Chapter 1212, The Blood-Transforming Skull

Translator: Silavin

  

“Zhao Xueqi…”

 

Looking up at that red figure hovering in the air, Qin Yichen’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

 

“You little bastard, you’ve got quite the stubborn life in you.” Zhao Xueqi gave a cold laugh, the murderous intent in his gaze wholly undisguised.

 

“Oh? Only you, huh?” Qin Yichen’s gaze swept the area and found no trace of Zhang Qun. He cocked an eyebrow at once, an amused smile spreading across his face. His entire bearing made it plain that he had not so much as registered the twenty-odd Martial Ancestors encircling him.

 

That swaggering attitude provoked a surge of fury among the surrounding experts. Had Qin Yichen not already displayed such a devastatingly impressive level of strength, someone would certainly have been unable to restrain themselves from striking him already.

 

“One of me is more than enough to deal with you. Hand over the Sacred Energy Fruit and the Beast Core, and I shall leave your corpse intact.”

 

Zhao Xueqi gave a cold snort and spoke with icy precision.

 

“The Sacred Energy Fruit?” Qin Yichen let out a scornful laugh. He showed not the slightest trace of fear toward Zhao Xueqi. His contemptuous voice rang out plainly into the stunned silence: “If you want it, come and take it yourself.”

 

“It seems you won’t weep until you see the coffin.” Zhao Xueqi’s expression darkened at these words. At the same moment, a heart-palpitating wave of force erupted from his body and swept outward like a gale, causing the Heaven and Earth to churn violently before a single blow had even been exchanged.

 

From their brief earlier clash, Zhao Xueqi already knew that despite his young appearance, this opponent’s strength was more than enough to command his attention.

 

So now, he was not holding back. And though he said nothing of it, he was also deeply curious and wary about how the latter had extricated himself from within the belly of the Azure Sky Demonic Flood Dragon.

 

“In that case, I shall simply kill you and take it myself.”

 

The words had barely left his mouth before a red mist came billowing forth from within Zhao Xueqi’s sleeve. It was like a fog of blood, profoundly unsettling to behold. From the sheer strain of releasing it, Zhao Xueqi’s expression visibly grew grave, as though the act carried no small cost.

 

The red mist moved with remarkable speed. In the span of only a few breaths, it had condensed directly in front of Zhao Xueqi, coalescing into an exceedingly grotesque, blood-coloured skull.

 

The moment that blood-coloured skull appeared, a thick, rancid, metallic stench seemed to permeate the entire world. Several of the lower-cultivation experts in the vicinity felt the Yuan Energy within their own bodies begin sluggishly, and unpleasantly, even their blood seemed to stir with a restless pressure, as though it sought to burst free.

 

“The Blood-Transforming Skull!”

 

Those standing closest scrambled back at once, and the expressions of many shifted markedly.

 

Blood Hand Zhao Xueqi’s arsenal was vast and varied.

 

The Blood-Transforming Skull, it was said, had been forged by absorbing the Blood Essence of countless experts, sealed within the body through a peculiar method. Once unleashed, that blood would condense into an exceptionally sinister form of power.

 

This power bore no resemblance to Yuan Energy or Spiritual Energy. It aligned far more closely with the resentment of restless, unquiet souls.

 

Countless experts had died in Zhao Xueqi’s hands harbouring bitter grievances, simply for him to cultivate this technique. That he opened with this move immediately was testament enough to how seriously he regarded Qin Yichen.

 

*Whoosh!*

 

With a sweep of Zhao Xueqi’s sleeve, the blood-coloured skull shot forward with a shrieking, wailing clamour. In its wake, the surrounding space rippled with waves of crimson, as though a river of blood were tearing through the air, deeply unsettling to witness.

 

“*Hmph. *Cheap tricks.”

 

Watching that blood-coloured skull come howling toward him, Qin Yichen’s eyes narrowed slightly. Then he gave a cold smile, balled his fist, and with one fierce shake of his arm, threw three punches in rapid succession.

 

*Thud! Thud! Thud!*

 

These three punches were utterly unadorned, without any flourish whatsoever. Yet stripped of all complexity, each one caused the surrounding air to burst apart in a shockwave, forming a terrifying projectile of compressed force.

 

And his next punch smashed directly into the air cannonball created by the previous. Within moments, an enormous concentrated bolt of air pressure had coalesced before him, warping the surrounding space as it carved through.

 

In the next instant, to the astonishment of all watching, that enormous air cannonball crashed headlong into the blood-coloured skull.

 

*Boom!*

 

At the moment of collision, a horrifying tempest of energy radiated outward from the impact, sending ripples cascading through the space around it.

 

In the wake of those ripples, every tree in the vicinity was blasted to splinters. Several unfortunate souls who had been standing a fraction too close were sent hurtling backward, vomiting blood.

 

“Break!”

 

Watching the blood-coloured skull continue to press forward as though it were composed of endless, gnawing malice, a flash of piercing coldness appeared in Qin Yichen’s eyes. His arm shook, and with a single punch, surging Yuan Energy poured out in a torrent, roaring like a great dragon as it drove straight into the blood-coloured skull still locked in contest with the air cannonball.

 

“Heavens, he’s broken through to Peak Stage Martial Ancestor Realm!”

 

The moment Qin Yichen drew upon his Yuan Energy, an exclamation of shock rang out.

 

Gazes turned toward him from every direction. It was only now that these onlookers noticed: this young man who had been at Late Stage Martial Ancestor Realm just days before had already, in the space of that brief time, broken through to Peak Stage Martial Ancestor Realm.

 

“Damn it!” Sensing the shift in Qin Yichen’s aura, Zhao Xueqi’s expression changed abruptly.

 

At Late Stage Martial Ancestor Realm, this fellow had dispatched Peak Stage Martial Ancestors as though slaughtering chickens. Now that he had broken through to Peak Stage Martial Ancestor Realm, did that not mean he had the strength to challenge him head-on?

 

*Crack!*

 

Before Zhao Xueqi could recall his technique, that terrifying surge of Yuan Energy had already slammed ferociously into the blood-coloured skull. Under the force of that overwhelming Yuan Energy, cracks split across the surface of the blood-coloured skull, spreading rapidly like a web.

 

*Boom!*

 

Under the horrified gazes of the watching crowd, the blood-coloured skull shattered completely apart, exploding into a mist of blood that filled the sky.

 

*Ugghh!* As though the destruction of the blood-coloured skull had dealt Zhao Xueqi real damage, a muffled grunt slipped quietly from him.

 

Yet none of those watching noticed that the very instant the skull shattered, a cold and ruthless gleam had surged in Zhao Xueqi’s eyes.

 

*Whoosh!*

 

Within the cloud of blood mist, a blurred streak of cold light slipped through, piercing toward Qin Yichen at an extraordinary speed.