The massive Heavenly Thunder Bead wriggled down his throat.
Li Guanqi rolled his eyes. He had assumed that like spirit fruits and similar items, it would melt into energy upon swallowing.
Who would have guessed this thing went down like a rock?
Pengluo hurriedly patted Li Guanqi on the back from the side, screeching in horror, "Bro, don't choke to death on me!!"
"I've only had two days of comfortable living!"
"Besides, if you really are going to choke to death, at least release my contract first!!"
The Heavenly Thunder Bead slid past his throat and instantly transformed into a streak of flowing light, plunging directly into his Nascent Soul.
*Hum!*
Li Guanqi's aura began to skyrocket wildly!
The power within the Heavenly Thunder Bead was so overwhelmingly potent that before he could even register what was happening, his cultivation had already climbed to mid Soul Formation Realm, approaching the peak.
Li Guanqi's expression shifted. Being abruptly filled with such immense power was not necessarily a good thing!
By this point, the surrounding crowd had also noticed the chaotic fluctuations of primal energy around Li Guanqi.
Lightning spilled recklessly from his body—a clear sign that he was struggling to control the power inside him.
The divine sense within him surged forth like an overwhelming tide, moving to suppress the Heavenly Thunder Bead's force.
Inside his dantian, the miniature Nascent Soul had turned a brilliant purple, enveloped in dense, crackling arcs of lightning.
Li Guanqi's brow twitched. He realized that the bead's power was beginning to seep through his internal organs and eight extraordinary meridians.
It was even upgrading the quality of his spiritual root!!
Before long, seeing Li Guanqi standing motionless in place, the onlookers felt greed stirring in their hearts.
They exchanged glances, completely unable to conceal the avarice in their eyes.
Nearly sixty to seventy Soul Formation cultivators unleashed their overlapping pressures. Li Guanqi's eyes narrowed slightly, a glint of chilling sharpness flashing in their depths.
*Boom!*
Over a dozen domain spaces erupted one after another!
The terrifying spatial pressure bore down as if to crush Li Guanqi into pieces.
"Kill him!! He must have suffered internal injuries and can't move!!"
"Kill him! Seize the supreme treasure!!"
"Let's charge together!!"
Shouts echoed across the sky. Instigated by schemers, everyone drew their swords in unison and charged toward Li Guanqi.
A flicker of mockery crossed Li Guanqi's eyes, and the corners of his lips curved up slightly.
From his shoulder, Pengluo's eyes went wide, and it squeaked in worry, "Master, how about... you hold the rear while I retreat first?"
Ignoring the mutterings by his ear, Li Guanqi drew his sword and took a heavy step forward.
*Boom!*
In an instant, violent gales rose across heaven and earth, and torrential rain poured down.
The tempest whipped up terrifying astral winds that tore across the entire field, followed immediately by thousands of lightning bolts erupting from within Li Guanqi's body.
Terrifying spatial power spread frantically, blanketing an area of a thousand zhang in the blink of an eye.
"Sword Prison, open!"
*Boom!*
The instant the Sword Prison domain manifested, the dozen-odd domains of various colors shattered to pieces.
His power was simply too horrifying—an absolute, crushing force!
A wave of dread spread uncontrollably through everyone's hearts!
*Thump!*
With a thunderous crash, a streak of lightning flared before everyone's eyes!
Afterimage upon afterimage flickered across every corner of the domain.
Innumerable cries of terror erupted as sword light flashed in all directions, sending blood and severed limbs soaring high into the air.
*Slash! Slash, boom, boom!*
Though all of them were cultivators, an icy chill gripped them to their very bones.
The auras of the besieging experts vanished one after another. Only now did the survivors finally wake from their greed.
Even three renowned late Soul Formation powerhouses had failed to kill Li Guanqi.
What made them think they could? Sheer numbers?
Wielding the Red Lotus, Li Guanqi weaved through the crowd, continuously striking with his blade.
*Slash! Clang!*
The Sword Prison unleashed terrifying spatial power, sealing their movements and suppressing their speed.
Thousands of lightning bolts inside the domain condensed into lightning longswords, wheeling and diving around Li Guanqi.
The lightning swords alone were already enough to leave many scrambling in disarray.
Gradually, as more and more cultivators perished, the rest lost all will to fight.
The remaining forty-odd survivors pooled their strength, frantically bombarding the Sword Prison space.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
*Rumble!*
With a massive crash, a gap was torn open in the Sword Prison, and everyone scattered in wild flight.
Li Guanqi grunted softly. The backlash against his energy caused the blood in his chest to churn, but he forced it back down.
Sheathing his sword, Li Guanqi stood still, having no intention of pursuing them.
With a wave of his hand, the Sword Prison dissipated, leaving a faint mist of blood drifting through the air.
After incinerating all the corpses to ash, he collected their storage rings.
As his divine sense washed over them, the rings in his palm clinked crisply against one another.
Scanning their contents, a flicker of delight crossed Li Guanqi's eyes.
"Tsk, tsk. Killing people really is the fastest way to get rich..."
He casually produced a rank-five cultivation pill and tossed it to Jiuxiao. Seeing Pengluo rubbing its hands and drooling at the side, he retrieved another and gave it over.
Pengluo clutched the pill and began gnawing on it, saying with deep satisfaction, "Brother Li, you're amazing! That was one hell of a slaughter!"
Then Pengluo's tone shifted, and it asked, "Has the divine sense and primal energy in your body started growing wildly?"
Li Guanqi was somewhat surprised, but he nodded nevertheless.
Pengluo stuffed the rest of the pill into its mouth and held out its hand again.
"Two more."
Li Guanqi's face darkened. Grabbing Pengluo, he gave it a kick.
*Bang!*
"Ouch!!"
Opening his fingers, Li Guanqi instantly caught the blasted-away Pengluo back into his grip.
Li Guanqi glared grimly at Pengluo, his icy gaze sending a shiver through its very soul.
Li Guanqi looked at it with calm eyes and spoke in a low voice.
"I know you might have been truly formidable in the past."
"However... since you follow me, you will listen to me."
"I may give, but you do not demand."
As he spoke, Li Guanqi's five fingers dug viciously into Pengluo's body.
Pale purple sap continuously dripped from the wounds.
At the center of his brow, the master-servant contract flickered with an icy light.
Pengluo swallowed hard, clearly sensing the unmistakable killing intent radiating from Li Guanqi.
As the contract flared within it, an agony that pierced directly into its soul suddenly struck.
With a thud, Li Guanqi released his grip.
Pengluo clutched its head and fell to its knees in midair, trembling violently all over as the purple markings across its skin flashed in rapid pulses.
*He... he really is going to kill me!!*
With sheer terror in its eyes, Pengluo stammered hurriedly, "Y-Yes... M-Master..."
"I... I will never dare to do that again."
The spiritual radiance at the center of Li Guanqi's brow receded and vanished. Standing tall, he looked down at Pengluo beneath his feet.
"Remember this: I am master, and you are servant."
"Do not get too presumptuous."
Prostrate at his feet, Pengluo hastened to agree.
"Yes, yes, yes... Master is right..."
"I got carried away."
Chapter 433