84: Tearing apart a cultivator

Only one round of combat was held each day, so Fang Huai had plenty of time to watch the situation on other Martial Arts Stages.

The situation of the Disciples from various Sects participating in the True Dragon Assembly was not the same:

Most of the leaders of the Righteous and Demonic paths were Disciples at Qi Refining Perfection. The other four major Sects were mainly composed of Qi Refining Perfection Disciples, mixed with some Disciples at the eighth or Ninth Level of Qi Refining.

As for those dozen or so weak Sects, Disciples above the Ninth Level of Qi Refining were rarely seen.

Unsurprisingly, most of the victories belonged to the six major Sects.

His gaze focused on another Martial Arts Stage, where Jiang Miao, who was at Qi Refining Perfection, was dueling a female Cultivator from the Hundred Flowers Sect at the Ninth Level of Qi Refining.

Even though her strength was far superior to her opponent's, Jiang Miao feigned defeat, causing the other's confidence to surge.

Just as the female Cultivator was forcing Jiang Miao back step by step, her eyes suddenly became blurred, her face turned rosy, and she knelt on the ground with her legs clamped together.

Jiang Miao leaned in close to the Hundred Flowers Sect Disciple, the corners of her mouth curling up. "I heard that the female Cultivators of the Hundred Flowers Sect value chastity above all else. Why do you have such an expression while trapped in my illusion?"

Meng Yao, the Sect Head of the Hundred Flowers Sect, immediately turned red in the face and said to Jiang Lie, "Fellow Daoist Jiang, it's just a match. Why are you humiliating my Sect's Disciple like this!"

Jiang Lie clapped and laughed softly. "Fellow Daoist Meng, don't misunderstand. My beloved Disciple is using the Confusing Evil Qi. This evil qi is best at stimulating the deepest desires within a Cultivator's heart."

He paused and continued, "I wonder what Fellow Daoist Meng means by 'humiliating the Disciple'?"

"You!"

Meng Yao's chest heaved, but she was only at the Foundation Establishment Peak cultivation and could not afford to provoke Jiang Lie, who was at the Core Formation stage.

She could only close her eyes and remain silent, no matter what Jiang Miao said.

The cultivation world truly was a place where the strong preyed on the weak!

Fang Huai sighed inwardly. Just then, Jiang Miao seemed to have had enough of playing with the female Cultivator before her and swung her sword at her.

"Spare me, I con—"

The female Cultivator from the Hundred Flowers Sect had an arm severed by Jiang Miao's sword. She instantly woke up from the illusion, her face filled with terror.

Just as she was about to beg for mercy, Jiang Miao covered her mouth. "Heehee, I don't like it when my opponents surrender."

With that, she spat a mouthful of poisonous fiendish energy into the female Cultivator's eyes, directly corroding her eyeballs.

"Ah!"

The female Cultivator screamed, but Jiang Miao had no intention of stopping.

With a little more force from the hand covering the female Cultivator's mouth, her teeth all fell out.

Meng Yao finally couldn't take it anymore. She waved her hand, her spiritual power pushing Jiang Miao back, and swept the female Cultivator to her side.

"Enough! This Disciple of the Hundred Flowers Sect surrenders!"

...Compared to Jiang Miao's cruelty, the other Martial Arts Stages were much more peaceful.

After all, they were all Cultivators of the State of Chen. If they formed a blood feud, they would inevitably be on edge when traveling in the future.

However, Jiang Miao's actions were not entirely useless.

Seeing how cruel the Corpse Fiend Sect was, most other Sects gave up the idea of fighting them to the death. As soon as the situation looked bad, they would immediately surrender.

By the end of the first day, Jiang Lie's expression was not good.

Of the thirty Disciples from the Corpse Fiend Sect, four had lost.

One lost to the Profound Sword Sect, one to the Azure Cloud Sect, and two others lost to minor Sects.

Actually, those two weren't to blame.

Although their cultivation was higher than their opponents', they lacked Spirit Treasures and Talismanic Incantations. They were worn down by minor characters until they suffered from depleted spiritual power and had no choice but to surrender.

Just as Fang Huai was about to return to his Sect to rest, a familiar voice called out to him.

"Fellow Daoist Fang, may I have a word with you in private?"

The person who came was actually Lin Yu.

Qi Refining Perfection, with [Resilient Dao Heart (White)] and [Protective Aura (Red)].

The two walked to a corner, and Lin Yu brought out a Sound-Isolating Talisman, saying:

"Fellow Daoist Fang, the demonic gates are cruel and not a place for the long term. If there is an opportunity in the future, you should still seek refuge in a Righteous Path Sect."

Fang Huai smiled. "Fellow Daoist Lin was also there yesterday. Did you hear my Sect Head Jiang mocking the Profound Sword Sect because the daughter of one of your Sect's elders was captured for seven years?"

Lin Yu nodded. "I know."

"Then do you know whose residence that female Cultivator stayed in for seven years?"

"I don't know."

