Chapter 121 - 118: How Could He Be So Strong?

"Y-your Spiritual Source... how could it be so powerful?" Xie Shiming asked in sheer disbelief.

"Maybe it isn’t that my Spiritual Source is strong," Mo Qianqian said, spreading his hands. "Maybe I am just stronger?"

In truth, he wasn’t entirely sure himself. He didn’t know if his Spiritual Source ranked eleventh or twelfth, but judging from that last strike, it was highly likely to be the eleventh. Still, he couldn’t rule out the possibility that he had defeated Xie Shiming simply because of his own superior personal strength.

"BLEGH!"

Xie Shiming coughed up another mouthful of blood, deeply provoked by those arrogant words. He was a once-in-a-millennium genius Spirit Master of the Great Shang Dynasty, the proud wielder of the Heaven-Burning Spiritual Source. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined suffering such a crushing defeat at the hands of a peer in the same realm. As for why he was ranked third in the Great Shang Dynasty instead of first, that was an entirely different matter.

A look of profound shock also washed over Hu Boxiang’s face. This time, they had truly hit a wall.

Luo Wushuang and Ye Xiao’s hearts jolted violently. Asura was actually stronger than Xie Shiming! Ye Xiao could acutely feel the gap between him and Asura growing wider by the second. Luo Wushuang clenched his fists, a faint sense of despair rising within him.

The Eldest Prince, however, heaved a long sigh of relief.

Chu Yiming and Qiu Fengliang were utterly astounded. The Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source was even stronger than the Heaven-Burning Spiritual Source!

"He won! Asura won!"

"The Master Kui of our Great Xia Dynasty is truly worthy of the title!"

"Hmph, this so-called genius Spirit Master from the Great Shang Dynasty is nothing special! Coming in here all stuck-up, people who didn’t know better would have thought he could sweep all our Great Xia Dynasty’s Spirit Masters in the same realm!"

"Exactly! And he even dared to claim that all the Second-Grade Spirit Masters of the Great Xia Dynasty were trash. Xie Shiming, you’d better slink back to your Great Shang Dynasty in disgrace!"

"The Great Shang Dynasty is here just to make a fool of themselves!"

"What a disgrace, Great Shang Dynasty!"

"What a disgrace!"

The crowd broke into a chorus of insults and jeers. Although Xie Shiming was a monstrous genius, Asura was even more of a freak of nature. The opposition had been far too arrogant, forcing everyone to swallow their anger earlier. Now that Xie Shiming had been defeated, the crowd naturally showed no mercy.

Xie Shiming’s face was indescribably grim. This was the first time in his life he had suffered such intense humiliation. He tried to clench his fists, but he was already severely injured and completely powerless to retaliate.

"We shall meet again, Great Xia Dynasty! Shiming, let’s go!" Hu Boxiang declared. Without a moment’s hesitation, he turned and headed for the exit.

"Asura, the day will come when I surpass you!" Xie Shiming balled his fists, then turned and followed Hu Boxiang out.

"What a disgrace, Great Shang Dynasty!"

"What a disgrace!"

The crowd cheered enthusiastically as they sent the two off with insults.

"Elder Asura!" Shi Muyao gazed joyfully at Mo Qianqian as he turned around on the stage. The women in the audience were even more elated, their hearts fluttering wildly as their admiration for Asura reached new heights.

"Asura, how exactly did you acquire the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source?" Lingyun Shan, the Grand Elder of the Ling Family, suddenly spoke up to ask.

"Back then, the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source was obtained by a mysterious powerhouse. How did it end up in your hands?" the Grand Elder of the Lie Family chimed in.

Mo Qianqian furrowed his brow. He knew this was coming. Exposing the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source truly wasn’t a good thing, but he hadn’t had a choice. If he hadn’t used it, his Spirit Body might have been incinerated by Xie Shiming’s Heaven-Burning Spiritual Source.

"My master seized it and gave it to me," Mo Qianqian replied smoothly, having prepared this excuse well in advance. "This Spiritual Source has already been refined by me. You gentlemen aren’t thinking of trying to snatch it from my body, are you?"

