Chapter 1086: Are You Master Kong?

"N-Nine, Nine-Star Master?" Han shuddered, nearly falling over in fright.

Masters of this rank were rare across the entire Master Continent; each was earth-shattering, and a single stomp could make the Master Hall tremble... How could such a figure appear here?

And... so young?

"Aren't you overestimating?" he couldn't help asking.

Her strength was unfathomable, but reaching the sixth or seventh level of the Saint Domain would be impressive—how could she be at the Nine-Star level?

Those with such power were all old monsters who had roamed for who knows how many years.

"I'm not overestimating; I might even be underestimating... This is the relic left by Qiuwu Ancient Sage. By refining the map, Tianye King inherited his will. Luo Shi easily resisted him without giving him any chance to fight back, which shows... her true strength is no weaker than an Ancient Sage! If not a Nine-Star Master, what else?"

Wu Shi said.

"That... makes sense, but... I recall that bloodline-driven treasures can also grant such power. If I'm not mistaken, the Luo family of the Sage Clans possesses a treasure with such properties..."

Suddenly, Han remembered something.

"The Luo family's ancestor, like Qiuwu Ancient Sage, was also famous for spatial abilities. The [Stillness Orb] they left behind indeed has the effect of interfering with space, but... it requires extremely pure bloodline to activate..."

Wu nodded, stunned: "You mean... this Luo Ruoxi is most likely... the little princess of the Luo family?"

"Exactly. The Luo family's little princess seems to be about this age. It's said that at three, she activated her bloodline, becoming the most pure-blooded descendant in tens of thousands of years, aside from the ancestor. She immediately gained the recognition of the [Stillness Orb] and refined it..."

Seeming to know some details, Han said.

"Mm, I've heard that too. It's said this little princess, though young, has outstanding cultivation and stunning looks, but... she had a falling out with her family over that matter and ran away from home!"

Wu nodded: "So, this Luo Ruoxi is very likely the Luo family's little princess. Though her strength may be far from a Nine-Star Master, with the Stillness Orb and pure bloodline, even a true Nine-Star Master would not dare underestimate her..."

"Indeed! No wonder she has such insight... The Luo family ranks in the top ten among the Sage Clans, right?"

"Yes, they are no weaker than giants like the Ice Plain Palace..." Wu nodded.

The two discussed via telepathy, but Luo Ruoxi, unconcerned with their opinions, stood quietly beside Zhang Xuan. Seeing his internal power growing stronger and that he had successfully broken through the Saintly shackles, she finally relaxed.

Zhang Xuan, unaware of the outside events, felt warm under the holy light. His muscles, true qi, and soul seemed tempered, indescribably comfortable.

Operating the Heavenly Dao technique, his overall strength increased continuously. His body, like a glutton, devoured the surrounding holy energy.

Saint Domain First Layer Initial Stage!

Saint Domain First Layer Mid Stage!

...

His cultivation steadily grew, and in less than an hour, he reached the peak of Saint Domain First Layer!

Whoosh!

Zhang Xuan opened his eyes.

So far, he had only gathered the Heavenly Dao technique for the Saint Domain First Layer; reaching the peak, he could go no further.

"No wonder I succeeded in becoming a saint... The level of my fetal core has likely surpassed first-grade, reaching perfection!"

Looking inward, Zhang Xuan felt a surge of excitement.

He had previously condensed a first-grade fetal core, and now, after becoming a saint, it had transformed into the most perfect level, surpassing first-grade.

"It seems Master Kong wasn't first-grade either; he must have reached perfection like me..."

Knowing the process of becoming a saint, he naturally understood that Master Kong was no different from him.

The three tribulations of sainthood: the body tribulation shatters and reforms the fetal core within. The reformed core, imbued with holy energy, becomes more orthodox, naturally evolving to another level, admired by countless.

"At the peak of Saint Domain First Layer, my combat power is no less than that of a Saint Domain Third Layer peak... I reckon even if Feng Xun goes all out, he's no match!"

He clenched his fist, filled with excitement.

Previously, he had only defeated Feng Xun because the latter suppressed his cultivation and was injured. Now, at Saint Domain First Layer, even if his opponent were at full strength and used his strongest moves, he would certainly not be a match.

Of course, reaching Saint Domain Fourth Layer, which involves the primordial spirit, was beyond his ability to contend.

Unless... his soul power could advance further!

But without the inheritance of the Soul Witch Master, progress was no longer easy. He would need to find time to visit the ancestral land mentioned by Mo Hun Sheng and also look for Lu Chong, wondering how his cultivation was going and if any problems had arisen.

Swish!

Zhang Xuan stood up.

"You're awake..."

Luo Ruoxi looked over: "How do you feel?"

"Not bad!" Smiling lightly, Zhang Xuan looked up and couldn't help but pause: "What happened to Tianye King?"

