Heaven-Dominating Martial Emperor

"Break!!!"

The Three-Corpses Reverend shrieked, the skin on his only remaining head twitching violently. He was clearly overexerting himself, his entire face twisting into a savage, terrifying mask.

He unleashed the full force of his Ninth Layer Primordial Mansion Realm cultivation without reservation. Not only that, but he also threw out various Spiritual Treasures and Talismans, attempting to use these external aids to block Ye Chen's attack!

However, Ye Chen's fist seemed unstoppable. Carrying a vast azure light, it shattered layer after layer of his defenses with unstoppable momentum, arriving right before the Three-Corpses Reverend!

The Three-Corpses Reverend's eyes were filled with shock. He couldn't believe that with his Ninth Layer Primordial Mansion Realm cultivation, he couldn't even block a single strike from this brat at the Peak of the Spirit Sea Realm!

"Your foundation is too weak. You might not even be a match for a slightly more competent Primordial Mansion Realm Cultivator!"

Just before the surging power struck, Ye Chen spoke calmly. His voice was like the low hum of a deity, rumbling in the Three-Corpses Reverend's ears.

"So this is all an evil cultivator amounts to."

BOOM!

As Ye Chen's voice faded, the Three-Corpses Reverend's last head exploded, and his entire body was annihilated by the astonishing force, turning to nothingness.

A great demon lord of the Ninth Layer of the Primordial Mansion Realm, killed by Ye Chen in a single blow!

This was Ye Chen's first time fighting an evil cultivator.

'Evil cultivators certainly have vicious and varied methods, but their cultivation foundations are truly terrible.'

'Perhaps this is the price they pay for their rapid advancement.'

"Now, it's your turn!"

After killing the Three-Corpses Reverend with one punch, Ye Chen slowly turned around. Enveloped in a piercing azure light, he floated in mid-air like a War God, his aura as vast as the tide.

Compared to the Three-Corpses Reverend, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon's offensive methods seemed a bit weaker, but his life force was incredibly tenacious. Otherwise, he wouldn't have survived so many of Ye Chen's sword strikes.

But even so, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon's aura had weakened considerably.

After all, no matter how strong his life force was, it couldn't withstand Ye Chen's endless, continuous stream of sword light!

"You... you actually killed the Three-Corpses Reverend?!"

The Heart-Stealing Old Demon was so shocked by Ye Chen's combat prowess that his heart filled with dread. His face was aghast; he was already thinking of retreating!

As a great demon lord whose name struck fear into the world, to now be scared into retreat by a young whelp who hadn't even reached the Primordial Mansion Realm... this was undoubtedly a source of great frustration and humiliation for him.

But no amount of frustration or humiliation was more important than his own life.

And so, under countless shocked gazes, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon watched the Three-Corpses Reverend fall. Without a moment's hesitation, his body transformed into a streak of green light and shot off into the distance.

"Still trying to escape?"

"As an evil cultivator, I could have let it slide if you'd just kept hiding in the shadows like a rat. But since you've shown your face, you might as well stay."

Ye Chen spoke calmly, directly pronouncing the Heart-Stealing Old Demon's fate.

His figure flashed, the azure light of his dragon scales flaring brightly. In the blink of an eye, he appeared behind the Heart-Stealing Old Demon.

He then clenched his fist and unleashed another ferocious punch. A surging, astonishing power flowed through his body like a tidal wave!

After refining the intermediate-grade azure dragon scales, Ye Chen's power had clearly reached a new level. When he threw a punch, it was even accompanied by a deafening sonic BOOM that struck fear into the hearts of all who heard it.

"Kid, you forced my hand!"

Feeling the unbelievably immense and terrifying power behind him, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon stopped in his tracks almost instantly. With a ruthless look, he began to burn his own life force. His aura soared, rapidly approaching the Divinity Transformation Realm.

Abundant life force was the one thing the Heart-Stealing Old Demon was most proud of. Now, he was burning all of that surging life force within him to grant himself a temporary cultivation level nearly comparable to the Divinity Transformation Realm!

In an instant, a horrifying aura potent enough to make one's very soul tremble spread across the battlefield. The Heart-Stealing Old Demon's body rapidly shrank, becoming withered and gaunt once more, but the power he unleashed with a wave of his hand was countless times stronger than before!

He slapped his palm against Ye Chen's fist. The azure light flickered rapidly before shattering into a shower of light motes. Ye Chen's body staggered back through the air, and he struggled to regain his footing.

'What?'

'Did he just burn his own essence to raise his cultivation by a level?'

'Is this another one of the evil cultivators' techniques?'

The crowd's faces were filled with alarm. The Heart-Stealing Old Demon already possessed the strength of the Ninth Layer of the Primordial Mansion Realm. Raising that by another level—wasn't that bordering on Divinity Transformation?

Could Ye Chen still be a match for the Heart-Stealing Old Demon in this state?

Knocked back by the Heart-Stealing Old Demon's strike, Ye Chen was only slightly surprised. His expression quickly returned to calm.

'With my current abilities, if I were to fight a true Divinity Transformation Realm Cultivator to the death, it would be hard to say who would come out on top.'

'But the Heart-Stealing Old Demon is already a spent arrow. I just need to hold on for a few rounds, and he'll die on his own from life force exhaustion.'

The Heart-Stealing Old Demon's eyes flickered with a faint green fire. His voice grew even more hoarse and shrill, piercing to the ear!

"Even if I die, I'm taking you with me!"

A sky full of sinister green light crashed down toward Ye Chen like a flood. Wherever it passed, even space itself seemed on the verge of being corroded!

Unafraid, Ye Chen no longer met the attack head-on. Instead, he brandished the Cangming Sword. His Sword Intent surged like a tide as he unleashed several incomparably sharp streams of Sword Qi, shattering the green flood before him!

Seeing that he couldn't take down Ye Chen even with power comparable to the Divinity Transformation Realm, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon grew frantic. His attacks became even more ferocious and violent!

In doing so, however, he burned through his remaining vitality even faster. Before long, he was on his last breath.

A cold smile touched Ye Chen's lips. 'The Heart-Stealing Old Demon's current strength is only a sliver greater than a Half-Step Divinity Transformation expert with a deep foundation, like the Undying Demon Lord. He's nothing to worry about.'

After exchanging several more blows, Ye Chen remained completely unscathed. Not a speck of dust touched him; he was as graceful as an immortal.

The Heart-Stealing Old Demon, however, was completely spent. He had used his last ounce of strength, and his body was beginning to disintegrate, breaking down bit by bit.

He looked on resentfully at the tall figure standing before him with his hands clasped behind his back, watching him with cold indifference. Using the last of his strength, he said, "The Netherworld Cult will one day rule the world..."

"Kill me... and your own death... won't be far behind..."

As his voice faded, the Heart-Stealing Old Demon perished completely, his body turning to dust.

Ye Chen frowned slightly.

'The Netherworld Cult?'

He was somewhat bothered by the Heart-Stealing Old Demon's final words, but now was clearly not the time to dwell on it.

Under the gazes of the crowd, Ye Chen sheathed his sword and stood tall, his bearing as transcendent as an immortal's.