His meaning was clear. He was reminding them that the deal was already sealed. There was no known method to reverse the refinement process, so there was no point in offending him over something they could never obtain.

His words caught the group off guard.

"Unless one possesses heaven-defying means, it is simply impossible for anyone to extract an already refined Spiritual Source and refine it again," Chu Yiming added in explanation. "At the very least, there has never been any record of such a thing in ancient texts."

He certainly didn’t want anything bad to happen to Asura now that he possessed the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source.

"Everyone, possessing the Bone-Eroding Spiritual Source and reaching the Second-Grade Spirit Master Realm at the mere age of fifteen or sixteen means he has a strong chance of breaking through to the Third-Grade, or perhaps even the Fourth-Grade in the future," Chu Yiming continued, issuing a stern warning. "If he reaches the Fourth-Grade Spirit Master Realm, he will be able to enhance and produce fourth-grade pills, which would be a monumental blessing for the entire Great Xia Dynasty. I do not wish to see anyone plot against the Master Kui of our Great Xia Dynasty."

"I completely agree!" Qiu Fengliang voiced his support as well.

A single Third-Grade Spirit Master was already an existence capable of sweeping through the Tongyou Realm. Who could possibly withstand two Third-Grade Spirit Masters? The weight behind their combined words was immense.

In truth, many people present shared their sentiment. While the emergence of a Fourth-Grade Spirit Master would inevitably shatter the current balance of power, the fourth-grade pills they could produce would allow cultivators at the Ninth Level of Tongyou Realm to break through to the next realm. They could even refine pills that would help Third-Grade Spirit Masters advance to the Fourth-Grade. Such benefits were simply too colossal to ignore.

"How could we? We were merely curious and just wanted to ask Master Kui Asura," the Grand Elder of the Lie Family hurriedly explained, snapping back to his senses.

"We were overly concerned just now and asked rather abruptly. Please don’t take offense, Master Kui," Lingyun Shan added.

For an expert at the Eighth Level of Tongyou Realm to apologize to a junior was incredibly rare; under normal circumstances, it would have been absolutely impossible.

"It’s nothing. Everyone, I am quite exhausted today, so our Asura Conglomerate will be taking our leave," Mo Qianqian said. He cupped his fists toward Chu Yiming and the Eldest Prince before stepping down from the arena. At the same time, the Slaughterer with the Evil Blade and Gu Jin also rose to their feet.

"Our Yuling Sect will also be taking our leave!" The Yuling Sect Master bowed in the direction of the Eldest Prince and the others. Then, leading Shi Muyao and Pei Hong, he followed Mo Qianqian’s group toward the exit of the Hongyan Building.

"Farewell, Master Kui!" someone suddenly shouted.

"Farewell, Master Kui!" the rest of the crowd chimed in respectfully.

It was unprecedented for a young man to receive such exalted treatment.

Outside the Hongyan Building.

When Mo Qianqian and the others stepped outside, the members of the Asura Conglomerate were already trembling with excitement. They had heard all the news.

"The Great Treasure Master is out!"

"The Great Treasure Master is invincible!"

"The Great Treasure Master is invincible!"

Deafening cheers and shouts from the Asura Conglomerate filled the air.

"Are we fighting? I’ll give you a discount!" Xiajin Shi’s woefully timed voice rang out over the clamor.

Mo Qianqian was rendered speechless.

"Back to the inn!" Mo Qianqian shouted, leading the group away.

Twilight had already deepened into night. In a towering pavilion within the distant Imperial Palace, an elderly man clad in a dragon robe stood in the shadowy corridor.

"Your Majesty, I fear Asura is destined for greatness. Sooner or later, he will leave the Great Xia Dynasty. Meanwhile, Xie Shiming came here representing the Great Shang Dynasty. If he is allowed to mature, he will inevitably pose a massive threat to the Great Xia Dynasty in the future," a masked old man said, stepping forward to ask. "Should we eliminate them both?"