the Su Clan beside him with a hint of surprise. He recalled that Brother Qiu hadn't had much interaction with the Young Master of the Su Clan, yet the latter seemed even more enthusiastic than him.

Why the exaggeration?

Li Shi'er looked at Chen Qiu's back, clenching his teeth without saying a word. His eyes were filled with helplessness and admiration.

Undeniably, among those with Golden Core Perfection, Chen Qiu's strength far surpassed his own!

No wonder Chen Qiu could say that he saw the demise of the contemporary Heaven's Pride in them. Compared to Chen Qiu, they indeed couldn't be considered Heaven's Pride.

Even the Clan Head of the Su Clan, a Soul Transformation Master, couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction as he looked at Chen Qiu's back.

He saw in Chen Qiu qualities he himself had never possessed.

When he was at the Golden Core stage, he was never the strongest Heaven's Pride. He had always been above the mediocre line in terms of cultivation and personality. Everything about him was average, but despite his mediocrity, he managed to reach the Soul Transformation stage.

In contrast, most of the Heaven's Pride from his youth had not yet reached the Soul Transformation stage.

In his younger days, he had never dared to be as arrogant as Chen Qiu, because he knew there were stronger people in the world. He feared the humiliation of being proven wrong, and so he had never been as bold as Chen Qiu—

Standing alone before ten thousand members of the Demon Race, he dared to challenge three Soul Transformation Masters.

How audacious!

He had never been so bold, but he admired those who were.

PS: Typos will be corrected later. There will be another chapter tonight, so please vote!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end