Throughout the various branches of the Five Elements Alliance, legends of Yuanshi Tianzun were everywhere. Though he had risen only recently, his exploits were spectacular enough that people spoke of him with relish. Yet very few truly knew how strong he was. In all the rumors, his most outstanding traits were his dungeon-clearing ability and his absurd leveling speed; combat prowess came second.
Everyone knew that yin corpses and spirit servants took time to accumulate. Night Wanderers were further divided into the paths of the Sun, Moon, and Stars. No matter how fast he leveled, there was bound to be a massive gap between him and seasoned veterans who had cultivated a specific power for years.
Therefore, when Osmond provoked Yuanshi Tianzun, the attitude among the Alliance's rank-and-file on the forum had been: *Thirty years on the east side of the river, thirty years on the west—wait until the end of the year if you've got the guts.*
By year's end, Lord Tianzun would become a Dominator, and then he would crush them with sheer level difference.
Yet today, Yuanshi Tianzun shattered everything the Qinghe and Nanming Branches thought they knew. The combat strength he put on display completely overwhelmed seasoned peak Level 6 combatants.
He had taken on three peak Saints of Heaven's Punishment by himself and achieved a total victory.
Most absurd of all, he had not personally lifted a finger from start to finish. Relying merely on combinations of items and yin corpses, along with deductions from Stargazing, he had acted like a mastermind orchestrating every move from behind the scenes.
His swagger was off the charts!
After a brief silence, the Wood Monsters of the Qinghe clan perched atop the tree canopy erupted into an uproar—a pure, wordless clamor venting their sheer shock.
Yun Meng let out a muffled shriek, wishing she could sing a Qinghe mountain folk song for Yuanshi Tianzun right then and there. Her eyes sparkled as if she were gazing upon some peerless treasure.
"What kind of freak is he?" Wu Youhua's brow was tightly knit as he muttered under his breath.
"He has too many items," Clan Leader Wu Agui said objectively. "Once he reaches the Dominator stage, he won't be able to fight like this."
Dominator-grade items were rare—extremely rare. Even a seasoned Dominator could rarely hold more than three items, and those would only be of average quality.
Wu Youhua said in a deep voice, "Items inflate his combat power terribly. But it's only been six months since he became a spirit realm walker."
*Only six months...*
Once news of tonight's battle spread, the ten old men at headquarters wouldn't be able to sit still.
The evil organizations wouldn't be able to sit still either.
Besides, items were as much a part of one's strength as anything else. The history of human evolution was, after all, a history of weapon innovation.
Further away in the dense forest, Poison Chaser heard his "brother" beside him click his tongue. "We came for nothing. He didn't need my help at all."
*I came for nothing, too...* Poison Chaser muttered inwardly. He pressed his earpiece and enabled incoming audio. The channel was dead silent except for ragged breathing, punctuated occasionally by soft, dazed mumbles of "Holy shit" and "That's impossible."
The Nanming Branch strike team's worldview had suffered a devastating blow.
Even now, they were utterly dazed.
Zhang Yuanqing controlled Greed Divine General to pick up the Yin-Yang Turntable from the ground, shifting the needle to the white face to disperse the restriction covering a forty-meter radius.
The three Saints of Heaven's Punishment could not be killed. A clash was just a clash, but killing them would cross an entirely different line. In any case, the three had lost all face, and Zhang Yuanqing looked forward to them suffering continued humiliation once they woke.
Still, while their lives could be spared, the spoils of war could not be overlooked.
While the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter recklessly held back Demon Hunter, Greed Divine General swiftly bent down, ripped the Heart of the Ocean from Osmond's neck, and took the lightning mark from between his brows.
Next, he seized Chazo's knight straight sword and the stitched doll, followed by Hoover's Enchanting Perfume.
On the other side, Zhang Yuanqing strode into the area sealed by the black crucifix. The powers of Lunar, Solar, and the Stars within his body instantly solidified, becoming impossible to mobilize.
The imprints of his yin corpses and spirit servants in his sea of consciousness also turned an ashen gray.
