Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

"Hm? Is someone trying to ambush me?"

Lu Changsheng, who had been in a daze because Yang Xiao had snatched his Devouring Demon Flame, was instantly jolted to his senses by the attack.

He turned, saw who it was, and burst out laughing. "So, it's you, Lu Changhe. It's been a long time!"

Lu Changsheng laughed with abandon.

His figure flickered, and he effortlessly dodged Lu Changhe's punch.

At the same time, a mocking expression spread across his face.

"After all these years, your strength has only improved by this much? How pathetic. Back when you were at the Peak of Tier Two True God, I had just barely entered the True God Realm. But now? I'm already a Tier Six Divine Sect, and you're just a Tier Three True God. It looks like leaving that miserable place was the best decision I ever made!"

"Shut up! You traitor!"

Lu Changhe roared.

But this only made Lu Changsheng laugh even more heartily.

A moment ago, Yang Xiao's actions had given him a real scare.

The technique was simply too bizarre!

But he was a Tier Six Divine Sect, after all. His strength was extraordinary and his will was firm. Even though he still couldn't figure out how Yang Xiao had managed to absorb his Devouring Demon Flame, as an expert—and an assassin at that—his mental fortitude was superb. He recovered his composure with incredible speed, especially after Lu Changhe appeared.

He was once again calm and calculating.

And just like that, with only a few words, he had stoked Lu Changhe's fury.

This made Yang Xiao frown.

'If this keeps up,' he thought, 'Lu Changhe is in grave danger.'

"Elder Changhe, get out of here! I'll deal with this guy," Yang Xiao shouted.

"You want to 'deal' with me?"

Before Lu Changhe could even react, Lu Changsheng suddenly spun around to face Yang Xiao.

Yang Xiao froze for a moment, but his expression quickly twisted into a cold sneer.

He raised the sword in his hand.

"Don't believe me? Come and try!"

At that moment, Lu Changhe threw another punch at Lu Changsheng.

The punch was fierce and overbearing, filled with Supreme Yang Power that nearly blasted the surrounding space into oblivion. Yet, it couldn't touch Lu Changsheng.

Even though Lu Changsheng was looking at Yang Xiao with his back to Lu Changhe, the punch still hit nothing but air.

The miss jolted Lu Changhe to his senses.

'This traitor... he's become too powerful. I'm no match for him at all,' he thought. 'Right now, protecting Young Master Yang Xiao is what matters. He is the true hope of our Lu Family.'

As soon as the thought formed, Lu Changhe's figure flickered, and he abandoned his attack on Lu Changsheng.

He appeared by Yang Xiao's side.

"Young Master Yang Xiao, you go! I'll hold him off!"

Yang Xiao was touched to see Lu Changhe set aside his own vengeance to protect him, urging him to flee first.

Lu Changsheng, however, was quite surprised.

And a little disappointed.

He had been about to make his move.

'All I had to do was wait for that idiot Lu Changhe to punch me again,' he thought. 'I would have activated my Devouring Power, let the blow land true, and then devoured him completely.'

But he never expected that a single sentence from Yang Xiao would make that blockhead Lu Changhe actually back down.

'This kid is always ruining my plans. This time, I absolutely will not let him go.'

At this thought, killing intent surged in Lu Changsheng's eyes.

Hearing Lu Changhe's words, he sneered. "Hold me off? You? If I wanted to kill you, do you think you could even withstand a single one of my moves?"

"You..."

Lu Changhe bellowed.

His face flushed red, clearly furious.

Still, he knew this traitor was no longer the man he once was. His power had far surpassed his own, having reached the Tier Six Divine Sect. He was no match for him.

"Me what?" Lu Changsheng taunted. "Looking at you, I'm more curious why you care so much about this kid. As far as I know, he shouldn't be a member of the Lu Family… Oh, I see. The Path of the Human Emperor! Haha! Looks like those old fossils from your Lu Family are finally making a move, trying to use this opportunity to crawl out of that wretched place. It's a shame, though. You won't get what you want, because this kid's life is mine."

Lu Changsheng roared with laughter.

It wasn't in his nature to be so flamboyant.

As an assassin, being flamboyant was a good way to get yourself killed.

But today was different. He had run into an "old acquaintance" and was about to kill a peerless genius who possessed the Talent of the Human Emperor. Lu Changsheng was ecstatic. At this moment, even though Yang Xiao had used some bizarre ability to steal his Devouring Demon Flame, his confidence remained unshaken.

He still believed he could kill Yang Xiao.

Even without his Devouring Demon Flame.

Yang Xiao, however, thought differently.

From the very beginning, the Bloodthirsty Divine Sword in his hand had maintained the Celestial Moon technique, continuously devouring the surrounding Power of the Emperor, even the Emperor Golden Dragon that had taken form.

This had continued even when he'd used his Fire Control Talent a moment ago.

It had never stopped.

Therefore, the Bloodthirsty Divine Sword now contained a terrifying amount of power.

'This power is enough to slay Lu Changsheng.'

'But Lu Changsheng is clearly a treacherous bastard. Will he really take my attack head-on?'

'The moment he senses danger, he'll likely dodge immediately.'

'And then, all the power I've accumulated will vanish.'

'In other words, I only have one shot.'

'I can't risk it.'

"Elder Lu, do you have a way to keep this guy from running? A way to force him to take a blow from my sword?"

Yang Xiao subconsciously sent the message to Lu Changhe.

Hearing this, Lu Changhe's spirit stirred, and he looked over.

When he saw the Divine Sword in Yang Xiao's hand, shimmering with boundless light, and recalled the sword strike Yang Xiao had delivered earlier, Lu Changhe's eyes lit up.

Then, he nodded.

He clenched his fists, as if having made a momentous decision.

This left Yang Xiao a little puzzled.

But then, Lu Changhe's voice echoed in his mind, "I can only hold him in place for less than a second. If you're going to strike, you must be fast. Any later, and it's over."

'Hold him in place?'

Yang Xiao was surprised.

He hadn't expected Lu Changhe to actually have a way to force Lu Changsheng to take his blow.

And by rooting him to the spot, no less.

'This is an incredible surprise.'

As for it being less than a second...

...that was more than enough.

'With my current strength, I can unleash hundreds of strikes in a single second. If he can really immobilize Lu Changsheng, I don't need a full second. Even with a hundredth of a second, I have an eighty to ninety percent certainty that I can kill Lu Changsheng with a single slash.'

So, once he processed this, Yang Xiao nodded to Lu Changhe, signaling he was ready.

"Good. I hope you can do it. If you can't, I won't hold it against you. But you must listen to me: leave this place. The Lu Family needs you."

After Lu Changhe finished his message, and without waiting for Yang Xiao's reply, he stepped forward.

He raised his hands.

With a flourish.

In that instant, countless streams of blood erupted from his body.

They converged in the air, forming intricate, blood-red patterns.

Profound and strange.

Yang Xiao, however, frowned.

'What is this Secret Technique?'

'Does it require a life sacrifice?'

At that thought, Yang Xiao's expression grew grim.

In the distance, however, Lu Changsheng's expression changed drastically upon seeing this.

He had clearly recognized it.

His face instantly became incomparably grim.

He cursed under his breath, "That damned lunatic!"

His figure flickered as he tried to flee, but it was too late. The crimson patterns filling the sky instantly lunged toward him!