Two Realms: I Will Become the Immortal Emperor

Chapter 265: Chapter 238: Slaying the Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon

GURGLE GURGLE~

Blood flowed and bodies sank. Beneath the Marsh Forest, countless insects and ants, drawn by the stench of blood, swarmed over the corpses in an instant.

’How long was I blasted away from the battlefield?’

’Five breaths, at most.’

’The twelve Major Cultivators I brought with me are all dead? Even Cao Xiong is heavily injured?’ Zhou Jing had originally been wary of Chen Che only because he was a Tributor to Thousand Eyes True Master. Believing he couldn’t kill Chen Che, Zhou Jing had been willing to humble himself.

But now, it seemed this young Valley Master was far more terrifying than he had ever imagined.

"Back then, you were the one who hid Xiao Chan’s tracks, weren’t you?"

His senses returning, Cao Xiong slowly got to his feet.

For the past few years, he had been hunting for any trace of Xiao Chan, knowing every detail of the search like the back of his hand. The strength of Chen Che’s Divine Sense made him understand many things in an instant. "Back when I used Attacking God and Inquiring Heart, your Divine Sense was already stronger than mine..."

The disciples and Major Cultivators who had died around Jinyun Valley all had distinct traces of Sword Qi on them.

He had always thought Xiao Chan was hiding his true abilities.

Now, the Swordsmanship and immense Divine Sense that Chen Che displayed immediately allowed him to guess the truth. If a Cultivator who had been cleared of suspicion was working in the open and deliberately misleading him, then everything made sense.

"Commander Zhou, this man is involved with Xiao Chan. It’s possible he knows his whereabouts."

Glancing at the astonished Zhou Jing, Cao Xiong’s voice became incredibly grave.

"And what’s more..."

"He is an existence far more dangerous than Xiao Chan. His Divine Sense is on par with a Golden Core True Master. His True Essence and physical body are far superior to Cultivators of the same tier. Although he is only at the Foundation Establishment Fifth Layer, he’s no weaker than a Seventh or Eighth Layer Cultivator."

"If we don’t use every skill we’ve ever learned, we will both be buried here today!"

With that said, he took a step forward. With a loud CLANG, the longsword on his back flew from its sheath. As his robes billowed, his disheveled hair danced like wild pythons. His Qi Mechanism surged, and the churning mud of the marsh spread outwards like a tide.

"Fine..."

Zhou Jing’s eyes narrowed. He was well aware that at this point, it was no longer just a personal grudge.

SCREECH!

The words had barely left his lips when, with the cry of an eagle, a torrent of Demon Essence rolled forth as the Little Chick swooped down, pouncing toward the two men.

BOOM!

Zhou Jing leaped aside, dodging the sharp talons.

His Coiled Dragon Gilded Spear trembled in his hand, suddenly erupting with brilliant light. In an instant, it transformed into a massive dragon shadow over three hundred feet long, and Zhou Jing’s body merged into it.

BOOM!

As its eyes opened, it was as if an artist had dotted the eyes of a painted dragon, bringing the three-hundred-foot-long shadow to life.

It even forcefully shattered the Black Dragon Lock Chain that had been coiling around it.

Clearly, the Weapon in his opponent’s hand was no ordinary one.

"Slash!"

Chen Che clenched his fist, grabbing the Pure Jun Sword. Amidst a swirling hurricane, a Sword Dragon formed entirely of violent wind surged from the void, meeting the charging dragon head-on.

SCREEECH!

The spear and sword collided. In that moment, it was as if ten million blades were clashing, creating a piercing, ear-splitting shriek. The tremendous sound instantly pulverized the countless redwood trees in the vicinity.

Beneath the Marsh Forest, countless venomous insects were killed by the shockwave.

BANG!

Zhou Jing’s body shuddered as he was forced back again and again. His chest felt tight, and he nearly coughed up blood.

’If I’d known it would come to this, if only I’d known...’

He had thought his previous defeat by a single spear thrust was due to underestimating his opponent. Even after Cao Xiong had pointed out the man’s true strength, he still had his doubts. But this second exchange filled him with a mixture of shock and terror, and a wave of regret washed over him.

’If I’d known, I should have just kept my head down.’

