Immortal Martial Emperor

Liang Hunran's outburst was exceptionally fierce.

Moreover, Xu Rongchang and the other experts were still reeling from the shock of Hong Yu tearing Blood Cyan Robe apart with a single claw, and they failed to stop Liang Hunran in time.

By the time Xu Rongchang came to his senses and prepared to intervene, Tang Zhan and Cheng Zhen had already flanked him.

Tang Zhan's expression was grim. "Xu Rongchang, by killing Blood Cyan Robe, Hong Yu has made a mortal enemy of the Blood Demon Palace. If you interfere now, you'll bring utter destruction upon your Xu Family!"

"You'd better think this through!"

Cheng Zhen added leisurely, "What's more important? An outsider like Hong Yu, or your own family?"

In reality…

Tang Zhan and Cheng Zhen's desire to kill Hong Yu was every bit as strong as Liang Hunran's.

From the moment Hong Yu arrived in Frozen City, he had crippled the Cheng Family's young master and clashed with the Tang Family. He then went on to kill both of their families' strongest geniuses in the Ice Tower. All this made the two of them wish they could tear Hong Yu limb from limb.

The terrifying combat power Hong Yu had just displayed, in particular, made them feel intensely threatened.

He already possessed such strength with only a Late-Stage Primordial Core Realm cultivation.

If he were allowed to keep growing stronger, Tang Zhan and Cheng Zhen didn't even dare to imagine the consequences.

Therefore, even without any orders from Liang Hunran, they would have done everything in their power to stop Xu Rongchang.

Xu Rongchang understood their reasoning as well.

He knew that if he insisted on helping Hong Yu, Tang Zhan and Cheng Zhen would undoubtedly attack him with their full strength. Worse, it would give the Tang and Cheng Families the perfect excuse to ally with the Blood Demon Palace to crush his Xu Family.

Even with the Cold Ice Lion Emperor Young Beast as a trump card to seek aid from the Royal Family…

Xu Rongchang still didn't dare take the risk.

He snorted in anger, shot the two of them a furious glare, and said no more.

Liang Hunran's attack was well within Hong Yu's expectations.

'The Grand Elder of the Blood Demon Palace... both of his prized disciples, Qi Tian and Qi Feng, died by my hand. Now, I've even slain Blood Cyan Robe. This was always going to end with me and the Blood Demon Palace locked in a life-or-death struggle. Either they die, or I do.'

And so…

As Liang Hunran charged, Hong Yu was already prepared. He used Electric Flash, vanishing with a SWISH.

Almost simultaneously!

BOOM!

A Palm Seal from Liang Hunran descended.

It was one of Liang Hunran's ultimate techniques—the Four Symbols Demon Palm!

The Palm Light shimmered, swirling with a terrifying, blood-red glow.

It was as if the four Divine Beasts of the Four Symbols—the Cyan Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise—had coalesced within it, roaring as they charged.

RUMBLE!

Liang Hunran hovered in the air above the spot where Hong Yu had just been standing.

On the ground below, a massive crater over fifty meters deep and nearly the size of a basketball court was branded into the earth.

Evidently…

Liang Hunran hadn't held back in the slightest with that attack.

"Hong Yu, are you okay?" Xu Wudi asked anxiously.

Hong Yu shook his head, feeling secretly relieved.

'Good thing I used Electric Flash to dodge just in time. Otherwise, facing that sudden attack from Liang Hunran, I would have inevitably been injured, even if I managed to endure it.'

'What's more, I was still holding Little Chenxi.'

"Wudi, take care of Little Chenxi for me!" As he spoke, Hong Yu handed Little Chenxi over to Xu Wudi.

Little Chenxi seemed to know how formidable Liang Hunran was.

She babbled and gurgled, her hands constantly reaching for Hong Yu.

Hong Yu smiled faintly and gently stroked Little Chenxi's soft cheek. "Be good, Chenxi. Big brother will be right back."

"Yaya!"

Little Chenxi pouted, as if expressing her worry.

Hong Yu patted her head affectionately. "Don't worry, that old bastard can't take my life!"

"Yi yi…"

Little Chenxi nodded, as if she understood.

She waved her tiny fist, as if cheering Hong Yu on.

Hong Yu let out a hearty laugh and turned to face Liang Hunran.

At that moment, Liang Hunran was enveloped in a dense, blood-red light, one that was even more intense than Blood Cyan Robe's had been.

