813: Amorous Young Master

The extremely young Zhou Xiutong arrived beside the three in a casual manner, her intention clear—she was here to take the fourth slot for entering the Thunder Pool.

The faces of the Cultivators from the Great World of the Sea of Thunder flickered with uncertainty, yet surprisingly, no one voiced a challenge.

Even though Zhou Xiutong appeared so young.

It was because they were completely unable to gauge the depth of this young Purple-robed Female Immortal.

All they knew was that she looked as if she hadn't traversed this Forbidden Sea of Thunder at all, showing no signs of injury or unstable spiritual power.

This was terrifying.

Even the three Void Refining Great Powers—Cangshan the Madman, Pu Yuanzi, and Heavenly Thunder Child—did not look as relaxed and at ease as this purple-robed woman.

A strange silence fell over the area.

After a long while.

Finally, another person flew forward.

This man stood over ten feet tall with a giant axe strapped to his back. He looked incredibly domineering, though he was quite aged, his face etched with the marks of time.

"Venerable Giant Axe."

The weathered old man carrying the giant axe said nothing, silently taking his place on the far right.

"One Late Stage Soul Transformation, three Early Stage Void Refining..."

Zhou Xiutong sized up the four people standing alongside her.

The old man who had come out last was in the Soul Transformation Realm, while the other three were all in the Early Stage of Void Refining.

Among the three, Pu Yuanzi, whom she had met first, had the deepest cultivation and a solid Foundation.

The other two, Cangshan the Madman and Heavenly Thunder Child, seemed to have achieved their Breakthrough recently.

They likely intended to use the Thunder Pool to stabilize their cultivation Realm.

As for the old man with the giant axe at the Late Stage of Soul Transformation, he didn't have much Lifespan left.

He probably wanted to absorb the thunder liquid for one final gamble.

Success would mean a Breakthrough and extended life; failure would mean immediate death and the end of his Dao.

"The chances aren't great..."

Zhou Xiutong glanced at Venerable Giant Axe from the corner of her eye.

She felt a heavy air of decline about him; he had lost the heart to forge ahead with courage.

This final gamble would likely end in failure.

However, that had nothing to do with her.

The appearance of Venerable Giant Axe took up the fifth spot.

The other Cultivators in the area were beginning to stir.

But none of these five were easy targets.

For a moment, no one dared to step forward and voice an objection.

At that moment.

Beneath the black clouds, a unique being condensed from lightning looked down at the sea below.

"These five may each accept five challenges. Defeat any one of them, and you may take their place."

There was a hint of disappointment in the lightning being's eyes.

The people attracted to this opening of the Thunder Pool were truly lacking in spirit.

He had thought a fierce struggle would break out without him saying a word.

Who would have known that if he didn't speak up, these five slots might have been settled just like that.

That would have been incredibly boring.

Having spoken, the lightning being watched the scene below with interest.

Surely someone would come forward now.

"They will only accept five challenges each, which means that after five times, the slots will be fixed."

"In that case, I must strike first..."

If the five challenges were exhausted, anyone wishing to challenge would have to choose someone else.

"Senior giant axe, please grant me your guidance!"

As expected, many had thought of this. As soon as the lightning being finished speaking...

...a Middle-aged Cultivator wearing a deep blue Daoist robe with a blue precious bead hovering over his head flew out and stood opposite Venerable Giant Axe.

Boom!

Venerable Giant Axe's expression was grave; he had no intention of wasting words with the person before him.

Reaching back, he drew his giant axe. His figure flickered like lightning as he leaped forward, swinging the axe down at the middle-aged Daoist with the blue precious bead.

With little Lifespan remaining, he used overwhelming force from the very start.

He had to win quickly to strike fear into them.

Venerable Giant Axe's first move was a full-power strike, causing the face of the blue-robed middle-aged Daoist to change.

The precious bead above his head shone brilliantly, weaving a massive net of lightning.

Boom!

The giant axe fell, tearing through the Lightning Net and slamming heavily onto the precious bead above the middle-aged Daoist's head.

The precious bead shook violently.

Boom!

The middle-aged Daoist was blasted into the depths of the sea by the single axe strike.

"Next."

Venerable Giant Axe's voice was cold and filled with determination.

His Aura was overwhelming.

"So strong. That old ghost giant axe has lived so long; his Foundation is indeed profound."

Seeing the middle-aged Daoist defeated in a single blow, the Cultivators felt a wave of admiration.

Splash!

A moment later.

The middle-aged Daoist flew out from the sea, his face pale and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

He glanced at the Thunder Pool and Venerable Giant Axe, then flew toward the outskirts of the Sea of Thunder with resentment.

He had been injured by that axe strike, and after being knocked into the sea, he was attacked by undersea demons.

If he stayed any longer, he feared he wouldn't make it out of this Sea of Thunder alive.

"Senior giant axe, pardon my intrusion!"

Although Venerable Giant Axe had decisively defeated one person...

...to those with keen eyes, this show of strength seemed somewhat hollow.

After the middle-aged Daoist left, another person flew out and attacked Venerable Giant Axe.

Venerable Giant Axe's expression soured, and he felt like coughing up blood in frustration.

Why was no one looking for trouble with that purple-robed girl?

Every single one of them was targeting him.

Venerable Giant Axe let out a huff of pent-up anger.

He fiercely raised his giant axe and swung it at the newcomer, the axe light descending as if it could split the Sea of Thunder in two.

The battle here was heating up.

Cangshan the Madman's eyes gleamed with ferocity as his Black-gold Fists collided repeatedly; he seemed eager for a fight.

Heavenly Thunder Child, clutching two azure precious beads, rested with his eyes closed, unmoved by the outside world.

Zhou Xiutong watched Venerable Giant Axe's battle with interest, analyzing the strength of the Cultivators of this world and their cultivation methods.

She was trying to see if there was anything that could supplement her own path.

Meanwhile, Pu Yuanzi, holding his sword in his arms, was somewhat distracted.

He quietly stole glance after glance at Zhou Xiutong.

It seemed that Zhou Xiutong in this state was completely different from the one wielding the Purple-gold Hammer, offering a different kind of charm.

The four of them each had different thoughts.

Only Venerable Giant Axe was internally "vomiting blood" in frustration.

"Cough, cough~"

"Next."

Finally, after exerting more effort to defeat the second challenger, Venerable Giant Axe took a deep breath. He turned and swallowed a handful of high-grade Spirit Pills before facing the crowd of experts again. His voice remained unchanged, but his Aura was no longer what it had been.

"Senior giant axe..."

"..."

Yet another person stepped forward to challenge Venerable Giant Axe.

Just as Zhou Xiutong wanted to continue watching the fight...

...an elegant Young Master fanning himself with a folding fan slowly flew over and stopped not far from her.

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist."

With a snap, the Young Master with the folding fan closed it and struck a familiar pose, bowing to Zhou Xiutong.

"Fellow Daoist, do you wish to challenge me?"

Zhou Xiutong pulled her attention away from the battle and looked at the newcomer.

"Hmm?"

"No reaction at all?"

The Young Master with the folding fan was somewhat puzzled. He was known in the Jianghu as the Romantic Young Master, Jue Youqing—elegant, handsome, fair-skinned, with eyes that could charm anyone.

Any woman who saw him would fall for his every move.

However, this purple-robed woman seemed to completely ignore his charm.

"Strange..."

Jue Youqing murmured in confusion. Then, flashing a smile he believed could captivate thousands of maidens, he said to Zhou Xiutong, "Fellow Daoist, such a dangerous and grim place is truly a mood killer. Only with the two of us together can we truly appreciate the romance of the world."