A soul breakthrough isn't as earth-shattering as a breakthrough in the Dou Qi realm. It's more of an ethereal thing. Once that point is reached, one naturally enters another realm.
Especially when Chen Guan's breakthrough reaches a smaller realm, it's incredibly silent.
From the outside, it looks like he's concentrating on meditation. Furthermore, Chen Guan intentionally restrains his mental energy. Unless someone's soul realm is far superior to his, above the Celestial Realm,
it's practically unnoticed. Yellow sand billows, and the Dou Qi Chen Guan exudes rises and falls like a small boat drifting on the sea, a sign of striving for a higher realm.
However, as time passes, half an hour, an hour, and still no breakthrough, it's clear that this effort is somewhat forced.
Chen Guan's brow furrows slightly, as if he's aware of this, but then he gains more strength. He pulls out a jade bottle, pours the "mysterious potion" from it into his mouth, grits his teeth, and mobilizes his Dou Qi for a full-force attack.
Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. Forcing an attack without sufficient accumulated energy ultimately resulted in a loss.
"Puff!"
The rapidly surging Dou Qi dissipated instantly. Chen Guan's seated form felt as if struck by lightning, his face pale as paper. He swayed violently, nearly falling to the ground. Only after spitting out a mouthful of blood did he seem to recover.
This attack not only failed to break through, but also seemed to injure him.
His languid aura, his alchemist's robe, now tarnished by dust and no longer luxurious, cast a melancholy, almost fading light against the setting sun.
Seeing this scene, those who had been lurking in the shadows, cautiously watching for a long time, finally burst out in laughter, clapping their hands and stepping forward.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk, how amusing! A seventh-grade alchemist, a Dou Zong powerhouse, could make such a fatal mistake. Junior Brother Chen, are you alright? Do you need my help?"
Song Qing couldn't hide his smile, but the murderous intent in his eyes grew even more intense.
Given his status, it wouldn't be a big deal to call him "Junior Brother" if he wanted to be serious.
Chen Guan looked up in surprise, his expression changing slightly.
Though he quickly regained his composure, Song Qing still saw everything, and his guard was lowered.
"Song Qing? Why are you here? Who is this? Never mind, it doesn't matter. I'm fine. Thanks for your concern. I'm leaving now."
As if losing his composure, Chen Guan glanced at the middle-aged man following behind Song Qing. He spoke naively and childishly, then glanced back at
the man behind him and prepared to leave. Song Qing didn't try to stop him, but as Chen Guan turned around, he glanced back at the man behind him.
The man understood immediately, his figure flashing, and when he reappeared, he was blocking Chen Guan's way mid-air.
Standing in mid-air, this was also a Dou Zong powerhouse!
"Song Qing, what do you want to do?!"
Chen Guan's face darkened. Ignoring the man blocking his way, he turned back and shouted at Song Qing.
But Song Qing spread his hands and put on an innocent expression.
"Don't look at me. Qiu Zhang and I aren't familiar with each other. We just happened to meet on the road and travel together. He's a Dou Zong master, so I can't stop him from doing anything he wants. But Junior Brother Chen is also a Dou Zong master, and he's a disciple of Senior
Xuan Kongzi. I don't think he'd dare to do anything to you." The middle-aged man named Qiu Zhang sneered at this moment.
"Haha, your forced realm breakthrough failed. How much of your current strength can you really use? So what if you're a disciple of Xuan Kongzi? If I keep you all here, who would know it was me? You're all core disciples of Danta, so you must be wealthy. With your resources, in ten or eight years, I'll definitely be able to reach the Seventh Rank! Or even the Eighth Rank! By then, the world is so vast, I, Qiu Zhang, will be able to go anywhere!"
As he spoke, his expression became somewhat frantic. He
seemed to be echoing Song Qing, but this expression made Chen Guandu suspicious.
This guy must really be thinking of having it all his own way!
Otherwise, his acting skills must be too good; even with his keen eyesight, he couldn't spot a single flaw.
Come to think of it, as long as he could get rid of himself, wouldn't dealing with Song Qing be a piece of cake?
Killing one core disciple of the Danta is killing, killing two is also killing, so why not do it?
"Hmph, that's a nice thought. With so many people coming in from the Dan Realm, aren't you afraid that word will leak out and you'll be killed by the Danta upon your return?"
"Hahaha, you don't know, but when you just broke through, I made a special trip, spread some false information, and killed a few disobedient idiots. Now, there are only three of us within a few hundred miles!"
Qiu Zhang laughed heartily, believing he had everything under control, and so he didn't hide anything.
He could see clearly that Chen Guan was only a four-star Dou Zong, and now he was injured and in extremely poor condition.
Meanwhile, he was a six-star Dou Zong!
Do you understand the value of a six-star Dou Zong?
Just one small step away from becoming a high-level Dou Zong!
