Chapter 132: Red Lotus Holy Lord Dies
“Quick!”
“Surround them!”
The sound of horse hooves thundered, drawing near from afar as hundreds of elite warriors trained by the Red Lotus Sect came howling in. Under the furious shout of a red-armored commander, they swiftly charged forward.
Armor clanged fiercely, weapons were drawn, and a surging aura of ferocious killing intent filled the air.
In the blink of an eye, they had charged to the outside of the courtyard house where the fierce battle was raging. Before they could break through the gate, they heard a rumbling like rolling thunder.
Within the vast courtyard house, it was as if dozens of excavators were working at once. Force clashed violently, the air exploding in continuous bursts. Houses collapsed one after another, wall sections cracked, and stones and roof tiles were sent swirling into the sky by the force.
The red-armored commander charging at the front cleaved open the gate with one saber strike, immediately feeling a blast of force wind hit his face like a bone-scraping steel saber, stinging his skin painfully.
Thick clouds of smoke billowed out from inside, spilling outward. Amid the smoke, vague shadowy figures flickered, indistinct and unclear.
Only the horse beneath him grew restless and uneasy, then reared up on its forelegs with a shrill neigh that echoed through the air. The shadowy figures in the thick smoke instantly closed in.
The ground shook violently, the courtyard wall shattered with a boom, and huge chunks of wall sections exploded outward, some shooting like projectiles, others soaring several zhang high.
Countless scattered gravel fragments were also whipped up by the force, shooting out in clusters.
These hundreds of Red Lotus Sect warriors were immediately struck. All wore armor, so ordinary gravel couldn’t penetrate, but wall sections the size of fists, human heads, or even larger hurtled down like cannonballs.
Screams and the sounds of snapping tendons and breaking bones rang out continuously. In less than a breath, many had been smashed off their horses, tumbling in chaos as their formation scattered.
Amid the battle, Hong Yuan and the three—Red Lotus Holy Lord—paid no heed. While destroying the courtyard wall, they had already shifted the battlefield to the long street.
Black-armored soldiers nearby, whether alive or smashed dead or injured, were hurled flying the moment they were caught in the four’s combat zone, falling silent.
Even some martial artists watching from atop the walls who hadn’t withdrawn in time were smashed dead on the spot by stones. The most tragic had their skulls burst open, brains splattering.
“Dodge!”
“Fall back further!”
“How can there be such a master in the world?”
The other martial artists showed faces of shock and panic, hurriedly scattering to avoid the battlefield center, fearing they would become fish caught in the net.
A somewhat renowned martial arts school master sighed: “I originally thought a hundred-man enemy was already a rare great master in the jianghu. Only today do I realize that when martial arts cultivation reaches the peak, it possesses such mighty power?”
Bang bang bang!
Qi energy clashed, repeatedly compressing the air to produce shrill whistles. The Red Lotus Holy Lord had no time for the outside world and had pushed the Red Lotus Karma Fire True Gang to its limit.
The strange force nurtured by this martial art was extremely yang and fierce. With a wave of his flesh palms, it was like boiling magma, able to melt gold and refine iron or dissolve an enemy’s body.
Beyond this ultimate destructive power, he could also unleash Karma Fire Malevolence with his eyes, using malevolent intent to assault the enemy’s mind and spirit, spawning heart demons and causing defeat before the fight.
The Illuminating Envoy’s Mirroring Heart Method was somewhat inferior in power to the Red Lotus Karma Fire True Gang, but its wondrous aspects were not much lesser.
This technique was not only an illusion art but could also mirror the opponent’s moves, deflecting their attacks and making the enemy fight their own reflection as if in a mirror.
Hong Yuan blocked the Red Lotus Holy Lord with one hand while making a grasping motion with the other. His five fingers thrust out fiercely, covering the Illuminating Envoy’s face, but he showed no joy.
Sure enough, with a crisp cracking sound, the Illuminating Envoy split open like a mirror surface. His figure dissolved, rippling with waves, and suddenly appeared in another direction.
The Nirvana Envoy struck swiftly, his lips moving even faster.
No sound emerged, but in Hong Yuan’s ears, it was as if thousands of blurry figures surrounded him, chanting strange incantations.
Streams of incantations alternated between faint as mosquito buzzes and resounding as great bells, drilling inexorably into his ears and mind like countless ants crawling in his brain, eroding his will.
Even Hong Yuan couldn’t help but feel irritated.
But the benefit of his extraordinary comprehension manifested: irritation was merely an emotion, while his mind’s depths grew ever clearer.
These three were undoubtedly powerful; any one surpassed the opponents he had faced before.
After reaching the Microscopic Level, any of the three paths taken qualified one as a top master in the jianghu.
But these three Red Lotus Sect powerhouses were rare even among top masters, especially the Red Lotus Holy Lord, who seemed to approach the grandmaster level.