Just then, Chen Che thrust his sword out. Gripping it with both hands, the once-graceful Pure Jun Sword suddenly seemed to gain immense weight. With a deceptively fast upward flick, it formed a perfect Sword Ring, its brilliant light rising like a full moon.

This was because Cao Xiong had also made his move. After drawing his longsword, he shot out two beams of Sword Aura.

From within the Sword Auras, two identical, ornately carved longswords rushed forward. Evil Qi coiled around their blades, and they were shrouded in a black haze that seemed to be formed from vengeful souls.

A Tier Two High Grade Evil Artifact:

The Mother-Child Evil Swords!

CLANG! CLANG!

The Sword Ring shattered, and the two evil swords were knocked away. Sword Qi raged, and in an instant, the entire Marsh Forest seethed as if it had become a furious sea. Wherever the blast of energy swept, all redwood trees within a hundred-zhang radius were torn to dust.

Countless snakes, insects, rats, and ants fled in a panic, scurrying into the distance in a dense, living tide.

’Could he be a Nascent Soul True Inheritance disciple?’

Doubt bubbled up in his mind. As the Chief Tutor of the Primordial Sect, Cao Xiong had seen far more disciples than the average person. But he had never encountered a disciple like Chen Che, who had almost no weaknesses in his Divine Sense, True Essence, or Qi and Blood.

Moreover, the breadth of his skills was beyond imagination.

Even the Patriarch’s own True Disciples were far inferior at the same Realm.

An existence like this could not have started as a mere Loose Cultivator. Perhaps only a Nascent Soul Upper Sect could nurture such a terrifying being.

"It’s impolite not to return a favor. Now it’s my turn!"

At that moment, a shout rang out.

Hearing the voice, Zhou Jing and Cao Xiong simultaneously retreated in haste. Looking up, they saw Chen Che slash his sword. Amidst a gale, thousands of Wind Swords rapidly condensed and, at the same time, formed several Sword Dragons that coiled in mid-air.

"Go!"

With a flick of the Pure Jun Sword, he pointed it at Cao Xiong. Instantly, the Sword Dragons surged forward.

"Rise!"

In a panic, Cao Xiong crushed a Talisman. With a deafening RUMBLE, nine earthen walls erupted from the marsh. Each wall was seventy to eighty feet high and over ten feet thick. But in a single moment, the Sword Dragons smashed through eight of them.

Even the final wall was covered in cracks.

’That was close!’

Before Cao Xiong could react, he heard an explosion. Shattered rocks shot out in all directions like a swarm of crossbow bolts, and a figure, wrapped in a fierce wind, had already closed the distance and pounced right in front of him.

’This is bad...’

In that instant, the terror in his eyes was unmistakable.

Then, his full head of hair visibly turned snow-white, and countless wrinkles appeared on his face. In that single moment, he seemed to have aged by decades.

Clearly, he had resorted to a life-risking Secret Technique.

However, he didn’t charge at Chen Che. Instead, he transformed into a crimson Escape Light and fled rapidly into the distance.

"Trying to escape?"

Chen Che’s gaze sharpened. With a wave of his hand, he pushed the Nine Transformations Flame Spirit Technique to its absolute limit. The temperature in the damp Redwood Forest skyrocketed as a sea of flames enveloped the area. With a SWOOSH, the light burst through the fire and continued to flee toward the horizon.

"Heh heh, Fellow Daoist Cao has escaped. Let’s see what you’ll do now," Zhou Jing was not alarmed by this development but delighted. "Once the news gets out, the entire Jinyun Valley will be razed to the ground."

This was a Tier Two High Grade Technique:

Blood Luo Shadow.

This technique had no offensive power; its sole purpose was for escape. It could cover hundreds of miles in a few breaths, so fast that not even a Flying Bird Great Demon could catch up. Of course, the price was extremely steep. Each use consumed at least a dozen years of one’s lifespan.

As long as Cao Xiong escaped, word of Chen Che would inevitably spread. Then not only would Chen Che die, but Jinyun Valley and even the Meng Family would be implicated!

"Is that so?"

Chen Che, however, paid him no mind.

Just as Zhou Jing was wondering what he meant, a blood-curdling scream came from mid-air.