"In mine!"

"So it was you!" Lin Yu said in surprise. "I was wondering why Junior Sister Li's cultivation hadn't regressed and she hadn't even lost her chastity mark after being captured for seven years. It turns out it was thanks to Fellow Daoist Fang's care!"

"That's why it's even more impossible for me to join the Profound Sword Sect." Fang Huai sighed. "Regardless, I made the entire Profound Sword Sect lose face yesterday, and I've already made many enemies."

...After bidding farewell to Lin Yu, Fang Huai returned to his residence, closed his eyes, and concentrated on his cultivation.

"Buzz, buzz, buzz."

The Spirit Messaging Bees circled around Fang Huai, their wings fluttering and making a signaling sound.

After several years of breeding, the swarm had grown to over twenty bees. The queen had reached the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, and the ordinary worker bees were at the second level of Qi Refining.

Fang Huai held a Spirit Messaging Bee in his palm, feeling the vibration frequency of its wings, and felt puzzled.

"Is there an acquaintance here?"

Sure enough, the door was gently pushed.

After pushing it a few times and seeing no effect, the person called out softly, "Senior Brother Fang, open the door. It's Luo Heng."

Fang Huai opened the door, only to see that Luo Heng had been tortured by the Four Elephant Shattering Body Evil Qi until he no longer looked human.

His nose, ears, and teeth had all fallen out, and his limbs were severely rotted.

He bowed to Fang Huai, but as soon as he lowered his head, an eyeball fell out of its socket.

Fang Huai said with regret, "Junior Brother Luo, your Qi Deviation has worsened again!"

Luo Heng sighed. "I don't have much longer to live, unlike Senior Brother Fang, who is in the prime of his life!"

He handed a sound storage talisman to Fang Huai and left dejectedly.

Fang Huai sank his mind into it, and the content of the talisman made him frown:

"[In this True Dragon Assembly competition, act within your capabilities. Do not damage your Foundation and delay your future cultivation.]"

That fellow Feng Wuwang is truly coveting his body.

————

In his second match, Fang Huai drew a Disciple from the Puppet Sect.

[Wang Ming]

[Ninth Level of Qi Refining]

[Spiritual Power Congestion (Gray)], [Yin Pith Wood Body]

[Spiritual Power Congestion: The Physical Body's mass is too low, resulting in poor circulation of Spiritual Qi.]

[Yin Pith Wood Body: Using Yin Pith Wood as a body, puppetizing the physical form to reach maximum combat power.]

Beside Wang Ming stood two ferocious-looking puppet beasts.

They were built on a base of Yin Pith Wood and integrated with the remains of Yao Beasts; one look was enough to tell they were exceptionally fierce.

Ye Jin, the Sect Head of the Puppet Sect, pointed at Fang Huai. "Fellow Daoist Jiang, your Sect's Disciple has rather poor Luck."

"It is indeed a pity." Jiang Lie's tone was regretful. "This Disciple's strength is quite good. If he were up against a Qi Refining Perfection Cultivator from another Sect, he might not necessarily be at a disadvantage. But he just happened to run into your Sect; I'm afraid things don't look good for him."

Before reaching Qi Refining Perfection, the Puppet Sect relies on puppetized bodies to add a hard shell to the physical form. The Corpse Fiend Sect can't compete in terms of physical bodies, and their fiendish poison is difficult to penetrate, putting them at a significant disadvantage.

However, after reaching Qi Refining Perfection, Corpse Fiend Sect Disciples break through three shackles, and their strength undergoes a world-shaking transformation, often allowing them to easily crush Puppet Sect Disciples.

Wang Ming sensed Fang Huai's cultivation and smiled. "Fellow Daoist opposite me, for the sake of the relationship between our two Sects, you should just surrender on your own. I don't want to make you look too bad."

Fang Huai: "This Fellow Daoist seems quite confident?"

Wang Ming: "It's not that I'm too confident; it's that neither of our Sect Masters thinks highly of you."

Jiang Lie and Ye Jin's words were not hidden, so Fang Huai and Wang Ming naturally heard them clearly.

Seeing Fang Huai remain silent, Wang Ming simply stood still. "How about this: I'll give you five moves where I only defend and don't attack. If you can break my defense within five moves, I'll surrender."

"If you can't break it, then you should just step down."

Fang Huai looked at him, his eyes deep.

He just happened to need a live target to test the combat power of his body, which had been replaced with 206 foundation establishment stage demon bones.

With a "thud," his heels kicked off the ground, and his body shot straight toward his opponent like an arrow from a bow.

Wang Ming shook his head. "Attacking my hardest point head-on is not a wise move..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Fang Huai's hands actually pierced through the Yin Pith Wood shell and thrust into the interior of his body.

"Riiiip—"

The ear-piercing sound of wood tearing.

Wang Ming's Puppet shell was actually torn in half.

Fang Huai gazed at the other's exposed internal organs and spoke, "May I ask, Fellow Daoist, does this count as breaking your defense?"