269: Absorbing Qi to Swallow the Heavenly Qi

Alone, he frowned at the sight of the surroundings.

He was highly focused, sensing any disturbance around him.

"Where is Azure Dragon? This one has arrived, why have you not shown yourself?" Cao Zhengchun's voice echoed in the silent wilderness.

Only a few more mournful cries of night owls responded to him.

Cao Zhengchun's heart grew more suspicious, and he cautiously walked towards the center of the agreed-upon location.

Just as he approached within ten zhang of the old locust tree, a sudden change occurred!

A figure, as steady as a mountain, slowly emerged from behind the thick tree trunk. The moonlight outlined his silhouette; who else could it be but Iron Courageous Marquis Zhu Wushi?

Cao Zhengchun's pupils suddenly constricted, his steps abruptly halted, and he shrieked, "Zhu Tie Dan? How could it be you?"

"You are Azure Dragon?"

Zhu Wushi stood with his hands behind his back, his demeanor profound and imposing, appearing even more unfathomable in this eerie environment.

A faint, almost imperceptible sneer played on his face: "Director Cao, this one has been waiting for you here for a long time.

Indeed... this king is the Azure Dragon you seek, and also the Azure Dragon who has been sending you messages and intelligence all these years!"

"What?" Cao Zhengchun was struck as if by lightning, the color instantly draining from his already pale face: "You... you are Azure Dragon? So that's it! So that's it! You are going to make a Move against this one!

How dare you?"

"Originally, the experts entrenched in various factions included Zhuge Zhengwo, An Yunshan, King Wuxiang, Chu Xiangyu, and Eunuch Cao. They were all wary of each other.

Even if this one had a hidden card, he dared not reveal it, fearing a combined attack!"

"But now, only you, I, and Lord Zhuge remain! The situation is clear; now, it's your turn to die, Eunuch Cao!"

Cao Zhengchun was startled at first, then burst into laughter: "Hahaha... Hahahaha! Good! A truly magnificent Iron Valiant Divine Marquis! A truly magnificent deception! This one has been within your calculations all these years!"

His laughter gradually ceased, and a complex glint flashed in his narrow eyes—anger, self-mockery, but more so, a cold calmness of someone who had seen the end.

He tidied the cuffs of his flawless robes, his orchid-like fingers still elegant.

"Zhu Tie Dan, this one admires your calculations. The victor is king, the loser is bandit; this is an ancient truth.

This one has fallen into your trap today due to bad luck and poor judgment; no one else is to blame."

He slightly raised his chin; even in such a desperate situation, the arrogance belonging to the Director of the Eastern Depot had not diminished in the slightest:

"However, Zhu Wushi, it won't be so easy for you to take this one's life!

This one has overseen the Eastern Depot for many years, enduring countless storms, relying on more than just luck!

Today, let us settle this with our hands, and let you witness what true Heavenly Dipper Primordial Energy is!"

Before his words finished, Cao Zhengchun's figure moved abruptly, his palms flying, unleashing layers of extremely yin and soft, yet also extremely hard and yang, palm force. It was like a surging tide, yet contained countless subtle changes, engaging Zhu Wushi in a fierce battle!

Under the moonlight, two figures rapidly crisscrossed among the desolate graves, the sound of colliding Qi constantly ringing out.

Cao Zhengchun, with fifty years of dedicated practice of the Tiangang Boy Art, possessed a True Qi that was pure and refined. In the exchange, although he was constantly suppressed and at a disadvantage, he still fought with vigor and maintained his composure.

Bang!

With a roar, Eunuch Cao flew five zhang backward through the air. His translucent Tiangang True Qi was no longer merely a protective Qi wall; in the dark night, it resembled fiercely burning flames.

The immense Aura even caused the surrounding air to stagnate, dimming the flickering phosphorescent lights.

"Zhu Tie Dan, take my Heavenly Dipper Primordial Energy, Ten Thousand Rivers Return to the Sea!"