Yin corpses and spirit servants were extensions of transcendent power; entering this area cut off his connection to them, so he had to walk in himself.
Though his transcendent powers were sealed, he was still an able-bodied man.
Zhang Yuanqing walked over to the crucifix, bent down, wrapped his arms around the half-meter-long black cross, and heaved with his waist.
*Pfft!*
The crucifix was wrenched straight out of the ground, dragging up soft, muddy black earth.
Zhang Yuanqing stored the crucifix into his inventory, then pulled out Little Red Riding Hood without a moment's hesitation and stowed the tightly bound Pluto inside.
With lightning speed, he recalled his yin corpses and spirit servants into Little Red Riding Hood as well.
Just as he finished, a gale roared overhead, blowing him into a stumble. Demon Hunter had arrived.
He had momentarily broken free from the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter's entanglement and was diving down on the wind like a supersonic fighter jet.
The Executive's pale blue eyes burned with fury. His expression was cold and murderous, resembling a god of destruction out of ancient myth.
He truly wished to obliterate Yuanshi Tianzun. The rage inside him had nearly drowned his reason.
With three subordinates joining forces, they had actually suffered a crushing defeat at Yuanshi Tianzun's hands. As their superior, he found such a failure intolerable.
"You won't get away!" Demon Hunter's voice boomed like rolling thunder. "You cannot escape my sight!"
As the air force among spirit realm walkers, no one could escape his tracking. The Eyes of the Sky and air current perception allowed him to pin down a Night Wanderer, while ultra-high-speed sustained flight countered the Star Escape Technique.
Yuanshi Tianzun had nowhere to run.
Drenched in blood, the Palace Master of Halting Slaughter pursued from behind atop her red silk, but her speed was clearly no match for a fighter jet.
A violent wind howled, setting the plants across the mountain swaying wildly like sea kelp.
The Wood Monsters perched in the branches tumbled down one after another, looking up into the sky in horror. They had overlooked one crucial fact: the true deciding factor of this battle had never been the contest between Saints.
It was the Dominator.
"Grandpa, Grandpa!" Yun Meng cried. "Help him, quick!"
Facing the oncoming tempest, Zhang Yuanqing stood tall and proud. He gave a wave, the corners of his mouth curling upward.
"Lord Executive, you'd better start thinking about how to ransom your items back. Until we meet again!"
With that, his fingers clamped down, snapping the teleportation jade talisman in his palm with a sharp crack.
Demon Hunter turned into an afterimage and crashed through Zhang Yuanqing's body, but it was merely an afterimage. He was gone.
He had vanished right before everyone's eyes.
"Teleportation?" Demon Hunter's face turned livid in an instant.
*Yuanshi Tianzun had a teleportation item? Why does he possess an item from the Void profession?*
As thoughts flashed through his mind, Demon Hunter shifted his gaze toward the Musician Dominator in midair. Yuanshi Tianzun might have run, but his temple remained. Pluto and the items of three subordinates had become their spoils of war; correspondingly, he needed spoils of his own.
Such as this Musician Dominator.
The Palace Master of Halting Slaughter giggled:
"Lord Executive, you'd better start thinking about how to ransom your items back. Until we meet again!"
With that, while the Executive's expression froze, she produced a parchment scroll and gave it a gentle flick.
The scroll burst with brilliant white light before collapsing inward, shrinking the red-gowned woman along with it to the size of a grain of rice before vanishing into nothingness.
*Another teleportation item?*
*Since when did Void-class teleportation items become as cheap as coffee that anyone can buy a cup?*
Demon Hunter's cheek twitched violently, pulling at his thick beard. The air currents around him churned in wild disarray, mirroring his inner turmoil.
In the distance, Poison Chaser pressed his earpiece. "Retreat."
In the forest, Yun Meng let out a sigh of relief. "Grandpa, no need for you after all."
***
Songhai, Fujia Bay Villa.
Zhang Yuanqing appeared inside Guan Ya's bedroom and collapsed limply onto the floor in exhaustion. "Holy shit, I almost got taken down by a Dominator. Thank goodness the teleportation jade talisman had no delay..."
