Li Jun clenched his teeth.
He was desperate to save Wang Hao from Yang Wei's merciless assault.
With forced bravery, Li Jun swiftly invoked a series of intricate hand seals, igniting a surge of fire that enveloped his index and middle fingers.
He traced the flames along the edge of his jian, spirit refining it not once, nor twice, but three times over.
In a bold and daring move, Li Jun lunged towards Yang Wei.
His body was ablaze with the fiery aura emanating from his blade.
The flames coalesced into the form of a majestic tiger, hurtling straight towards Yang Wei— He had unleashed the Spirit Fire Tiger Piercing Blade.
The enormous tiger formed from the flames.
Li Jun positioned his sword, intending to drive it through Yang Wei's chest.
"Die!"
He roared as loud as the tiger molded from flames.
Much to Li Jun's surprise, Yang Wei effortlessly halted the sword's advance with a single outstretched finger.
"WHAT?!"
Undeterred, Li Jun pushed forward, the flaming tiger intensifying and expanding in size, scorching the ground beneath it.
Yang Wei, nonchalant, questioned Li Jun's intentions, bemused by his adversary's assault.
To Yang Wei, the assault was indeed relentless, but equally useless.
"What are you trying to achieve?" Yang Wei asked. "Attack me?"
Li Jun unleashed a furious battle cry. "Shut up you bastard!"
Dismissing Li Jun as insignificant, he told him,
"I don't mean to belittle you, but to me... You're no more than an ant struggling to survive."
Yang Wei used his [Scarlet Magic] again.
A radiant red light radiated from his fingertip.
It instantaneously obliterated Li Jun's blade causing the tiger of flames to dissipate as well.
A shockwave rippled through the surroundings, as a huge portion of the ground itself got vaporized.
Li Jun was hurled back, crashing into the ground, his body bearing the marks of the intense impact.
Though severely wounded, he managed to cling on to consciousness.
Yang Wei offered a cold smirk and sardonically remarked,
"I only spared your miserable life out of kindness. Thank your lucky stars."
[Scarlet Magic].
It was one of Yang Wei's most used magic.
He acquired it after fusing a Chaos Core with his own soul, which enabled him the creation of two variations of [Destruction Magic].
There was [Scarlet Magic] and [Jade Magic].
The first focused on the destruction of physical existences, and the second was the exact opposite; it destroyed non-physical existences.
Li Jun struggled to rise, signaling the distress he was in.
Chen Wei and Liu Jing hurried to his side, concern evident on their faces.
Chen Wei inquired anxiously, "Senior Brother Li Jun, are you alright?"
Li Jun, coughing up a splatter of blood, assured Chen Wei that he could manage. "Worry about yourself, Junior Brother," he added.
Liu Jing remained determined.
She interjected, "Junior Brother Chen Wei, stay by Senior Brother Li Jun's side while I try to hold this man off until the Sect Elders arrive..."
Chen Wei was apprehensive about the idea.
"But Senior Sister, this man... he defeated Senior Brother Wang Hao and Li Jun so effortlessly. He may even be a 3rd Path Cultivator. I don't think you have a chance against him."
Liu Jing didn't seem fazed one bit. "That's not enough reason to give up."
Reluctantly, Chen Wei nodded.
"Okay then. Goodluck, Senior Sister Jing."
Liu Jing nodded and squared herself to face Yang Wei.
As she did, silver scales began to manifest under her eyes, on her cheeks, and forearms.
An ominous silver aura emanated from her hands.
With a whisper, Liu Jing intoned, "Silver Flash Dragon Martial Technique, Partial Beast Will."
Her black hair defied gravity, the energy currents causing it to stand on end, as she dashed towards Yang Wei with breathtaking speed.
A speed that could easily be compared to light.
That was the proper way to describe it.
Chen Wei couldn't see a thing, for him, it was as though when she moved, the world around him became "timeless".
Yang Wei, unperturbed, stood firm as Liu Jing lunged at him.
Sharp claws emerged from her hands, intent on striking him, but before she could make contact, Yang Wei vanished. In the blink of an eye, he appeared several meters away, clasping the wounded Wang Hao's head.
He actually dodged that...? Wait, should I really be surprised...?
Liu Jing knew she couldn't move as fast as her sister who was deep into the Core Formation Realm, however, she believed she'd actually scratch him.
But he seemed untouchable even for the Silver Flash Dragon Martial Technique that helped to elevate a martial artist's potential to their nearest physical and spiritual degree.
Yang Wei's [Stellar Foresight] was far above it. He was shrouded in an ephemeral veil of cosmic fortune.
All of a sudden, Wang Hao coughed.
It caught Yang Wei's attention immediately.
Making a cruel jest, Yang Wei feigned concern, "Oh, you're still alive," before arbitrarily tossing Wang Hao aside. "Stay there and be a good boy, farmer."
Watching him do this angered Liu Jing even more.
In the midst of his egregious act, Yang Wei shifted his gaze to the silver-aura cloaked Liu Jing with a chilling smile.
"Oh, hello there."
Yang Wei waved at her.
Liu Jing's eyes narrowed as she lunged once more at Yang Wei.
As she surged forward, the force of her movement disintegrated the earth beneath her, leaving a trail of scorching heat in her wake. Her incredible speed was accompanied by a blazing aura, flames flickering from her footsteps.
Meanwhile,
Yang Wei used both his [Celestial Alacrity] and [Celestial Velocity] which were enhancements that granted him unparalleled reflexes and supernatural speed, allowing him nearly imperceptible movements.