"Hong Yu, you dare kill Blood Cyan Robe right in my presence? The audacity!" Liang Hunran roared.

Hong Yu sneered. "Old dog, weren't you just pontificating about how it's inappropriate for a senior expert like you to interfere in the struggles of the younger generation? So why did you attack? Aren't you just slapping your own face?"

"You…"

Liang Hunran's expression turned cold, and he chuckled sinisterly. "Quite the sharp-tongued little bastard. If I don't kill you today, how will I ever face the ancestors of the Blood Demon Palace?"

"Face? You old bastard, you still have the nerve to talk about face?"

Hong Yu scoffed, his tone neither servile nor overbearing.

He had absolutely no good impression of the Blood Demon Palace.

From Qi Tian's brutal slaughter of twenty thousand people, to Qi Feng's inability to distinguish right from wrong in his quest to kill Hong Yu for revenge, to Blood Cyan Robe's arrogant threats to torture him and drink his blood…

This series of encounters had long since caused Hong Yu to utterly revile everyone from the Blood Demon Palace.

What's more, while others hadn't noticed Liang Hunran's secret message to Blood Cyan Robe, Hong Yu, with his powerful Spiritual Power, had heard every word clearly.

A sinister light flickered in Liang Hunran's eyes. "Very good. You've successfully enraged me!"

"Blood Sorrow Hand!"

Liang Hunran attacked with even greater decisiveness and ferocity.

The title of Bloodthirsty Demon King wasn't earned through kindness or honor, after all.

"Damn it, Liang Hunran, have you no shame? A dignified expert of the older generation, using such a vicious technique on a junior right from the start?"

Xu Rongchang's expression changed drastically as he shouted a warning, "Hong Yu, dodge, now! That's the Blood Sorrow Hand, a High-level Celestial Martial Technique! Don't you dare try to block it!"

'The Blood Sorrow Hand, is it?'

Hong Yu paused for a moment, showing not a trace of fear.

'When I achieved the Eight Desolates Dominating Body, my physical strength was already comparable to a Fourth-Grade Primordial Weapon.'

'Now that I've cultivated the Nine Transformation Dragon God Technique to the Fifth Transformation Realm, my body is as tough as a Fifth-Grade Primordial Weapon. No matter how strong Liang Hunran is, he can't possibly tear apart a Fifth-Grade Primordial Weapon with his bare hands.'

But even so!

Hong Yu didn't underestimate his opponent in the slightest.

For Liang Hunran to have become the Grand Elder of the Blood Demon Palace and earned the title of Bloodthirsty Demon King, his combat power had to be terrifying. He was, after all, a True Dragon at the Heaven-Transforming Realm.

"Four Fingers Shattering the Sky!"

He once again unleashed the Thunderfire Heaven-Breaking Finger!

This was a clash between Celestial-Level Martial Skills.

BOOM!

The Blood Sorrow Hand suddenly opened wide, then clenched shut, actually crushing Hong Yu's Azure Sky Golden Finger to dust.

Hong Yu retreated abruptly. His expression flickered, and with a cold snort, he attacked again. "Five Fingers Move Heaven and Earth!"

This was the strongest move of the Thunderfire Heaven-Breaking Finger technique.

The physical toll of this move was immense; even when he had first achieved the Eight Desolates Dominating Body, Hong Yu hadn't dared to use it lightly.

Fortunately, his Nine Transformation Dragon God Technique had now brought his physical resilience to a level comparable to a Fifth-Grade Primordial Weapon, allowing Hong Yu to unleash it at will.

HUMMM!

Five Fingers Move Heaven and Earth!

The Heaven and Earth Finger appeared, its momentum immense.

The void before it trembled violently, as if heaven and earth were being shaken, the sun and moon reversed, and yin and yang thrown into chaos.

This finger was no longer black, nor was it golden.

Instead, it was a dark, metallic gold.

Dark golden patterns—Qiankun Runes—flowed across its surface. The Runes writhed, pulsing with a powerful and terrifying energy.

RUMBLE!

The dark golden finger was a full fifty meters long.

With immense momentum, it collided with the Blood Sorrow Hand.

The Blood Sorrow Hand manifested and gripped the Heaven and Earth Finger tightly in its palm, but no matter how much force it exerted, it could not crush it.

The two attacks were locked in a stalemate, evenly matched.

