Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Grandmaster (Congratulations to Elvin2016, the Silver Alliance Leader!)_1 Chapter 78: Chapter 77: Grandmaster (Congratulations to Elvin2016, the Silver Alliance Leader!)_1 “Madman, who is it?”
Linghu Shan seemed to recall something, his expression suddenly becoming very solemn.
Yan Jue answered in a serious tone, “Defeat Peak—Dugu Wuwang!”
“It’s that old lunatic!”
Linghu Shan gasped, then turned to Fang Xi and said, “It’s better not to go to Defeat Peak…”
“Oh? What’s so special about this Dugu Wuwang?”
Fang Xi’s interest piqued, he asked.
“Dugu Wuwang…” Linghu Shan sighed, “This man became famous sixty years ago, his talent reaching an earth-shattering level. It’s said that he achieved the status of Grandmaster at the age of twenty, undefeated in all of the world! At that time, his name was—Dugu Sheng!”
“Not only that, but this man was a prodigy, creating top-tier secret skills; he was also one of the founders of the Grandmaster Conference… Indeed, had it not been for his obsession with martial arts research and looking beyond the Martial Saint realm… perhaps the first Conference leader would have been him.”
Even Yan Jue looked wistful when he mentioned Dugu Sheng.
“Twenty years old sixty years ago, so now he must be over eighty years of age. Are we being sent to confirm whether this person is dead or alive?”
Fang Xi asked.
“That seems to be part of the consideration…” Zhou Tong appeared to have some difficulty speaking, but seeing that the others around were members of the Grandmaster Conference, he decided to speak frankly, “Generally speaking, even when we martial artists reach a venerable age, we can still summon our full vitality… And this Senior Dugu was even more extraordinary, after reaching the pinnacle of martial arts, he tried various methods to break through the realm above Grandmaster and failed… thus changing his name to Dugu Wuwang! He was the founder of the Grandmaster Conference’s method called ‘Demon Seed Infusion’!”
“As everyone knows, although a portion of Grandmasters advocate learning from demons, they only simulate it with their blood and energy… only real madmen would try to channel cursed power!”
“Indeed!” Thought Fang Xi, thinking of Linghu Yang, the genius martial teacher from Yuanhe Mountain, who had done the same and seemed more akin to Cursed People.
“But Dugu Wuwang was different! He believed that only by starting with a real demon’s body, could there be hope of breaking through… His Demon Seed technique was the most primitive and savage, not obtaining cursed power from the bodies of minor demons like Demon Servants, but… by consuming or even grafting the ‘demon’ itself!”
Zhou Tong said, his expression turning fearful.
Yan Jue couldn’t help but shudder, “Most of the test subjects that tried to channel the essence of demons ended disastrously… But this man sealed himself on Defeat Peak and occasionally retained his sanity…”
“But a month ago, as this man’s time seemed to be drawing near, his mind also appeared to be getting blurrier. There’s been no word from the Grandmasters who were stationed at Defeat Peak, something must have happened on the mountain! Therefore, the Conference issued a mission for other Grandmasters to investigate… I’ll not conceal it from you, there have already been Grandmasters who have fallen…”
“I see…”
After hearing everything, Fang Xi became even more interested in this Grandmaster Dugu Wuwang.
Daring to directly consume or graft a demon’s essence? Truly a ruthless person!
Perhaps, this man really saw a glimmer of hope for a breakthrough?
…
Defeat Peak.
This mountain was located at the border of Ding State and Lan State, rampant with monster beasts, a place where no living being should enter.
“Gua gua!”
“Gua gua!”
Fang Xi, Zhou Tong, and Yan Jue moved through the rugged mountains as if on flat ground.
They had reached the status of Grandmaster, embodying the human pinnacle, each movement of strength exceedingly precise and efficient.
A light touch on a tree branch, and they would shoot out dozens of feet away.
It was unknown how long they had been navigating through the deep mountains when Fang Xi looked up to see a black and abrupt peak rising like a sword blade piercing the sky.
Around this peak, crows circled, monstrous birds with red eyes.
Suddenly!
A red-eyed crow dove down, opening its long beak revealing its ghastly white teeth!
“Monster beasts are monster beasts, too stupid for their own good!”
Zhou Tong stepped forward to block it even before Fang Xi had to lift a finger.
The martial art he practiced was called ‘Bronze Figure Skill’! A top-notch hardening technique that, when mastered, made the body impervious to blades and resistant to fire and water.
Now standing before them like a copper wall and iron barrier, his skin turned bronze-colored, the crow’s beak and claws could only leave light marks on his skin that soon disappeared without a trace.
“These monster birds are actually not bad, raising one for daily observation could help me improve my Yan Jue’s Hawk-Shaped Fist technique…”
Yan Jue spread his arms wide, lunging like a giant bat.
At the same time, his muscles and bones resonated, creating numerous birdlike chirps and explosive noises.
“Secret Skill·Hundred Hawks Cry Together!”
His hands darted out like beaks, thousands striking simultaneously, sending the crows plummeting to the ground with screeches.
Countless black feathers scattered, as if a black rain had fallen.
“Gua gua!”
Unnumbered monster beast crows fell dead as Yan Jue laughed heartily, grabbing the most majestic one among them.
This monster bird was glossy black all over, with razor-sharp talons, struggling even in Yan Jue’s grasp.
Suddenly, it opened its beak and a black, worm-like object shot out like an arrow toward Yan Jue’s throat!
