Chapter 3: The Battle for Treasure (Part 1)

  In the following days, everything was calm among the cultivators here, but the atmosphere became somewhat heavy. The flames around the huge fireball in the sky flashed violently, and waves of intense spiritual power fluctuations were emitted from inside the fireball.

  On the eighth day, the fireball in the air changed again. The flames on the periphery slowly retreated into the interior of the fireball, and within less than an hour, the entire fireball transformed into a transparent light sphere. Inside the light sphere, four items were wrapped in spiritual light and floated aimlessly.

  A suit of dark golden armor glowed with spiritual light, but was covered in gruesome sword scars, looking tattered and worn out. Seeing this damaged armor, many cultivators below couldn't help but reveal disappointed expressions, yet some also harbored a lucky mentality, hoping that this broken armor would still be useful - after all, it could emit such strong spiritual light, the quality of the armor was undoubtedly extraordinary.

  Apart from this damaged suit of armor, a broken golden battle knife was also floating beside it. The battle knife had only half of its blade left, connected to the hilt below, and its luster was somewhat dull.

  In addition, two groups of spiritual light respectively wrapped a cyan jade slip and a black box. The jade slip was smooth, with spiritual patterns carved on its surface, and it could be seen at a glance that it was not an ordinary object. As for the box, it was tightly closed, and no one knew what was inside. Most of the cultivators' eyes were focused on these two treasures behind.

  The jade slips of the Xian realm may have recorded the cultivation methods of the immortals, and it's easy to imagine the allure of those legendary methods to cultivators.

  While the black box was guessed to contain elixirs or talismans, the temptation of elixirs to cultivators is self-evident. Moreover, it's on top of their cultivation methods. After all, in the Xianjin continent for so many years, not a single Yuan Ying master has appeared. If they were to obtain an elixir, who knows, maybe they could break through their boundaries and ascend to heaven in broad daylight.

  The effect of the talisman is equally remarkable, and it is said that some talismans have great power, can directly break through space and move across boundaries, or enhance strength and improve their realm, or form a defense to resist attacks, so the preciousness of the talisman is not inferior to that of the elixir.

  "Xiao Ke, here's a Explosive Flame Symbol for you to hold onto. When the treasure is about to be unearthed, I might not have time to take care of you. If you encounter any danger, use this Explosive Flame Symbol." As the treasure was about to be unearthed, Tong Yan's expression turned serious as she handed over a red paper symbol to Wang Ke.

  Wang Ke didn't know the value of the Blazing Token, and simply thought that Tong Yan had a good reason for letting him take it, so he accepted it. However, Fang Qing, who was meditating with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them and looked at Tong Yan in surprise, not understanding why she would give such a valuable token to Wang Ke. Although the Blazing Token was a low-grade talisman, it was still extremely valuable to cultivators like themselves, and might even be able to save their lives in times of crisis.

  Also surprisingly, there was a stone mountain next to him, who looked over here with a flickering expression, not knowing what he was thinking, but Zhou Yuan smiled and nodded slightly, as if he understood something.

  Wang Ke carefully took over the red jade symbol, put it away with care, and felt deeply moved in his heart. He and the four of them were just fleeting acquaintances, and at first, there was some awkwardness. Now, all the awkwardness had been completely eliminated. Looking at the expressions of the other two people, Wang Ke also knew that Tong Yan's red token was very valuable to him.

  "Look, the treasure is about to be born!" Suddenly, someone shouted loudly, instantly attracting the attention of the crowd of cultivators. Tens of thousands of eyes focused on the light ball in the air, and it could be seen that the transparent light ball had gradually become dull on its surface at some point, as if it would disappear at any moment. However, the spiritual energy fluctuations emitted from inside became several times stronger.

  Suddenly under the light sphere, a middle-aged monk leaped up and suddenly transformed into a black awn shooting towards the light sphere in the sky.

  "Think you can get ahead of me? Think again!" A black-faced old man shouted loudly from a distance, his feet stomping on the ground, and he transformed into a black blur that shot up towards the sky, chasing after the middle-aged man with ferocity.

  The actions of the two were like a fuse that ignited the entire plain, and the monks all boiled over, each monk fearing that the treasure would be snatched away by the first two, and they all unfolded their techniques to charge towards the light ball in the air.

  However, some of the masters were unmoved, coldly watching with a smile. Not one person from the Qingmu Sect moved, and their leader, Kuroki Shinjin, had a calm expression but with a hint of mockery at the corner of his mouth. Fei Hong Zhenren from the Tianyun Sect shook his head and sighed, his eyes filled with regretful emotions.

  "Hmph, competing with me for the treasure? You're looking for death!" The cultivators in mid-air all feared that their treasures would be snatched away by others and thus regarded the surrounding cultivators as enemies.

