One, two, three… The pills fell in Zhuo Fan's hand with a light tap of the bottle. And with every fall of the azure gleaming pill, hearts were strung tighter than a fiddle.
When five gathered in his palm, Zhuo Fan placed the bottle away, "Five pills ought to be the limit."
"Five?!" Vicious Pill King's eyelid twitched.
A single Bursting Pill could increase one's Yuan Qi by ten times. If the body couldn't take it, it would blow up from the strain. That explosion was also ten times stronger than a simple self-detonation.
Taking these pills would turn Zhuo Fan into a ticking time bomb. It increased his power fifty times, but the explosion would be no less than a Profound Heaven expert's.
The damage wouldn't be limited to this small area either, but the entire Drifting Flowers City. It would be swept by the shockwave, razed to the ground.
Vicious Pill King's heart shuddered as he shouted in fear, "Stop him, or he'll drag us all down with him!"
Too little, too late. Zhuo Fan swallowed the pills without hesitation.
In a blink, the wind picked up, and a rumbling echoed.
Under the frightened eyes of his audience, the space around Zhuo Fan warped. Something seemed to seep out of his body as well, looking akin to raw and physical Yuan Qi.
His Lightning Wings had grown twice their size.
Under constant changes, Zhuo Fan gnashed his teeth as sweat trickled down his brow. His fist clenched, his face, grim from the unspeakable pain.
But he held on to his voice, not letting even a grunt escape.
Bam!
His body shivered and his two arms exploded in size. His forehead sported the azure flame again, but this time bigger than before.
The azure flame now burned hotter, his wings flickered with thunder, and his cold eyes were bloodshot. His twisted face as well looked ready to unleash a gruesome power.
The people watched the advent of their death from afar, incredulous of how much power he had gotten.
He rose steadily from the 2nd layer of Bone Tempering Stage under the watchful eyes of Vicious Pill King and the rest, with constant anguish.
The stronger he got, the more bang for his buck. If his control slipped while he powered up, the explosion would be less, but only by a fraction.
But Zhuo Fan stubbornly hung on and his power soared.
Huangpu Qingyun was appalled, but he was crying inside. [What in god's name is this brat made of? How is he still holding it together?]
With a relieving sigh, just like a tornado, Zhuo Fan's power up reached the end. Yet, outside of everyone's expectation, there was no explosion.
All they saw was a calm Zhuo Fan breathing in and out.
"That's…" Vicious Pill King's voice trembled, "I-it's the Profound Heaven Stage!"
The others could see the fierce aura around him and gasped. In just a few breaths, Zhuo Fan climbed from the 2nd layer of Bone Tempering Stage all the way to the Profound Heaven Stage.
[T-this is too astonishing!] Huangpu Qingyun and the 5th elder's faces were grave.
They knew now the pills weren't to off himself, but to increase his power.
But how could a man accomplish such a feat?
To the average man, a ten times Yuan Qi increase would burst him like a balloon. But this brat withstood five times of that.
[Just how tough is he?]
"Monster!"
Huangpu Qingyun couldn't help but voice it. The others also watched with shock and awe of Zhuo Fan's staunch body.
Making a come hither gesture at Huangpu Qingyun and 5th elder, Zhuo Fan mocked them with a smile, "Didn't you want to fight? Well, come and get me!"
The audacity and scorn made Huangpu Qingyun and 5th elder burst with anger. This was the first time they were ever mocked this much.
They shot at Zhuo Fan without words and Huangpu Qingyun launched a golden fist right at his face.
"You little shit, if you have the nerve to taunt then don't dodge and take it like a man!" Huangpu Qingyun was goading him.
Smirking, Zhuo Fan lifted his hand, "There's no longer a need to dodge…"
Bam!
Fists met, tearing up the air with a sharp explosion and making ears sting from it. The two's Yuan Qi collided and spread like a tidal wave all around.
