Song Nanming was quickly escorted away by the four imperial guards behind him, vanishing into the forest in the blink of an eye.
As the cold wind blew, Shen Xiang saw thick black mist suddenly envelop his surroundings. He immediately used his powerful True Qi to protect his body, forming a shield, while holding his breath. He knew that the mist was most certainly poisonous.
The poisonous mist spread quickly, covering Shen Xiang's location. Despite it being broad daylight, everything suddenly turned pitch black. Shen Xiang's eyes twitched as he sensed countless objects flying toward him from all directions at great speed.
These were countless arrows and steel needles of various sizes…
All sorts of hidden weapons shot from every direction, turning the already dark forest into a thick blanket of darkness. These poison-laden weapons were all aimed at Shen Xiang.
Shen Xiang had previously detected many people hiding around him, but he hadn't expected them to unleash such an overwhelming number of hidden weapons all at once. Despite the spectacle, Shen Xiang felt no fear.
"No wonder Song Nanming was so confident he could kill me. If I were an ordinary martial artist at the eighth or ninth level of the Mortal Martial Realm, I might have been in serious trouble." Shen Xiang thought to himself. As the countless arrows and steel needles approached, an invisible wave of powerful True Qi erupted from his body.
This was the Qiankun (Heaven and Earth) force formed by the fusion of the Five Elements. This immense and terrifying force spread over the area around him. As the hidden weapons approached, they were all blocked by the force, suspended in mid-air, unable to advance further.
Countless arrows and steel needles were caught by Shen Xiang's Qiankun force, accumulating more and more, forming walls of black surrounding him.
"Heh, looks like that's all they've got! But there sure are a lot of them!" Shen Xiang laughed. He used the Tai Chi Divine Art, harnessing the force's combination of hardness and softness, absorbing all the hidden weapons, keeping them suspended in the air.
At that moment, Shen Xiang sensed that the people hidden in the forest were beginning to flee. A cruel determination flashed through his eyes as he let out a roar, and a tidal wave of Qiankun True Qi erupted from his body. The hidden weapons that had been suspended in the air were scattered by the sudden burst of force, flying into the surroundings along with the poisonous mist.
In an instant, the area around Shen Xiang returned to brightness, but the forest echoed with agonized screams, like the wails of vengeful ghosts.
"This is what they call 'reaping what you sow,'" Shen Xiang shook his head and sighed. With his immense and powerful True Qi, as long as he used it correctly, nothing could stop him. These hidden weapons were never a threat to him.
Flames suddenly appeared on Shen Xiang's back, forming into a pair of blazing wings!
To prevent Song Nanming from escaping, he had no choice but to use his Vermillion Bird Fire Wings. The wings flexibly flapped, instantly lifting Shen Xiang into the sky like a soaring eagle.
Shen Xiang's eyesight was as sharp as an eagle's. Even in the sky, he could clearly see everything on the ground. He quickly spotted a group of fast horses galloping along a road outside the mountain forest, heading towards the imperial city.
Using his divine sense, Shen Xiang controlled the Vermillion Bird Fire Wings, quickly flying towards Song Nanming and his group.
Galloping on horseback, Song Nanming was brimming with excitement. He believed he had finally rid himself of a great enemy. Once his father, the emperor, passed the throne to him, he could carry out his plans. But then, he heard someone shouting his name.
"Song Nanming!" Shen Xiang called from the sky.
Song Nanming thought he was hearing things, but the voice was clear and coming from above. He and the four imperial guards looked up, only to see a pair of fiery red wings in the sky. The wings belonged to a person – Shen Xiang.
Seeing the True Qi-formed wings and Shen Xiang's appearance in the air, Song Nanming felt a chill run from his head to his toes. Shen Xiang was still alive! And he even had those incredibly valuable True Qi wings.
Shen Xiang swooped down from the sky, his palm suddenly engulfed in a massive surge of violent blue True Qi. A giant hand formed from the True Qi, and though Song Nanming's group was still running, they were like rabbits under the control of a hunting eagle.
The giant hand of True Qi slammed down fiercely, crushing Song Nanming and the four imperial guards. This was the formidable True Qi of an eighth-level Mortal Martial artist, further enhanced by lightning and astral wind. The overwhelming force descended from above, instantly seriously injuring Song Nanming and his men, pinning them to the ground along with their horses, which were already dead. Song Nanming and his guards lay on the ground, coughing up blood and struggling to move.
Shen Xiang approached and drew his long blade, beheading the imperial guards one by one in front of Song Nanming, who was so terrified that he trembled and lost control of his bowels.
Song Nanming realized that Shen Xiang could kill him without hesitation. Death was closing in, and the thick scent of blood filled the air. Four severed heads lay in front of him, while Shen Xiang stood nearby, smiling but exuding a murderous aura.
"I wasn't planning on holding you accountable for our previous duel, but you actually tried to kill me. This is all your own doing," Shen Xiang said coldly.
Song Nanming's once handsome face was now twisted in fear. He was gravely injured and completely defenseless, but he still tried to speak, "Young Master Shen, I…"
Before he could finish, Shen Xiang's blade flashed, and Song Nanming's head was separated from his body, his life ended by Shen Xiang.
"Such an arrogant fool, always making others waste energy on him!" Shen Xiang said disdainfully. He took Song Nanming's storage bag and opened it, finding not only tens of thousands of large spirit coins but also a brand-new book.
Shen Xiang quickly took the book out and opened it, his eyes lighting up when he saw the words "Dragon Martial" written on one of the pages. He was overjoyed – he hadn't expected Song Nanming to carry the Dragon Martial manual with him.
Shen Xiang stored the Dragon Martial manual in his invisible ring and asked Su Meiyao and Bai Youyou to evaluate it.
Ancient Dragon Martial arts were considered a form of divine skill, incredibly powerful, which greatly intrigued both Su Meiyao and Bai Youyou.
"This is only a portion of the Dragon Martial arts. It primarily teaches how to convert True Qi into Dragon Gang and how to perform martial techniques with Dragon Gang. The Dragon Gang Fist you used earlier is one such technique. You only learned a small part of it by observing, and it was incomplete. Even Song Nanming didn't practice it well," Su Meiyao explained excitedly.
"With such an excellent martial art, and he still didn't practice it properly, that prince was truly a waste of talent!" Bai Youyou said coldly, her beautiful eyes fixed on the book. Although it was a handwritten copy, it was very detailed.
Shen Xiang had been lacking martial techniques suited to him. The Four Symbols Divine Art contained some, but most required immense True Qi to fully unleash their power. Although his family had some techniques, he was not satisfied with them, as most were unsuitable for his cultivation.
"Sister Meiyao, is there a difference between Dragon Martial and the Azure Dragon Divine Art?" Shen Xiang asked.
"There's a huge difference. Dragon Martial was created by dragons themselves, while the Azure Dragon Divine Art was created by humans based on dragons. According to ancient legends, Dragon Martial techniques could unleash powers as strong as a dragon's and were capable of killing dragons, hence the name 'Dragon Extermination Divine Martial Arts,'" Su Meiyao explained.
"Dragon Extermination Divine Martial Arts!" The name alone sounded incredibly powerful.
"If that's the case, Dragon Martial techniques must be scattered all over. If I can collect them all…," Shen Xiang began to feel excited at the thought, though he knew it wouldn't be easy.