Clearly, Liang Hunran was not satisfied with a stalemate.

He snorted coldly and suddenly shot forward, covering a hundred meters in a single Arrow Step to appear right before Hong Yu.

Liang Hunran suddenly raised his palm. "Begone!"

His palm swung, unleashing a torrent of red light like a bolt of silk descending from the heavens. The sheer force of the impact was almost too much for Hong Yu to withstand.

BANG! BANG!

With two heavy thuds, the immense pressure forced Hong Yu's legs to shatter the ground beneath him, sinking into the earth like stone pillars.

"Snow Crystal Silk Hand!"

Liang Hunran pressed his advantage.

His hands danced, his palms moving like phantoms, as a terrifying blood-red light surged from between his fingers.

The strands of blood-red light condensed, spinning out like a silkworm's thread as they wrapped around Hong Yu.

Each of these blood-red threads carried an intense Resentful Power, condensed from the million-plus lives Liang Hunran had taken. If one were to be entangled by these threads, let alone break free, a single touch would likely cause their flesh to rot from their bones.

Facing such a crisis, Hong Yu's eyes narrowed. 'Looks like I have no choice but to use *it*!'

Taking a deep breath, a black light swirled around Hong Yu's arm.

SHING! SHING! SHING!

The piercing sound of sharp metal scraping against metal filled the air.

All of a sudden…

Ten claws, sharp as Steel Sabers, shot out from the backs of Hong Yu's hands.

He swung his right arm.

A cold, jade-like light flashed, the gleam from the claws so chilling it seemed to freeze all of Jiuzhou.

Silver arcs of light from his claws whistled through the air. With a series of sharp hisses, they sliced through the blood-red threads that had left countless powerful experts terrified and helpless.

"What the hell is that?" Liang Hunran's brow furrowed.

He threw a punch while simultaneously advancing on Hong Yu, launching another kick aimed at his waist.

A fist from above!

A leg like steel from below!

This pincer attack from above and below made Hong Yu's expression turn serious. He knew he absolutely could not let Liang Hunran land a hit.

Otherwise, given the old bastard's methods, an onslaught as relentless as a thunderstorm was sure to follow.

"Heaven-Ripping Claw!"

Hong Yu let out a furious roar.

His black hair whipped about wildly, though there was no wind, and his robes snapped and cracked around him.

He swung both arms out to his sides, his claws erupting in a blast of silver light. They slashed through the air, making the very void around them tremble with a HUHU sound.

One sharp claw swept high, the other low.

They met Liang Hunran's fist and kick head-on.

Sparks erupted at the points of impact.

HISS!

Liang Hunran sucked in a sharp breath, his eyes flashing with shocked disbelief.

'I know perfectly well my body is wreathed in the Resentful Power of a million souls! An ordinary Sixth-Grade Primordial Weapon would struggle to pierce my defenses. And yet, these claws not only broke through with ease, but they almost injured me?'

SWOOSH!

Liang Hunran abruptly retreated, staring at Hong Yu with a look of grim resolve. "Truly something else, Hong Yu. If you're allowed to mature, my Blood Demon Palace will never know a day of peace! Today, you must die!"

With that, Liang Hunran opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of thick Essence Blood.

The Essence Blood hung in the air, and a giant Demon Elephant began to rise from behind him.

This Demon Elephant had a ghastly face and bared its Tusks, its grim eyes like two swirling balls of Ghost Fire staring at Hong Yu.

Liang Hunran cackled. "Hong Yu, this is the Blood Demon Venerable, an entity even stronger than the Celestial Blood Demon God! If it swallows you, not even a Primordial Spirit Powerhouse could escape. Today, you will surely die!"

"ROAR!"

With a wave of Liang Hunran's arm, the Blood Demon Venerable roared and lunged at Hong Yu, its gaping, bloody maw wide open.

Its speed was astounding, so fast that Hong Yu couldn't even use Electric Flash before the gaping maw swallowed him whole.

As they watched Hong Yu get swallowed by the Blood Demon Venerable, the clamorous scene fell deathly silent. Even the sound of breathing seemed to be amplified, becoming as loud as static.

Everyone stared blankly as the Blood Demon Venerable closed its tusk-filled maw, the same question echoing in their minds…

'Not even a Primordial Spirit Powerhouse could resist it... has Hong Yu, a peerless genius of his generation, truly died just like that?!'