The key lay in their martial arts involving spirit secret techniques.
Ordinary true skills and Gang Body experts were still limited to pure destructive power. Against powerhouses versed in spirit secret techniques, without countermeasures, a moment’s carelessness could shake one’s spirit, leading to heavy injury or death!
“How is that possible?”
The Red Lotus Holy Lord’s expression changed. He felt that whether it was his own or the two envoys’ spirit attacks, they struck Daoist Ten Thousand Calamities like a gentle breeze on the face or mud into the sea—vanishing without a trace.
Utterly ineffective.
This was simply inconceivable.
The reason the Red Lotus Holy Lord had personally come this time was his confidence that with the three of them together, no one in the world could withstand them.
Though a grandmaster could match three or more top masters, those were ordinary top masters. Against the three of them, even they would have to temporarily avoid the edge, or leave their lives behind.
But this Daoist Ten Thousand Calamities being immune to spirit attacks was one thing; his punches and kicks truly carried dragon-elephant colossal strength. Each strike was like a great mountain pressing down, forcing the Red Lotus Holy Lord and the others to avoid direct clashes.
“Such divine power—what Gang Body is this?”
The Red Lotus Holy Lord’s thoughts raced. Suddenly, he sensed the Nirvana Envoy’s aura change to an extremely cold and eerie state, stirring his mind.
“Finally the moment has come?”
The true skill cultivated by the Nirvana Envoy was called the Great Yin Soul Slaughtering Curse. Within it was a curse-killing technique that could slay ordinary Entering Force martial artists with just one phrase or even one word.
As for this Daoist Ten Thousand Calamities, the Nirvana Envoy had been chanting incantations since the battle began. At this moment, the Nirvana Envoy suddenly raised his gaze, his dark eyes turning blood-red.
Within the blood-colored eyes, shadowy figures seemed to stand.
“What technique is this?”
Hong Yuan naturally sensed the Nirvana Envoy’s change and wouldn’t give the opponent time to cast leisurely. With a thunderous boom, he smashed a fist toward the Nirvana Envoy’s skull.
The Red Lotus Holy Lord and Illuminating Envoy flashed in from left and right, blocking the strike together. The Illuminating Envoy grunted dully, staggering back.
Before Hong Yuan’s eyes, pale lightning seemed to flash, followed by eerie green phosphorescent flames igniting. Abruptly, the previously blurry thousands of figures sharpened into clarity.
Thousands of faces turned toward him in unison, all blank and featureless white masks, then they silently roared together.
“Die!”
“Die die die die die!”
Whoosh!
A cold, eerie aura arose from nowhere, surging into his consciousness all at once, issuing a death knell. His body, spirit—every part seemed to cry out—
He should die!
Then…
Force surged, a net unfolded, enveloping several zhang around. Every detail of the Red Lotus Holy Lord, Illuminating Envoy, and Nirvana Envoy swiftly entered Hong Yuan’s consciousness.
Merely relying on physical shell power provided enough violence, but lacked agility; his movement technique wasn’t swift enough to hit the Red Lotus Holy Lord and others easily. Only now did Hong Yuan reveal the Six Void Force.
“Careful!” The Illuminating Envoy shouted sharply. He had clashed briefly with Hong Yuan before and knew the terror of his force.
Bang!
“Fancy tricks!” Hong Yuan thrust out a palm, carrying a force that swept away evil spirits. The cold aura vanished. His single palm advanced like the sharpest blade, stabbing toward the Nirvana Envoy’s chest to rip it open.
With a sizzle, the hand blade pierced an inch into flesh. The Nirvana Envoy ignored it, suddenly pointing a finger at Hong Yuan’s glabella.
“Huh?” Hong Yuan was slightly surprised but kept his hand blade moving, countering with a finger from his other hand. In an instant, their fingers collided.
Pop!
No fierce clash sounded; it was like bursting a bubble in the air.
Hong Yuan frowned slightly. As his hand blade pierced the Nirvana Envoy’s chest, his body spun like a spiral, leaping into the air to evade the Red Lotus Holy Lord and Illuminating Envoy’s attacks.
Landing steadily, he looked at his finger that had blocked the Nirvana Envoy’s strike. The fingertip skin was now pale and withered, seemingly drained of vitality.
He exhaled a burst of force, and the skin immediately peeled off. He felt his flesh writhing, healing rapidly, but a strange light gleamed in his eyes.
The Nirvana Envoy’s finger hadn’t absorbed force but drained flesh vitality. Even with the Six Void Force’s wonders, it couldn’t fully block it.
“What kung fu is this?”
Hong Yuan looked at the Nirvana Envoy. Even with a hand blade through his chest, the opponent still stood firm, not dead, retaining some combat ability.
“Forget it. I’ll capture you first and ask later!”