Liu Jing, despite her enhanced agility, found herself unable to register any of Yang Wei's movements in her current state.
It was like all her incomprehensible speed had become "comprehensible" and Yang Wei's speed had become more god-like.
A movement so immeasurably fast that it felt like instant teleportation.
Where did he go?!
Just as the realization struck Liu Jing, Yang Wei materialized behind her, swiftly.
Silently, he neutralized her with a fluid chop to her neck, causing her silver aura to dissipate before losing consciousness.
Observing the dire turn of events, Chen Wei, unable to contain his worries anymore.
"Senior Sister Liu Jing!"
The way he shouted, it was obvious he was already prepared to defend her.
However, before he could make a move, Yang Wei vanished once more, reappearing behind Chen Wei with a casual elegance and a pointed finger aimed at the young man.
"Freeze."
A blue light materialized at the tip of Yang Wei's finger, and in a matter of moments, Chen Wei was encased in ice.
As Yang Wei finished his swift and merciless assault, he nonchalantly brushed his hands together, expressing a sigh of exasperation about the situation.
"These... What did they call themselves... Cultivators? They lack the ability to be reasonable. Rather than opting for a civil discourse they chose to fight me instead. It was more difficult keeping them alive than annihilating them, but it seems somehow I managed."
He combed his long, white hair.
"Why do they have to be so reckless?" he muttered to himself. "I didn't mean any harm."
Yang Wei then adjusted his long, white overflowing garments.
"Is there anyone decent in this world?"
Yang Wei sighed as he glanced at the chaos he had caused.
Li Jun and Wang Hao were incapacitated, Chen Wei was completely frozen in place, and Liu Jing lay unconscious on the ground.
"Alright, you can come out now," Yang Wei called out; his was voice calm but firm.
Phasing out of the concealed 4-dimensional space she had been hidden in, Mu Lingxi emerged.
She looked impressed as she said, "I'm surprised you could sense me."
Yang Wei smiled slightly. "Are all Cultivators as delusional as you?" he teased. "Your concealment technique is weak - it's almost like you're begging to be noticed."
Mu Lingxi knew he wasn't an average opponent, but for him to casually see through her 4-dimensional space was surprising.
The 4-dimensional space was something she had created some decades before she became a 2nd Path Cultivator. But, she had only recently perfected it after adjusting the occasional time gaps and spatial lags that made it imperfect.
It was known as the Structural Immemorial Divergent Boundary.
An advanced ability that had elements of time manipulation, spatial distortion, and multidimensional phasing.
In order to achieve this, she tapped into her inner Qi and channeled it to create a small localized 4-dimensional space around herself. This space existed as a pocket dimension, separate from the perceivable reality, allowing her to phase in and out at will. Within this space, time could be manipulated, accelerated, or decelerated as per Mistress Lingxi's control.
She wasn't within the boundaries of this reality and yet he could sense her.
The only way he'd be able to do that is if he was equally a 2nd Path Cultivator like me, or maybe even higher... No, it's possible he's using some sort of high-grade artifact that can interact with my own space.
She placed her palms together.
A small surge of fire built up as she moved her hands in a fluid martial arts manner.
Several trails of fire swirled around her as she took a battle stance.
"After I defeat you," Mu Lingxi declared with a voice as hard as steel, "I'll burn your soul for a thousand years and banish it into a never-ending cycle of absolute torment."
Yang Wei yawned theatrically. "That sounds fun," he replied, unfazed. "But before we get to that, I have a request that you might find interesting."
Mu Lingxi raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what might that be?"
Yang Wei's voice cut through the charged air as he addressed Mu Lingxi.
"If I win, you'll show me to your leader. I have a few questions to ask. But if I lose, you can do whatever you want with me."
Mu Lingxi's eyes narrowed, a mocking smile playing on her lips.
"What if I'm the one in charge?" she retorted, her chin lifting.
Yang Wei chuckled softly.
Slowly, he closed his eyes and waved his hand dismissively at Mu Lingxi.
"No way. You're way too weak."
The words seemed to ignite an internal storm within Mu Lingxi.
Her teeth gritted with a force that seemed to echo through the air with a snapping sound, and her fists clenched tightly.
"You arrogant bastard!" she spat, her anger simmering beneath her skin.
Yang Wei raised a hand, attempting to diffuse the tension.
"Hey, that's not very ni-"
Before he could finish, Mu Lingxi transformed into a blur of motion so rapid that it transcended the barriers of thought. A shockwave seemed to hover in her wake as she surged toward Yang Wei with a speed that defied comprehension, her intent clear and lethal.
She had moved so quickly that even before she took a step, she already envisioned herself striking Yang Wei with her palm, fragmenting his body into a million little cells.
But to her astonishment, her strike met nothing but empty space.
Through the corner of her eye, Mu Lingxi saw Yang Wei casually standing beside her.
He had a calm smile on his face as he watched her with an amused spark in his eyes.
"Wow," he remarked, his gaze flicking to her hair as he gently adjusted a loose strand. "You have really beautiful hair. Honestly, you're more beautiful than a lot of women from my world."
She remained suspended in her palm-striking position— but it was only out of astonishment.
How did he dodge her attack, she thought.
She was a 2nd Path Cultivator.
On a basic scale, their kind were roughly 500 to 1,000 times faster than all 1st Path Cultivators.
And yet, it seemed like dodging that was light work to him.