Furthermore, alchemists' combat power was generally inferior to that of others of the same rank, which gave him even more confidence.
Hearing that the situation had been cleared, Chen Guan also smiled.
This was indeed quite convenient.
He'd initially considered laying his cards on the table, but seeing Song Qing, still smug and oblivious to the gravity of the situation, Chen Guan suddenly changed his mind.
A sudden flute sound echoed, and Chen Guan suddenly shouted, striking first, striking the man in mid-air.
The palm print, over a meter long, was powerful, but coming from a Dou Zong master, it seemed somewhat unpresentable, further confirming his current state of extreme weakness.
"Haha, a mere trifle,"
Qiu Zhang scoffed, and with a light wave of his hand, shattered the massive print in an instant.
Seeing Chen Guan, who had taken the opportunity to soar into the air and, with a single step, was already dozens of feet away, Qiu Zhang guessed his true intentions.
"Stay. Since I've taken action today, it's a fight to the death."
With a touch of seriousness, the man took a step forward and, in the blink of an eye, was behind Chen Guan.
Then, without the slightest hesitation, his five fingers formed claws, seemingly employing some special fighting technique, their tips resembling wolf claws, incredibly sharp.
Under Song Qing's expectant gaze, Qiu Zhang, with ferocious determination, thrust his clawed right hand forward and pierced Chen Guan's back.
Blood splattered like rain, and without a single wail of pain, the lifeless body plummeted from the sky like a sack.
Died just like that?
Witnessing this scene, Song Qing felt a sense of loss.
This was much simpler than he'd expected. He'd heard Chen Guan possessed a Dou Zong-level puppet, but this time, it hadn't worked. He didn't know why.
And then there was that life-saving space stone...
He was slightly puzzled, but then he thought. The difference between Dou Zongs was enormous, even at a single star level. A six-star Dou Zong in his prime was merely dealing with a wounded four-star Dou Zong. It was understandable that he'd be defeated before Chen Guan could even use his power.
"Well done, Qiu Zhang. Here are the two volumes of seventh-grade elixir recipes I promised you. As for the spoils, as agreed, we'll each have half. Is that okay?"
Song Qing said, pulling out two recipes and floating them towards the middle-aged man.
Up until that point, he hadn't noticed the impending danger. His victory had swept his mind, and he smiled with immense joy.
He and Chen Guan had no grudge, but to destroy someone's wealth was like killing their parents.
Chen Guan's presence had become a stumbling block in his pursuit of the Danta Giant Candidate.
This alone left him with a negative impression of Chen Guan.
Add to that the incident with Cao Ying and the kick he'd delivered in public at the start of the alchemy meeting, and his murderous intent intensified.
Fortunately, this major issue had finally been resolved.
As if he could already see the Danta candidates and Cao Ying waving at him, Song Qing's mood was bright.
Such a wonderful thing, it was time to make it clear!
Qiu Zhang casually stored the floating pill formula in his ring and walked over with a meaningful smile on his face.
"No problem, but I have a better distribution plan."
"Oh? Tell me."
"I just need to kill you too, and everything will be mine!"
Qiu Zhang no longer concealed his ambition. He still needed to be cautious when facing Chen Guan, but Song Qing, who hadn't even reached the Dou Zong level, was really easy to manipulate.
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The smile on Song Qing's face froze instantly, finally realizing the danger.
His expression suddenly changed, and without a moment's hesitation, the Space Stone materialized in his hand, and he retreated rapidly, creating distance.
However, Qiu Zhang, also aware of the Space Stone's power, had long anticipated this move. With a flicker of his body, he followed like a shadow.
Just as Song Qing was about to crush the Space Stone, he felt a flash of light before his eyes, and a sharp pain shot through his shoulder.
"Ah! No!"
He turned his head abruptly, only to see his entire right arm torn off at the shoulder. The bloody scene was horrifying.
"No! You can't kill me! I'm a member of the Song family, a seventh-grade alchemist! My teacher is the Great Elder of Danta! If you kill me, your Qiu family will be buried with me. My teacher and the Song family will definitely track you down! Let me go, and I'll give you everything the Chen family owns!"
In the face of death, pain seemed to be negligible. Song Qing's face was covered in cold sweat, and he retreated rapidly, shouting.
But no matter how hard he tried, he could not close the gap between them.
Listening to his howls, Qiu Zhang remained unfazed, not wanting to engage him in further conversation. With just a simple kick, Song Qing collapsed like a punctured ball, his breath draining away as he plummeted to the spot where Chen Guan had been sitting cross-legged.
Ninety-eight percent of his life was already gone!
"You're all talk! Try to cooperate with me, but show me your true strength. Are you worthy?"
Qiu Zhang dropped from the sky, kicking the dying Song Qing with disdain.
Then, he leaned down to collect the spoils.
Just then, a voice suddenly rang out.
