479: Return a favor

An earthy-yellow Dou Qi Hand Seal struck Xiao Hei, sending him flying backward. He spat out a mouthful of blood in mid-air before skidding across the ground, leaving a trail of blood.

His protective black mist was shattered instantly by Lu Xingchen.

Xiao Hei lay on the ground, staring fixedly at Lu Xingchen, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"How is this possible? How could you be so strong?"

"Fortunately, the power of the demon heart blade has already invaded his body. He will soon become a puppet for us to manipulate!"

But Xiao Hei soon discovered with horror that Lu Xingchen's mind was not affected in the slightest. Lu Xingchen then controlled the Battle Qi Sword Blade and slashed down toward Xiao Chen.

The Battle Qi Sword Blade collided with the cyan blade, instantly shattering it before flying toward Xiao Chen.

Seeing this, Xiao Chen was terrified. He hurriedly activated his Dou Qi to defend himself and brought out a heaven rank middle grade defensive Spiritual Artifact.

Thanks to this defensive Spiritual Artifact, Xiao Chen was not split in two by Lu Xingchen.

Even so, he still flew backward, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

Why was Lu Xingchen not affected by the "demon heart blade"?

Because the candle dragon flame has a special attribute called "Holiness," which can weaken the influence of enemy debuffs.

And since Lu Xingchen's Realm was so much higher than Xiao Hei's, the weakening effect directly became "immunity."

The five people who had been full of Battle Intent just a moment ago now had three of their number downed in an instant, leaving Feng Jie and Xu Hongmi completely stunned.

"Damn it, this Big Strong One is too monstrous!"

To face Xiao Chen and Wan Hanwen, who are both among the Nine Elites, and defeat them in a single move?

But without trying it themselves, the two of them remained unwilling to give up.

Feng Jie was the first to finish charging up, and a cyan whirlwind flew toward Lu Xingchen.

Lu Xingchen smiled slightly and struck out with a palm, easily shattering the cyan whirlwind that was strong enough to kill an Eight-Star Martial Venerable.

With his ultimate move broken, Feng Jie suffered a backlash, spat out a mouthful of blood, and fell to one knee.

At the same time, Xu Hongmi's attack arrived. The "Golden Stamen Flowing Rosy Clouds Formation" was completed, and the golden bird let out a screech as thousands of golden feathers shot toward Lu Xingchen.

Lu Xingchen chuckled, and instead of retreating, he advanced, flying toward Xu Hongmi.

He simply used the Fused Spirit Fire to form a flame shield around his body, easily blocking Xu Hongmi's full-force attack.

Then, he extended his right hand and clenched it heavily.

The spatial power that only a Martial Venerable Expert possesses was activated, and the golden bird was crushed instantly by the spatial power controlled by Lu Xingchen, turning into fragments that filled the sky.

Xu Hongmi also spat out a mouthful of blood, her aura instantly withering.

It sounds complicated, but all of this happened in just 20 seconds.

In just 20 seconds, he had defeated all five of the top Prodigies of the Nine Provinces.

This inconspicuous last of the Nine Elites had truly given everyone a surprise.

The five people's followers hadn't even started warming up before the battle ended.

They were all scared silly, retreating voluntarily and hiding behind the five.

"Damn, this Big Strong One is too powerful! He defeated Senior Brother Xiao Chen in just one move!"

"That's right, that's right! Even Luo Chen, the head of the nine prodigies, couldn't possibly have such powerful strength, right?"

"We've misjudged this time. Only Big Strong One and Luo Chen can covet the championship of the Martial Arts Convention!"

"This Big Strong One is already a Nine-Star Martial Venerable. How far can he be from becoming a Saint?"

Xu Hongmi's eyes were filled with shock as she looked at Lu Xingchen.

"Big Strong One, you, did you really kill Luo Chen?"

Originally, Xu Hongmi had been dismissive of Lu Xingchen's words, but after that battle, she realized that Lu Xingchen might actually have the ability to do so!

Lu Xingchen chuckled: "It doesn't count as killing him, just mutual destruction. Although I obtained the candle dragon flame, I can't guarantee he won't obtain other Opportunities, so it's still unknown who will win or lose in the finals. But at the very least, I'm guaranteed second place and contending for first!"

Xu Hongmi nodded heavily and said in a deep voice: "Before, when you said your Spirit Formation Dao was just a side cultivation and your main combat power was in Dou Qi, I didn't quite believe it. Now it seems my vision was too narrow!"

Lu Xingchen chuckled: "Convinced? Then hand over your integral spirit token!"

The five, including Xu Hongmi, did not act coy.

Since they were willing to bet, they were willing to lose. It was already very good that Lu Xingchen hadn't taken their lives. They had previously snatched other people's spirit tablet points, so they understood these rules.

Lu Xingchen collected all the integral spirit tokens from the five and their followers, then split them equally with Yun Li, with each person gaining ten thousand spirit tablet points.

Lu Xingchen's ranking in spirit tablet points surged to first place again, while Yun Li rushed to second. Luo Chen, in third place, only had eight thousand spirit tablet points.

This was because the competition hadn't started long ago, and everyone didn't have many spirit tablet points on hand; otherwise, Lu Xingchen could have earned more.

After putting away the Spirit Tablet, Xu Hongmi and the other four left the place with their followers.

Only then did Lu Yu and Li Qingshan dare to come forward and strike up a conversation.

Lu Yu bowed to Lu Xingchen and said with a smile: "Many thanks to Brother Big Strong One for saving our lives! Afterward, my Book Sword Vengeance Sect will definitely present a generous gift!"

Lu Xingchen waved his hand and chuckled: "I have already received the gift, so there is no need to give it a second time."

Hearing this, Lu Yu was slightly stunned.

"Huh? I don't understand what Brother Big Strong One means."

Lu Xingchen said indifferently: "I accepted benefits from Li Three and owed the Book Sword Vengeance Sect a favor. Now that this favor has been repaid, I am light and free of debt!"

Lu Yu suddenly realized: "I didn't expect Li Three's suggestion back then to really help me so much. In any case, thank you again, Brother Big Strong One!"

Lu Xingchen waved his hand and said indifferently: "It's a small matter, and I even earned ten thousand spirit tablet points. You should first heal your injuries and recover your state; I also need to wait for the time limit of my secret technique to recover. As for who among us can obtain the secret treasure in the Skeleton Empire, it will depend on our own abilities!"

Lu Yu's expression froze, then he smiled and said: "I have one more thing to ask of you."

Lu Xingchen was not a fool and immediately reacted.

"You still want me to escort you to explore the Skeleton Empire?"

Lu Yu nodded heavily and said with a smile: "Brother Big Strong One is truly a smart man! According to the intelligence of our Book Sword Vengeance Sect, the Skeleton Empire is fraught with danger, and the Senior who created this Secret Realm left behind trials."

"If one is not careful, one might even lose their life inside, let alone search for Opportunities!"

"So I want to travel with Brother Big Strong One. You just need to protect me and Li Qingshan when it is within your power. If there is really no other way, at worst, we will return to the entrance Plaza."

"If any Opportunities are obtained, Brother Big Strong One and your two partners will have priority in distribution, and Li Qingshan and I will just take a share. What does Brother Big Strong One think?"

Hearing this, Lu Xingchen hesitated slightly.

His Life-saving Talisman had already been used. If he encountered danger again, he would have to risk his life.

Bringing two outsiders along at this time was not a good thing!