The pebbles and rocks around were pulverized under such raw unbridled power.
The people were frantic in getting their Yuan Qi up to shield themselves, but some weak Bone Tempering cultivators were flung twenty meters away and spat blood.
The shock from a simple clash dominated their hearts. The fight was going to be intense.
But then, their eyes widened.
They watched in shock as Huangpu Qingyun's all-out attack was simply blocked by Zhuo Fan. The latter didn't even look to be trying.
Suddenly, 5th elder entered the scene from behind, swinging that hammer right at his head.
Dong!
Screeching of metal on metal resounded and another shockwave sped away. The audience worked to withstand it but dozens were flung into the air.
Yet, when they looked up now, their eyes were twitching.
Zhuo Fan's face was as calm as ever, to the point of ignoring the 5th elder completely and letting a wing lightly block the hammer.
Zhuo Fan didn't even shudder from the blow.
Huangpu Qingyun and 5th elder cried frantically, "Impossible!"
"Nothing's impossible, especially when it comes to yours truly!" Zhuo Fan gripped Huangpu Qingyun's fist and threw him.
Huangpu Qingyun slammed into the ground, sinking inch by inch.
Not forgetting about the 5th elder either, his Lightning Wings slightly shook and the old man flew for a hundred meters before hitting the ground. But even so, he had to take six more steps back to stabilize.
Looking at Zhuo Fan now, the 5th elder was frightened. But his heart couldn't accept it and charged again. Zhuo Fan brushed his attempt off, only staring down at Huangpu Qingyun with sarcasm, "Second young master, remember when you talked to me about men and women? Then allow me to inform you that this time, only those standing… are real men."
It was naked humiliation!
Huangpu Qingyun roared and swung at Zhuo Fan. He was Regent Estate's second young master, how dared someone insult him?
5th elder arrived as well, smashing with his hammer.
But Zhuo Fan only laughed at their futile attempts.
His body was refined with Diamond Sand into a 5th-grade demonic treasure. He couldn't take these two on earlier because his Yuan Qi was lacking in bringing about the body's true potential.
Taking five Bursting Pill compensated for this, allowing him to use his demonic treasure body to its full capabilities. Adding to his Radiant Stage soul, how could these two even land a hit?
Grinning, Zhuo Fan placed a hand behind him and only used his left to block everything and anything Huangpu Qingyun threw at him. At the same time, he used his wings to dance to 5th elder's hammering tune.
Clangs and dings were heard constantly, as the power behind each swing was enough to pulverize anything around them
The sting from the explosions hurt the people's ears but they were too dumbstruck to mind.
Seeing how easily Zhuo Fan handled two Profound Heaven experts while standing still was hard to believe, even when seeing it themselves.
[What is wrong with this world? Since when did there exist a Bone Tempering cultivator who is such a monster, capable of making Profound Heaven experts become his stepping stone? This is two on one, and they can't even gain the upper hand! Worst, their opponent is taking it in stride.]
Despite their curses, they knew the truth. The Profound Heaven experts that laid in front of their eyes were in no way weak, but this Bone Tempering youth was simply too much of a monster!
Long Jiu's group was stupefied.
A blink was all it took for Zhuo Fan's power to surpass everyone's imagination. Their minds couldn't cope with the impossible scene unfolding right before their eyes.
The world flipped, the power scheme upturned, and a Bone Tempering cultivator was playing with two Profound Heaven experts!
Chu Qingcheng and her overseers were bug-eyed. It was Iris Overseer who first recovered somewhat to gasp, "Demon Zhuo Fan lives up to his infamy. The monster of all freaks."
Xie Tianyang felt like crying, "8th elder, I should go find elder brother to train with my sword. I want to revive Sword Marquise Abode. There's no point in going after that brat. That dream… is just wishful thinking!"
Jian Suifeng sighed as well.
Ever since they saw Zhuo, not only the juniors, but even the elders were suffering a serious blow to their self-esteem…