He gasped for breath, banishing the image of Demon Hunter practically right in his face and calming his lingering fear.
Then he began evaluating the gains, losses, and aftermath of this battle.
First was Pluto's ownership. There was no hiding this matter now, which meant deciding whether to hand Pluto over to the Five Elements Alliance or the Association of God of Beauty would require careful maneuvering and calculation.
*If I hand him to the Five Elements Alliance, beating up Heaven's Punishment's people today can be smoothed over. Osmond was far too arrogant, and the entire official organization has been holding a grudge. Now that I've beaten him to a pulp, if the Alliance tries to punish me, the rank-and-file will revolt.*
*If I sell Pluto to the Association of God of Beauty, the Alliance will still protect me, but their hearts won't be on my side. They'll probably demand that I return the items belonging to Osmond's trio to settle the dispute.*
*I'll have Annie contact the Association of God of Beauty first to see their response.*
Second were the trump cards exposed during this battle. He hadn't used the disguise ring; changing his appearance had relied on Yi Chuanmei's ability.
However, the Yin-Yang Turntable and the teleportation jade talisman were problematic.
The Yin-Yang Turntable was fine; Fu Qingyang had "purchased" it using a contract for mechanism weapons, an unspoken understanding between them.
The real trouble was the teleportation jade talisman. The Demon Lord's successor had just appeared, and Yuanshi Tianzun turned right around and used a teleportation jade talisman. What would the old foxes at headquarters think?
*I can push the blame onto the President. I'll just say it was a consumable bought from him. Headquarters knows I have ties with that President.*
Amid his swirling thoughts, he dialed Annie's number.
The phone rang twice before Annie picked up, her voice tense and brimming with anticipation. "Yuanshi Tianzun?"
They were currently still on standby in the scenic area of the Shiwan Dashan.
"Pluto is in hand, but things took an irreversible turn..." Zhang Yuanqing briefly recounted the clash between both sides to Annie.
The other end of the line fell into prolonged silence, Annie's breathing growing heavier and heavier.
After a long time, she finally processed the information and stammered, "Y-You defeated Osmond, Hoover, and Chazo all by yourself?"
*Hey, you're missing the point. Shouldn't the point be that this can't be covered up, and what your Association of God of Beauty plans to do about it?* Zhang Yuanqing complained inwardly, though on the surface he sounded thoroughly relaxed as he chuckled:
"Beating them was hardly any effort at all, wasn't it?"
Annie's voice trembled. "I... I apologize for my earlier slight. You are a genius who surpasses the Demon Lord. Our President will certainly look upon you with great favor."
*Please don't, I don't need her crossing the ocean just to sleep with me.* Zhang Yuanqing said, "Go ahead and contact the Association of God of Beauty."
"U-Understood!" Annie replied respectfully.
Ending the call, Zhang Yuanqing opened his inventory and took out his spoils one by one.
Demon Hunter had to tend to his three subordinates. Flying from Bagui Province to Songhai would take at least four hours by private jet, not even counting preliminary preparations.
He had plenty of time.
Zhang Yuanqing grabbed the deep-blue gem and read its attributes:
[Name: Heart of the Ocean (Incomplete)]
[Type: Gemstone]
[Function: Oceanic Authority]
[Description: After Poseidon died, his heart transformed into the "Heart of the Ocean." During the struggles among sea monsters, it shattered into six pieces. Gathering all six pieces allows one to inherit Poseidon's power. The storm is his breath, Sirens are his subjects, and horses are his favored beasts. No Siren can defy Poseidon's power within the sea; this is a rule.]
[Note 1: Only Sirens can use it.]
[Note 2: Poseidon is an arrogant and haughty deity.]
*It really is a rule-based item, granting absolute dominion within the sea...* Zhang Yuanqing sighed regretfully. What a pity only Sirens could use it.