  The middle-aged cultivator who rushed out first stretched out his right hand to grab the light ball in front of him, and his eyes were already radiating a greedy glow. However, a flying sword shot out from behind at high speed, and with a flash of sword light, it pierced through the middle-aged man's robe, half of the sword tip protruding from his chest, blood gushing out. The middle-aged cultivator's face was filled with unwillingness, his gaze still fixed on the light ball in front of him, but his eyes had already turned gray and white, his vitality dissipating as he crashed to the ground, his body falling into the molten lava below, instantly swallowed up by the churning flames.

  "Kill!" Not a few cultivators began to attack the other cultivators around them, flying swords shuttling through the air, one by one fresh lives fell, among these people there wasn't even a Golden Core stage cultivator, their physical bodies were destroyed, and they had no way to survive, the sky instantly fell into chaos.

  "Tong sister, why is it like this? Why are they killing each other? Is that treasure really so important?" Watching the slaughter between the cultivators in mid-air, Wang Ke's face was filled with shock. He couldn't imagine that the lives of cultivators could be so fragile.

  "Alas, Xiao Ke, you've just entered the cultivation world and haven't experienced much of it yet. You don't understand how cruel this world is. It's a place where the strong prey on the weak, and everything is respected based on one's strength. You must remember this firmly."

  Tong Yan and the four of them watched the battle in the sky, their eyes flickering, but they didn't rush up. With their cultivation level, rushing up would only lead to certain death.

  "Haha, the treasure is mine!" Suddenly, a thin old man in a black robe flashed to the side of the light ball, dodging the attack from behind, and let out a triumphant laugh. Then, his hand moved swiftly, and a black short dagger appeared, grasped tightly in his hand. With a swift slash, a black ray shot out from the dagger, striking the surface of the light ball in an instant.

  Struck by the dark energy, the surface of the light sphere began to fluctuate violently. The old man stood by, his eyes fixed greedily on the treasure in front of him, a greedy smile hanging from the corner of his mouth, as if the treasure before him was within easy reach.

  However, the light sphere in front of him suddenly contracted, emitting a fierce aura from it, and then a white light column shot out from the surface of the light sphere.

  The old man's body was directly pierced by the light column, leaving a hole as big as a bowl in his chest. The greedy expression at the corner of his mouth had not yet dissipated when two sword lights flashed from behind, adding two more holes to the old man's body. From the moment he approached the light ball to his physical collapse, it was only an instant, and this situation did not even attract the attention of some cultivators in the chaotic battle below.

  "Hmph, seeking death on your own." Kuroki Makoto sneered, his face filled with disdain. However, in the next instant, his expression changed, "Not good!" he exclaimed, instantly jumping up and waving his right hand. A black light shot out from his hand, instantly transforming into a screen of light that blocked the rear. At the same time, he shouted, "Go!" He set up a teleportation light and flew out in the direction away from the light ball, with the cultivators of Qingmu Sect closely following behind him, each person's face filled with a heavy expression. At this point, they could no longer maintain their formation's integrity, looking somewhat disorganized.

  Beside the Tianyun Sect's Fei Hong Zhenren, his expression was also solemn. His right hand instantly condensed a ball of spiritual light that shot into the flying car beneath him. Suddenly, the surface of the flying car burst with spiritual light and turned its head around. Two white streams of air were ejected from the rear of the car before it shot out with a whooshing sound, instantly disappearing hundreds of feet away.

  The transparent light sphere in the air has begun to fluctuate violently, and a fierce aura is brewing on the surface of the sphere. The cultivators who are fighting feel a terrifying aura coming from above their heads, and most people's faces reveal fearful expressions. They can't help but open up their body techniques and shoot outwards, but just after a few breaths, the light sphere in the air makes a "pop" sound and suddenly shatters. A white light circle then expands outwards from the center of the sphere at an extremely fast speed, quickly catching up to the last group of cultivators. The light circle passes through these cultivators' bodies without stopping for even a moment.

  The monks who were pierced by the light beam were all fixed in mid-air, as if petrified, their expressions frozen in the moment before they were pierced. Without exception, their faces were filled with fear. Then, cracks began to appear on these people's bodies, and after a moment, they burst open, disintegrating into nothingness and drifting down, scattered among the magma.

  The white light halo spread all the way, until it faded and disappeared a kilometer away. In this short period of time, at least thousands of monks were mercilessly engulfed by the white light halo. Less than half of those who escaped from under the halo turned back, their faces filled with terror. A large area on the entire plain was emptied out, surrounded by an eerie silence, not a single bird chirping.

  Wang Ke's eyes widened, his eyes filled with bloodshot, his fists clenched, and his whole body trembled. At this moment, he deeply felt the cruelty of the immortal world. In the eyes of mortals, the immortal cultivators who were all-powerful and omnipotent were actually so fragile.