Brilliance flared in Hong Yuan’s eyes, his aura surging anew. In an instant, the air around the Red Lotus Holy Lord and the two envoys crackled, turning into copper walls and iron bastions contracting inward.
The Red Lotus Holy Lord’s expression shifted: “No more spirit secret techniques. Fight him with strange force.”
Even the curse-killing art of the Great Yin Soul Slaughtering Curse was useless; using other methods would just waste spirit.
Spirit secret techniques were powerful but consumed much of one’s own energy.
“You should have done this sooner.”
Hong Yuan strode forward, his figure flashing like lightning, a streak of clear light slashing the sky as he abruptly closed in on the Nirvana Envoy, extending a vague claw.
This claw’s momentum was like a cloud dragon probing, its fierce qi energy pressing down, enveloping the Nirvana Envoy completely, leaving him no retreat or escape.
The Nirvana Envoy sensed immense threat, roaring as both palms thrust out. A strange evil force erupted, heedless of his wounds, surging desperately until blood flowers burst across his body surface.
The Red Lotus Holy Lord and Illuminating Envoy couldn’t stand by. They charged from left and right. Flames rose on the Red Lotus Holy Lord’s fist peak, surging heat waves condensing into one punch that smashed toward Hong Yuan’s back.
The Illuminating Envoy abandoned illusions this time, robes fluttering as he flew in, forming a hand blade to tear space and slash down viciously.
Hong Yuan ignored their assaults entirely, slamming down a foot. In an instant, the earth seemed struck by thunderous explosion.
Centered on Hong Yuan’s foot, vast swathes of dirt, sand, and stone flipped up, splitting into two directions to smash toward the Red Lotus Holy Lord and Illuminating Envoy like raging dragons.
At the same time, his extended claw roared with a whooshing sound, waves of torrents repelling the Nirvana Envoy’s surged strange force. The claw descended, seizing the opening at the Nirvana Envoy’s chest, followed by Six Void Force threading in wisps into the opponent’s body.
The Nirvana Envoy’s eyes went straight, body convulsing. His palms rose, then fell limply.
By now, the Red Lotus Holy Lord and Illuminating Envoy had shattered the mudstone dragons, their faces drastically changed. Hong Yuan gripped the Nirvana Envoy with one hand, body flickering to the Red Lotus Holy Lord’s side, smashing out a fierce fist.
As this fist fell, his body core and liver pulsed once, blood flowing like a flood.
On the fist, opposing forces swirled like a whirlpool, emitting sharp whistles tearing the air.
This fist directly employed the mystery of Eight Forces Merged. Though he couldn’t yet fuse eight or eighteen forces, he could now fuse three.
This punch unleashed Liver Burst Heart Destruction Force, Chakravyuha Dharani Force, and Tiger Fiend Mountain Splitting Strength fused as one, truly possessing earth-shaking power.
“This is… fusion of three forces? How can such a thing be possible?”
The Red Lotus Holy Lord’s mind shook, eyes bulging as if to pop out, face showing utter disbelief. In this world, after Microscopic Level, one could naturally cultivate multiple forces.
But no matter how many Microscopic Level Force Techniques one mastered, only one could be used at a time—this was the consensus of martial artists for hundreds of years.
Precisely because there was no path after Microscopic Level, the three paths of true skill, Dan Dao, and Gang Body emerged to elevate combat power.
And now, what had he seen?
This Daoist Ten Thousand Calamities had struck with a fusion of three Microscopic Level forces in one blow, undoubtedly forging a new path beyond the three.
The Red Lotus Holy Lord was utterly shocked but had no time to think. This strike was lightning-fast, unavoidable. With a fierce roar, amid surging heat waves, his whole body seemed wreathed in flames.
The Red Lotus Holy Lord spread both palms in defense, forming a wall of flame, while shouting rapidly: “Stop! Daoist, if you want our sect’s true skill, we can negotiate…”
“No need. I’ll take what I want myself.”
Hong Yuan’s expression was indifferent. His fist fell like a plummeting meteor or collapsing heavenly river. The Red Lotus Holy Lord felt his defenses shatter inch by inch.
“Since that’s the case, then die together!”
A ruthless look crossed the Red Lotus Holy Lord’s face. Suddenly, one hand twisted back, jabbing swiftly at his heart and kidney areas. Ferocity emerged in his eyes, and the next moment, heat like a volcanic eruption surged.
Under Hong Yuan’s spiritual sense, the Red Lotus Holy Lord seemed to become a furnace, his heart and kidneys burning fiercely as fuel. Boiling flames contracted to a point, crashing toward his fist.
Bang!
In the violent collision, Hong Yuan’s fist shook back, large scorch marks appearing on it. The ferocity faded from the Red Lotus Holy Lord’s face, replaced by shock and disbelief, before he toppled to the ground.
Red Lotus Holy Lord, dead!