*Hmm, if I killed Osmond and refined him into a yin corpse, wouldn't that allow me to control this rule-based item?*
*Then across all four seas and oceans, no one would make bigger waves than me!*
"I probably can't keep this item, so I'll have to find a way to sell it for a good price." Stowing the Heart of the Ocean away, Zhang Yuanqing picked up the doll whose limbs grew in the wrong places.
[Name: Dysfunction Doll]
[Type: Doll]
[Function: Sensory Dysfunction]
[Description: Whenever a certain Orderless got drunk, he loved to defecate while doing a handstand. One day, his spouse could finally bear it no longer and crafted this doll. Every time the Orderless did a handstand to defecate while drunk, his spouse used the doll to sever his perception of his limbs, curing him of the foul habit.]
[Note: Half a month later, the spouse developed the vile habit of defecating while doing a handstand.]
???
A string of question marks popped up in Zhang Yuanqing's head.
"The cost of using this item is gradually picking up the habit of handstand-pooping? Holy shit, as expected of an evil profession! How is this any better than a craving for pig tails?"
Zhang Yuanqing tucked the item away in disgust, then examined the attributes of the knight straight sword and the Enchanting Perfume.
The knight straight sword was an exceptional Saint-stage item that amplified the skills of Knights and Judges. For Chazo, it was a divine weapon; for other professions, it was practically useless.
The function of the Enchanting Perfume was simple. Just as its name suggested, catching its scent caused one to develop intense goodwill toward the item's owner.
"This one isn't bad. Stacked with my Charm Ring, it'll make me an absolute ladykiller." Zhang Yuanqing intended to keep it.
If he ran into female enemies in the future, he could use a honeypot trap to get out of trouble.
Finally, he picked up the lightning insignia.
[Name: Thunder God's Seal]
[Type: Accessory]
[Function: Lightning]
[Description: To control his explosive temper, a powerful Lightning Mage forged an accessory capable of containing the power of lightning. Bathed in lightning over many years, it gradually came to harbor terrifying thunderous might. The wearer can channel lightning power into non-insulating materials, imbuing them with the blessing of thunder.]
[Note 1: Charges for two hours, lasts for ten minutes.]
[Note 2: When you shout, 'Shatter the darkness with thunder!' you should pay attention to your explosive temper.]
*A support item that enhances lethality, with a self-charging function. It can only be used for ten minutes at a time, followed by a two-hour recharge...* Zhang Yuanqing liked this item very much.
It was similar to a red buff with negligible drawbacks and a substantial boost to damage.
*Time to consult the boss on how to clean up the mess...* Having reviewed all the items, he dashed urgently out of the villa, leapt over the blackthorn-like fence, and headed straight to the second-floor study.
"Boss! Boss! I've caused big trouble!"
Zhang Yuanqing shoved open the heavy double wooden doors with force.
Inside the study, Fu Qingyang sat on the sofa in the lounge area, holding a cigar as he enjoyed the quiet night.
The cigar was burning evenly, and half the cigar's length in pale gray ash hung unbroken. Any cigar aficionado would have praised it: *A beautiful smoke!*
Seeing Zhang Yuanqing barge in, Fu Qingyang paused in surprise. "Why are you back?"
"I ran into Heaven's Punishment in Bagui Province and got into a fight with them. Osmond, Hoover, and Chazo didn't play fair and ganged up on me." Zhang Yuanqing lowered his head, gnashing his teeth.
He looked entirely like someone who had suffered a grievance outside and had returned to complain to his boss.
Fu Qingyang understood and said:
"Pluto was snatched by Heaven's Punishment, and you were humiliated by Osmond? Let the matter rest here. I never approved of your involvement in the first place."
He then offered some consolation: "Taking on three was indeed asking too much. Even I wouldn't have been certain of victory if I had encountered the three of them during my Saint stage. Hmm, fifty-fifty at best. If you can't swallow this insult, I'll organize an exchange meet once they return to give you a chance at revenge."
"Oh, so you could only go fifty-fifty, Boss?" Zhang Yuanqing lifted his head, wearing a smug grin. "Well, I beat all three of them into the ground."
The cigar ash in Fu Qingyang's hand dropped.
Chapter 587