He saw Tianye King frozen in midair, his eyes full of terror, unable to move.

"He tried to ambush you, so I taught him a lesson."

Luo Ruoxi smiled, as if speaking of a trivial matter.

"A lesson?" Zhang Xuan's pupils contracted.

He knew well how powerful Tianye King was. For her to casually reduce him to this state... how strong was she?

No wonder she said that if he wanted to be with her, there would be many troubles. Just this strength alone put immense pressure on him.

Having just become a saint, he felt his strength was considerable and his abilities extraordinary. But seeing Luo Ruoxi, who was about his age, possess such power, his pride vanished.

Though he was not weak and had only cultivated for less than a year, the continent was full of Sage Clans, and there was no guarantee that there weren't prodigies far surpassing him.

Thus, his earlier thinking was correct: there is always a mountain beyond a mountain. He must keep a low profile, or he might die without knowing how.

"This guy has caused me trouble repeatedly; I'll kill him first..."

Smiling lightly, Zhang Xuan turned his gaze to Tianye King, his eyes like lightning.

Ji Yan was right: now that he had just become a saint, with the power of the sainthood platform, he could easily unleash strength beyond his own. Though Tianye King was strong, he was certainly no match.

Whoosh!

With a flick of his hand, the restraint on Tianye King was broken. Pressing down again, a surge of holy energy swept over, and the former fell to the ground.

"You..."

Not expecting Zhang Xuan to become so formidable, Tianye King's pupils shrank in fear. Without another word, he shot upward, trying to escape.

He had thought that merging the map with the crystal would bring him to the peak of his life, but he never dreamed that the peak would come so quickly—and descend even faster.

"Trying to escape? Hmph!"

Through his clone, Zhang Xuan knew what had happened. His eyes narrowed, and he pressed down with his palm.

Crack!

Tianye King screamed, falling from the air again, his body convulsing.

Even with the Qiuwu Palace, he might not have been a match. Now, only wanting to flee, his spirit was already broken; how could he withstand it?

After a moment, the man was thrown onto the sainthood platform. Under the holy light, his screams grew weaker until they faded.

"Whoosh!"

Zhang Xuan grabbed again, and a mass of pure primordial spirit power appeared in his palm.

The holy light of the sainthood platform had a purifying effect on alien spirits. Though Tianye King was strong, after being wounded and cleansed by the holy light, he had lost consciousness, becoming pure primordial spirit power.

"Clone, you did well this time..."

Smiling lightly, he flicked his finger, and half of the primordial spirit flew into the clone's body.

Creak! Creak!

Merging with Tianye King's pure primordial spirit, the clone's aura rose steadily.

The clone's strength relied mainly on the soul; its body was a Nine Heavens Lotus Fetus, requiring no cultivation.

Now, having devoured half of Tianye King's primordial spirit, even if it couldn't reach the Out-of-Body realm, it had reached half-step Out-of-Body, more than doubling its strength.

Combined with its indestructible body, it could probably fight even an early Out-of-Body cultivator!

"And thank you all..."

Smiling again, he divided the remaining primordial spirit into several portions and gently injected them into the sea of consciousness of Wu Shi, Han, and the others.

"Thank you, Master Zhang..."

The group, knowing this was a rare opportunity, sat cross-legged.

Boom!

Before long, Han broke through first, also reaching half-step Out-of-Body.

Wu followed closely.

Ji Yan and the others, though not as dramatically, reached the Primordial Spirit realm, becoming stronger. Refining Tianye King's primordial spirit had greatly improved everyone's strength.

"Master Zhang..."

Feeling the changes in their power, they all knelt in sincere admiration.

Such a method of raising one's strength with a wave of the hand was godlike; even at their level of around Seven Stars, they found it incredible.

"I hope you all keep secret the fact that I am a Heaven-acknowledged Master and Heaven-acknowledged Saint."

Zhang Xuan looked at them.

It was better not to disclose this; otherwise, it would cause panic among the alien spirits, leading to sieges and making life difficult.

Most importantly... low profile, low profile, low profile—say it three times.

"Rest assured, we will keep our mouths shut!"

Wu and the others straightened their expressions.

Whether Heaven-acknowledged Master or Heaven-acknowledged Saint, both were beyond their imagination; they dared not utter a word.

"Then thank you all..."

Hearing their assurance, Zhang Xuan relaxed. He flipped his wrist and tossed the Continuation Grass over: "Wu Shi, please refine the Continuation Pill to treat Dean Tan Qing. I'll study the map and crystal to see if I can find a way to restore the old dean as well."

"Yes!"

Taking the herb, Wu nodded.

Among his auxiliary professions was alchemy; though not at a very high level, he could still refine the Continuation Pill.

Whoosh!

Having given his instructions, Zhang Xuan ignored the others. He moved to the crystal, placed his hand on it, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

"Are you Master Kong?"