"That's true. He who seeks the skin of a tiger will only harm himself. What a wonderful show!"
Qiu Zhang's hand, which was twirling the ring, suddenly stopped, and his expression changed.
Looking back, he saw Chen Guan, who had clearly died tragically at his hands, sitting calmly on the sand dune, one hand resting on his chin, the other twirling a bamboo flute, the look of someone deeply moved after watching a spectacle.
"You're not dead?! A puppet? No, an illusion!"
A strong sense of unreality washed over Qiu Zhang. A sixth-rank alchemist after all, he quickly realized the problem.
It seemed like only this explanation made sense.
"Congratulations, you got it right, but there's no reward."
The more Chen Guan smiled, the uglier Qiu Zhang's expression grew.
He wasn't stupid, at least not as stupid as Song Qing.
A four-star Dou Zong facing a six-star Dou Zong wasn't the least bit nervous. The reason for this was terrifying.
Furthermore, Chen Guan didn't show the slightest sign of injury, which terrified him even more.
Countless consequences flashed through his mind, and Qiu Zhang didn't hesitate. In an instant, he decided to attack.
This time, he would go all out, unleashing a powerful fighting technique!
"Thousand Gold Fire Disk!"
he shouted, his hands rapidly forming seals.
Simultaneously, the energy of heaven and earth surged, and a massive golden wheel gradually emerged behind him.
The power of such a powerful technique, activated with such force, was undoubtedly an Earth-rank fighting technique.
Judging from its level, it's probably not low-level.
Having faced a foe of comparable strength for ages, Chen Guan was rarely interested.
He quickly rose and stepped into the air, shifting his hand seals. The energy of heaven and earth surged even more fiercely, bringing with it a whirring sound.
In a moment, a massive crimson fireball appeared overhead.
"Die!"
Glancing at each other from afar, Qiu Zhang couldn't resist launching the first attack.
The wheel behind him trembled slightly, and then countless golden flames shot out like sharp arrows.
Seeing this, Chen Guan remained calm. With a twist of his hand seals, the fireballs overhead also began to counterattack. Massive fireballs, several feet in size, slammed down, completely blocking the incoming rockets.
Fireballs and rockets intertwined, and the sky was filled with scattered sparks. From afar, the scene looked like apocalypse.
"You don't look like you're doing well."
After a brief defensive move, Chen Guan drew his long sword and shook his head slightly, his disappointment barely concealed.
He had clearly been letting them win.
"Arrogant! Thousand Flame Spear!"
His rage ignited, Qiu Zhang immediately unleashed his ultimate move.
Powerful Dou Qi surged, and flames erupted from the roulette wheel behind him, demonstrating the high rank of his beast fire.
In an instant, the wheel was engulfed in flames.
The next moment, a flaming spear over twenty feet long slowly emerged from the center of the wheel. The moment its tail completely detached from the wheel, its speed suddenly increased, and like a meteor, it hurtled towards Chen Guan.
With such a long period of preparation, Chen Guan naturally wouldn't sit idly by.
With a faint smile, he unleashed the long-prepared cobalt-blue line of fire.
"Heaven's Scar!"
The two fighting techniques intertwined, emitting a hissing sound of eroding energy.
However, the collision didn't last long before the massive spear was split in two, dispersing in a cloud of sparks.
Meanwhile, the slender line of fire remained unblinking, still slashing towards the opponent with a fierce, scorching heat.
Not everyone possesses martial arts above the Earth Rank. Unleashing two powerful fighting techniques in quick succession had consumed Qiu Zhang considerably. Weakened by the oncoming fire, his old strength fading and his new strength yet to return, Qiu Zhang, despite his best efforts to dodge, was still a beat too late.
The price he paid was his intact left arm!
A cold sweat streamed down his face. Gritting his teeth, Qiu Zhang glanced at Chen Guan, who remained composed, then at the fallen arm bearing the storage ring. Finally, he steeled his resolve.
With a flick of his remaining right hand, a spatial stone emerged.
Then, decisively crushing it, his body slowly vanished into thin air.
Seeing this, Chen Guan remained unfazed. This man was merely a minor figure, not likely to cause any significant trouble.
From the outset, he hadn't intended to kill him himself, otherwise he would have used a puppet to instantly dispatch him.
He could let his creditor handle the aftermath.
With a wave of his hand, the fallen arm flew towards him.
After removing the ring, Chen Guan finally arrived in front of Song Qing, who was already on the verge of death and now had been burned beyond recognition by the sparks.
"Help...help...help...me..."
"What? Speak louder, I can't hear you. Hey, wake up, look how kind I am. If he cuts off one of your arms, I'll cut off one of his. Hurry up and say thank you, Brother Guan."
"I've already told you, you can't control yourself if you try to get the skin of a tiger. Seeing you like this, it breaks my heart."