  Beside Tong Yan, everyone's face was filled with a terrified expression, their entire body trembling non-stop. Among the cultivators who had just been engulfed by the white light, although most were ordinary Qi Refining stage cultivators, there were also some Foundation Building stage experts. However, under that eerie white light, the outcome was not different in the slightest. The eerie white light caused those crazed cultivators to temporarily calm down.

  The transparent light cover in the air has disappeared, leaving only four treasures wrapped under the four groups of spiritual light. The treasures float quietly in the air, surrounded by a faint layer of spiritual light, and the fluctuations of spiritual energy are emitted through the light, attracting countless cultivators around them.

  However, with the previous terrifying scene, no one dared to approach the repairman. From a distance, Kuroki's expression was complex as he stared at the four treasures floating in mid-air, his face somewhat moved, but more fearful. The white light circle from before had made him feel a threat of death, and the light shield he set up was shattered with just one touch.

  Fei Hong stood far away on the flying car, his expression solemn and serious, staring at the four treasures in the air, lost in thought.

  "Tong sister, I think we'd better not participate in this treasure contest" Wang Ke said quietly, looking at the four treasures in the air.

  "Let's wait and see." Tong Yan hesitated for a moment, unwilling to leave like this. Fang Qing and Shi Shan also shook their heads, showing no intention of leaving either. Zhou Yuan was hesitant at first, but then shook his head as well, deciding to stay.

  Seeing that none of the four were willing to leave, Wang sighed inwardly and raised his head again to look at the treasures in the air. He had no intention of competing for these treasures.

  "The treasure has been born, what are you all waiting for? Come on!" Suddenly a faint voice exploded in the air above, like a loud bell ringing around, and the people present were like waking up from a dream, with greed bursting out from the bottom of their hearts.

  "It's mine!" Along with this loud shout, a green figure suddenly shot up and rapidly rushed towards the treasure in mid-air. As one person made their move, the rest of them couldn't hold back any longer.

  "Hmph, wanting to monopolize treasure is not that simple."

  "Treasures belong to those who are virtuous, how can it be said that just because you say it's yours, it's yours?"

  Seeing that some cultivators had already flown into the sky, many other cultivators below could no longer hold back, and the scene fell into chaos once again. The Qingmu Sect and Tianyun Sect remained unmoved, while the two major demonic sects still had not made an appearance.

  "Haha, the treasure is mine!" Finally, a middle-aged cultivator in black robes pushed aside other cultivators and appeared before the jade slip. He stretched out his hand and directly passed through the spiritual light on the outside of the jade slip, grasping it firmly in his right hand.

  "Put down the jade tablet!" Seeing the middle-aged man holding the jade tablet, the cultivators behind him roared in anger, staring at the middle-aged man with eyes that seemed to be spitting fire. They all abandoned their own opponents and pointed their spears at the middle-aged cultivator in mid-air. In an instant, the middle-aged cultivator became the target of everyone's attack. Layers of divine thoughts locked onto the cultivator's body, and a strong sense of crisis enveloped him instantly.

  Before the monk could even react, his body had been battered by various attacks and was now riddled with holes. Flying swords, flying knives, and battle axes were lodged in his body, and the jade tablet in his hand had flown out of his grasp. Fresh blood poured down like rain.

  Just as the jade slip flew out, a black shadow suddenly shot out from the crowd in mid-air and appeared beside the jade slip. With one stretch of his right hand, he grasped the jade slip and a powerful spiritual pressure burst forth from his body, sending nearby cultivators flying backward in disarray.

  "It's a Great Perfection of the Foundation Establishment stage!" A shout came from the crowd, and everyone else also became serious, some hesitating to move forward. The spiritual energy emanating from this expert was clearly that of a Great Perfection of the Foundation Establishment stage, just one step away from entering the Golden Core stage.

  "Heh heh, I've taken this jade slip for myself. Anyone who wants to try and snatch it can give it a shot, let's see if my treasure will respond." This was an old man in black robes, shrouded in a faint layer of dark mist that obscured his face. His voice was somewhat hoarse, and all that could be seen was his left hand held out in front of him, with each finger pinching a small, dark, spherical bead the size of a marble.

  "Thunderbolt, you are the real Thunderbolt!" The cultivator in mid-air stared at the black bead between this person's fingers. A middle-aged man in white clothes standing in front of him first fell into deep thought, then suddenly exclaimed and stared straight at that person, his eyes filled with deep fear.

  "Hmph, since you know it's the real me, why don't you back off? Do you want to taste the power of my Thunderbolt?" The person who had been recognized no longer hid, and the black mist that had scattered around him dissipated. An old man with a withered face and wearing a black Taoist robe appeared before them.