Cao Zhengchun shrieked, bringing his palms together in front of his chest, condensing all his cultivation into a light pillar, extremely condensed and dazzling like a comet, which he actively blasted towards Zhu Wushi!

This strike abandoned all embellishment; it was purely a desperate final effort with decades of pure cultivation, charging forward with astonishing Aura!

A solemn look also flashed in Zhu Wushi's eyes; Cao Zhengchun's desperate strike indeed possessed considerable power.

He dared not be negligent, activating the Energy Absorption Skill to its extreme once more, both palms striking out. The invisible swirling black hole seemed to swallow the entire space!

"Energy Absorption Skill!"

"Boom—!!!"

The two supreme forces clashed violently once again!

This time, Cao Zhengchun's desperate strike briefly resisted the Devour of the Energy Absorption Skill. The blazing white light pillar and the invisible vortex stalemated in the air,

Unleashing a deafening roar, Qi waves spread outwards like a tsunami, sweeping up all the wild grass and dust from the ground!

However, the mysterious and overbearing nature of the Energy Absorption Skill ultimately prevailed.

Cao Zhengchun's body suddenly stiffened, all his intricate Moves instantly disintegrated, and the vast, ocean-like Heavenly Dipper Primordial Energy within him surged out like a broken dam, uncontrollably flowing towards Zhu Wushi!

His body visibly shriveled at a rapid pace, his magnificent robes became empty, and his face turned as pale as paper.

However, in this final moment of rapidly ebbing life, Cao Zhengchun's face showed no ferocity or pain; instead, a strange expression appeared.

He struggled to straighten his already hunched back, and adjusted his askew hair ornament.

"Zhu Tie Dan, you actually know the Energy Absorption Skill! How do you know the Energy Absorption Skill?"

"Because I am also a successor of the Heavenly Lake Eccentric Swordsman."

"Heavenly Lake Eccentric Swordsman... Energy Absorption Skill... Hahaha... Cough cough..." Cao Zhengchun's shriveled chest heaved violently, emitting a laugh like a broken bellows:

"So that's it! So you, Zhu Tie Dan, are the true successor of this Demonic Technique.

Twenty years ago, all the top experts from the Eight Schools were drained of their cultivation and died. The world believed it was the Immortal Mischievous Old Man Gu Santong, but in reality, it was you, wasn't it!"

"Indeed, it was my doing, and I framed Gu Santong."

"Imperial Uncle Lu, has he also died by your hand?"

"No, he died by Yuan Shisanxian's Heartbreak Arrow. He was too strong, having even secretly mastered the Vajra Indestructible Divine Skill.

Unparalleled lightness skill, two-element ice and fire, Sword Intent soaring to the heavens, Invincible Vajra! Each one is top-tier in the world.

In a frontal battle, no one in the world could kill him; only the Heartbreak Arrow, only Yuan Shisanxian, could ambush and assassinate him from a hundred zhang away, before he could activate his Invincible Vajra body!"

"Invincible Vajra... Divine Skill!" Cao Zhengchun's unfocused pupils suddenly constricted again at this shocking information. He stared intently at Zhu Wushi, as if trying to confirm the truth of this news from his face.

No wonder... no wonder Zhu Wushi was so wary, not only cooperating with himself but also with Yuan Shisanxian, resorting to methods like sneak attacks and assassination!

Confronting Lu Jiuyuan, who possessed several supreme martial arts and an Invincible Vajra body, was indeed an almost impossible task!

"Cough cough... Haha... Hahahaha... Good riddance! Good riddance! Such a person truly shouldn't live in this world!"

"This one was wrong, this one was wrong! I shouldn't have cooperated with you, disrupting the imperial court! And destroying the royal family's stabilizing force!"

"Rest in peace. Oh, and thank you for the second heavenly fragrance seed! I have been searching for it!

This mass grave, burying you here... is just perfect!"

...