Whistle!
In the next instant, a stream of Gang Qi appeared, acting like a neck protector, deflecting the arrow-slot.
Yan Jue’s face darkened severely, “Ungrateful beast, such wildness can’t be tamed, wasting my goodwill!”
Crack!
He forcibly twisted, snapping the monster crow’s neck with his right hand.
“Old Yan, if you’re not keeping the bird, give it to me…”
Fang Xi smiled faintly, collecting the bird corpses for himself.
In his hands, monster materials like feathers and flesh dissolved into nothingness in a moment.
This scene made Yan Jue’s and Zhou Tong’s pupils constrict, but they wisely chose not to inquire about the secret.
After all, Fang Xi was too strong!
Every Grandmaster has secrets, and prying too deeply could well lead to a life-and-death struggle!
Fang Xi calmly watched the two Grandmasters slay the beasts while he himself picked up some materials.
Once he had collected enough, the group of crows grew wiser, flying away to avoid meeting their end.
“Haha… Such minor demons, hardly worth mentioning!”
Zhou Tong laughed heartily.
With his Bronze Figure Skill at full mastery, even facing a Monster King wouldn’t be too daunting for him.
Smack!
However, the next moment, a lump of white bird droppings fell from the sky, landing squarely on his face.
“Aaaagh… I’m going to kill you all!”
Zhou Tong’s face turned crimson with rage as he shouted, grabbing a stone from the ground and hurling it into the sky with all his might.
Smack!
The stone, wrapped in Gang Qi, shot through the air like an arrow from a powerful crossbow, producing a piercing sonic boom and displaying lethal force.
In an instant, a crow was struck and fell from the sky, caught deftly by Fang Xi.
‘Sigh… What a hit…’
He thought to himself, quickly ascending Defeat Peak with the two Grandmasters.
…
The pitch-black mountain was incredibly steep, with no paths available for walking.
Among the crevices of the cliff face, one could occasionally make out the chilling sight of white bones.
Some looked like the remains of various wild animals and birds…
Others appeared to be.. human bones!
The three Grandmasters paid it no mind, leaping up and landing on the mountain’s summit.
At the top of Defeat Peak, there was a flat clearing with a thatched cottage, several black crows were perched atop, preening their feathers.
Noticing the arrival of visitors, they immediately let out harsh, grating cries and quickly fled into the distance.
“Is this… the dwelling of Dugu Wuwang?”
Fang Xi asked Zhou Tong.
“No… It’s the residence of Master Yu, who was in charge of guarding Dugu Wuwang… Nobody’s here, something must have happened!”
Yan Jue looked grim, leading Fang Xi behind the thatched cottage.
There, the mountain rock turned even darker, gleaming with the sheen of pure iron.
Fang Xi deliberately stomped hard, and only a shallow imprint appeared on the dark rock.
“These stones, they’re so hard?”
He couldn’t help but feel astonished.
After all, even if he hadn’t used his full strength, a stomp like that should have shattered a piece of Green Rock.
“There might be a rare iron ore within this mountain… its body is exceptionally hard.”
Zhou Tong explained to Fang Xi, “That’s exactly why Master Dugu chose this as the place to confine himself…”
The next moment, a small mountain peak appeared before Fang Xi.
The entire mountain seemed to collapse inward, forming a cave.
More astonishingly, thick iron chains as thick as a grown man’s thigh were scattered all around, stretching into the cave.
It was as though what was confined inside wasn’t a person, but some ferocious beast!
“Quack quack!”
A black crow flew past the peak.
The next moment, it shrieked in panic, as if seized by an invisible giant hand and sucked into the cave from above.
Horrific gnawing sounds immediately followed…
“Impressive skill!”
Fang Xi’s eyes lit up upon seeing this.
Clearly, Dugu Wuwang, who was sealed within the cave, was using some technique akin to distant object attraction, absorbing his bloody sustenance from outside the cave each day to enjoy within.
To achieve such a feat from such a distance, his control over True Gang in martial arts had definitely reached a profound level, virtually a miraculous skill!
“Not good!”
On the other side, Zhou Tong had picked up a broken jade flute from the ground, his expression turning extremely grim: “This is the personal weapon of Jade Flute Dongmen Lin, the scout we sent out before the Conference—a token that man has likely met with misfortune!”
“Roar!”
Just as he finished speaking, a bestial roar erupted from the cave!
The roar was heart-wrenching, making every listener feel an unbearable oppression.
Fang Xi immediately thought of the Demon Tree in Black Stone City, his expression turning very solemn.
‘Indeed, this is the ruthless man who dared to consume the essence of demons. Someone like Linghu Yang can’t even be mentioned in the same breath!’
As he was talking to himself.
Smack!
A figure burst out from the cave at lightning speed.
“Hah!”
Zhou Tong let out a bellow, his cultivation technique pushed to its limit, turning his body almost into a copper statue as he struck out at the incoming figure with a palm.
Smack!
The figure was easily swatted away.
Yan Jue’s pupils shrank to the size of pinholes upon seeing the person sent flying wasn’t Dugu Wuwang, but a mutilated corpse!
“Ah!”
In the next moment, accompanied by the explosion of iron chains, iron chains as thick as thighs, like writhing flood dragons, lashed out to strike at the three individuals.
Fang Xi had just stepped back when he heard a scream!
It was Yan Jue!