He looked over and saw that a single wisp of flame clinging to Cao Xiong’s robes had, with unstoppable force, melted right through his True Essence Shield. The moment it touched his body, the flame flared up violently, engulfing him in the blink of an eye.

Then, before his horrified eyes, Cao Xiong was burned to nothingness in mid-air, dissolving into countless dying embers.

"What was that you were saying?"

Summoning a Gourd, Chen Che collected the Weapons and Magical Artifacts Cao Xiong had dropped. Only then did he slowly turn to face the stunned Zhou Jing. "I didn’t quite hear you. Could you say that again?"

Meeting Chen Che’s gaze, Zhou Jing’s entire body went rigid.

’One wrong step leads to a path of mistakes...’

Knowing he couldn’t escape, Zhou Jing gave a bitter laugh, but his eyes immediately hardened with grim determination.

He fiercely bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a mouthful of Essence Blood, instantly filling the air with an unprecedentedly thick, coppery smell. As soon as the blood left his body, his face aged, his hair turned white, and his aura rapidly weakened.

"But even if I die here today, I won’t let you live!"

SCREECH!

The words had just been spoken when the Little Chick, standing guard in the sky, suddenly let out a sharp cry.

SPLASH~

SPLASH~

The sound of a vast amount of mud and water churning could be heard. Countless redwood trees toppled over, some even parting to the sides.

Amidst the roiling mud, it seemed a behemoth was approaching. The snakes, insects, rats, and ants that had fled earlier now returned, but they scurried right past the two men, fleeing in the opposite direction.

’That is...’

A sweep of his Divine Sense made Chen Che’s eyes narrow. A giant, thousand-legged centipede several hundred feet long was approaching like a furious dragon, and in an instant, it had swum to their feet.

"Do you want to know why it took so many of us three whole days to hunt down that black-robed Major Cultivator, even though he was only at the Foundation Establishment Third Layer? It’s because of this..."

SPLASH!

As soon as he finished speaking, the marsh beneath them erupted with a pillar of mud that shot toward the sky.

A black shadow shot out like a bolt of lightning.

Reflected in Zhou Jing’s eyes was a peerlessly massive figure. Its body was enormous; even with only half of it emerging from the marsh, it was still over a hundred feet long. The huge body, covered in countless legs, had already encircled the two of them the moment it appeared.

The Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon!

A Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer Great Demon! Once it reaches adulthood, its strength can match a Golden Core!

"I have no regrets about dying, but I wonder if you’ll be able to leave here alive..."

Zhou Jing grinned, his mouth full of blood, making his smile exceptionally sinister.

Clearly, the mouthful of Essence Blood he had just spat out was precisely to lure this beast.

SCREECH~

Seeing this, the Little Chick anxiously dove down to attack.

But the Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon was faster. Its massive body suddenly arched, and in that instant, it was like an evil dragon reborn. Miles of the Marsh Forest began to boil, and its cavernous maw swept directly toward the two men.

This Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon was trying to swallow two Foundation Establishment Cultivators in one gulp!

’Let’s see you dodge this...’

A smile had just begun to form on Zhou Jing’s face, but in the next moment, it froze solid.

Before his disbelieving eyes, a brilliant light erupted from between Chen Che’s brows, and nine Flying Swords shot into the air. In that instant, it was as if the only thing left in his vision was this single, incomparably radiant Sword Aura.

At first, the sword strike seemed like the feeble resistance of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator facing a prehistoric behemoth. But then it grew, blotting out the sky like a rainbow piercing the sun, and instantly penetrated the Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon’s body. This Marsh Dragon had been cultivating here for who knows how many years, its Scale Armor harder than a Spiritual Artifact.

But in the end, under this one sword strike, its defenses were like paper, pierced through in a flash.

HIIISSS!

The Hundred-Eyed Marsh Dragon let out a heart-wrenching shriek.

Its enormous body crashed down beside Chen Che, slamming into the marsh and sending a massive wave of mud into the air.

"What was that you were saying?"

Glancing at the deathly pale Zhou Jing, Chen Che turned his head slightly. "I didn’t quite hear you. Please, say it again..."

"..."

Zhou Jing opened his mouth helplessly, but not a single word came out.