Lu Yuan understood clearly that an enemy taken so seriously by the Ancestral Dragon had to be exceedingly formidable. After all, it was a foe that even Human Sovereign Shennong and Immortal Guangchengzi had struggled to face.
"King Lu."
Just then, Jiang Ningxian spoke and pointed in another direction.
Hearing her, Lu Yuan looked up at once.
In the distance, arcs of black lightning were surging relentlessly, and the ambient aura of the area seemed to shift alongside them.
"It's the aura of the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Peacock King." Lu Yuan opened his Martial Dao Heavenly Eye and discerned it immediately, his brow furrowing slightly.
He could tell that they were not clashing with the heavenly soldiers or nether soldiers here, but with another person. Whoever was capable of pushing them to this point was certainly no ordinary opponent. At the same time, he deduced who the Beast Kings were fighting.
"It's Zhou Yunqiong."
The Earth Awakened who had entered this place would not treat the Beast Kings as enemies. While extraterrestrial beings were a possibility, with Lu Yuan's reputation looming over them, they would not blow things out of proportion either. Thus, the only person likely to make a move at this moment was Zhou Yunqiong. For her to dare wage war against the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the rest, she had to possess absolute confidence in her own strength.
Jiang Ningxian was pointing out far more than just a clash of energies. As they had discussed earlier, some matters had to be settled once and for all.
After a brief silence, Lu Yuan spoke slowly: "It's time to resolve a few things."
"All right." Jiang Ningxian's interest was piqued as well, and she decided to go see for herself. Since they were already inside the secret realm, the secrets of the other half of the Netherworld could be investigated sooner or later anyway.
Without hesitation, the two vaulted directly into the air and sped toward the scene.
Meanwhile, in a certain district of the city...
Not long ago, the four Beast Kings had rendezvoused and continued their search through this half of the Netherworld. Eventually, they discovered the Jiuzhou Map inside a grand palace hall.
Anyone could tell that the map was extraordinary. A closer look revealed that it depicted the ancient lands of Jiuzhou. It was clearly profound, and they had discovered it first. Yet the moment they collected it, Zhou Yunqiong appeared, immediately striking out to seize it for herself. She, too, recognized that the Jiuzhou Map was exceptional and intended to claim it. That was the true cause of this confrontation.
The four Beast Kings struck back together: the Peacock King, the Golden-Winged Great Peng, the Spirit Monkey, and the Nine-Tailed Fox King. All four possessed remarkable might, each having attained the Sovereign King Realm except for the Golden-Winged Great Peng.
The Spirit Monkey swung his iron rod with momentum enough to sweep away a thousand armies, his golden fur rippling with vitality. The Peacock King and the Golden-Winged Great Peng unfurled their wings, radiating blinding brilliance, while the Nine-Tailed Fox King's nine tails swept back and forth relentlessly.
They were truly formidable. Every motion stirred up a tempest, and rays of light shot out in all directions, their immense force causing the ground to tremble. Had this taken place in the outside world, half a city would have been flattened. Only because this was inside the Kunlun secret realm, where yin and yang had inverted once more, did the surroundings hold.
Shrouded in divine light, the figure facing them exuded an overwhelming, formidable aura. It was a woman. Every movement she made conjured phantoms of a True Phoenix that seemed to come alive, thoroughly suppressing all four Beast Kings.
Not far away, a disciple of the Zhou family spoke with visible worry: "Uncle You, should we go assist the eldest miss?"
After all, four Beast Kings had joined forces, and they feared something might go wrong with her.
Uncle You shook his head and smiled. "The eldest miss has been in seclusion for a long time and has undergone a complete transformation. Even with them joining hands, they are no match for her. Besides, she wants to test the extent of her progress. We need only watch."
His tone brimmed with confidence, for he knew what kind of metamorphosis their eldest miss had undergone during her recent seclusion, especially in her cultivation realm. She had already reached the fifth stage of evolution: the Sovereign King Realm. Her strength and evolution had advanced by leaps and bounds; even if a Void Saint stood before her now, she would feel no fear.
A potent bloodline and countless secrets—such was the terrifying might of a fully awakened lineage. Her bloodline originated from Xuanyuan the Yellow Emperor, surpassing even several sequences of the Ji clan, and she had the backing of the Ji clan behind her. In Uncle You's view, the only person under the heavens capable of rivaling her today was likely Lu Yuan.
Zhou Yunqiong looked at the four Beast Kings before her, her voice remarkably flat. Drifting through midair, she struck lightly with a slender palm, unleashing an unparalleled wave of power.
"Your strength is insufficient. Why throw your lives away? How pathetic."
The Nine-Tailed Fox King reverted to its true form, unleashing its utmost power, and retorted, "We discovered the Jiuzhou Map first! You're merely a latecomer. Why should we yield it to you?"
"Since ancient times, fortunes belong to the strong."
Zhou Yunqiong's tone remained aloof. She knew these four Beast Kings were connected to Lu Yuan. From the beginning, she had refrained from going all out, as she still preferred to conceal her aura to avoid detection after receiving help from that Ji clan figure. To be safe, she had intended to keep a low profile. Yet now, she no longer wished to hide; her emergence from seclusion was destined to astonish the world! However, the four Beast Kings' stubborn refusal to back down had finally ignited a spark of irritation within her.
"I do not wish to kill you. Withdraw now and leave the map behind, and I will let the matter rest."
"Then let's see how much you can truly do!" the Nine-Tailed Fox King replied, before bursting forth with formidable power alongside the other three Beast Kings once more.
Rumble!
Violent waves of energy surged ceaselessly in fierce combat. Above the battlefield, a sheepskin Dao diagram drifted gently, bobbing up and down.
The four Beast Kings had initially thought suppressing this woman would be easy. At the same realm, mutated beasts were typically stronger than humans; after all, not everyone could be as invincible as Lu Yuan. They refused to believe they could truly be suppressed. Yet even with the four of them working together, they could not overcome the figure before them. Zhou Yunqiong still seemed completely at ease, standing in their midst like an exalted True Phoenix, displaying overwhelming combat strength.
"Since you refuse the toast only to drink a forfeit, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Losing her patience, Zhou Yunqiong took a step forward. Her entire body erupted with dazzling radiance, coalescing into the silhouette of a True Phoenix.
Jiang Ningxian paused in midair the moment she saw this. "King Lu, it seems this old acquaintance of yours is held in very high regard by the Ji clan. Is that... a taboo divine ability of the Ji clan?"
"It's over."
Finally, Zhou Yunqiong spoke once more: "I give you one final warning. Leave now, and your lives will be spared."
Chapter 183