CHAPTER 434

Bang!

With a slight exertion of force, Lu Qing crushed Elder Jinchong's head, shattering it entirely.

A Golden Core Realm cultivator—a being regarded as one of the world's strongest—was so easily destroyed by Lu Qing.

Without even the slightest resistance, Elder Jinchong's form and spirit were obliterated, his life force extinguished in an instant.

This shocking scene left all the monks of Xuankong Mountain utterly stunned.

They never expected that, surrounded by so many skilled cultivators arrayed in formation, this "demonic cultivator" would dare act so brazenly, without the slightest regard for them.

He had crushed Elder Jinchong’s head right in front of them!

“Elder Jinchong!”

Many monks cried out in sorrow. Even the presence atop the mountain peak—a being Lu Qing had been keeping a close watch on—fluctuated faintly, as if taken aback by Lu Qing’s decisiveness and utter disregard for decorum in killing a Golden Core Realm cultivator.

“Demonic cultivator! Xuankong Mountain will never coexist with you! Activate the formation! Follow me and exterminate this fiend!”

A Foundation Establishment Realm monk, his eyes bloodshot with grief and fury, shouted loudly and summoned a yellow orb-shaped magical artifact.

At his command, the surrounding monks, equally stricken with rage, unleashed their blood and spiritual energy. Their power surged and intertwined through the formation, focusing on the Foundation Establishment monk at its center.

The collective strength of over a hundred cultivators in the Innate and Foundation Establishment Realms surged forth, shaking the very space within the hidden realm.

The monk at the core of the formation flushed red as the enormous power gathered upon him. The yellow orb artifact before him radiated intense light, its power skyrocketing.

A massive spherical force formed, pressing toward Lu Qing with overwhelming momentum.

Before the artifact even reached him, Lu Qing felt an immense gravitational force descend upon him, weighing him down.

“Earth Vein Magnetism?” Lu Qing muttered, his eyes narrowing slightly.

The combined power of the Xuankong Mountain monks through this formation rivaled that of a second or third-turn Golden Core cultivator. A lesser Golden Core expert, even one as formidable as the white-robed youth from earlier, would likely struggle to escape.

As expected of a force with tens of thousands of years of heritage, Lu Qing thought with admiration.

But if they thought to subdue him with the Earth Vein Magnetism, they were sorely mistaken.

With a faint thought, the Earth Spirit Pearl in his brow acupoint quivered slightly, and a yellow radiance shimmered around him, nullifying the oppressive gravity entirely.

Before the Xuankong Mountain monks could react, Lu Qing extended his hand. A torrential surge of Earth Vein Magnetism spread outward, enveloping the entire jade platform in an instant.

With a flick of his wrist, all the Xuankong Mountain monks found themselves helplessly lifted into the air by an overwhelming force.

“Old bald monk, since you refuse to show yourself, then watch as I turn your disciples and followers into dust,” Lu Qing said coldly, glancing toward the mountain peak.

As he spoke, he raised his hand to deliver the final blow.

“Spare them!”

Finally, the presence atop the mountain could no longer remain idle. A powerful aura burst forth, its pressure surging into the skies.

A figure descended swiftly, exuding a towering presence.

“Abbot!”

The monks suspended midair were overjoyed upon sensing the familiar aura, some even shouting loudly, “Abbot, quickly kill this demon! Elder Jinchong was murdered by him!”

But Lu Qing only sneered. “Now you appear? Too late.”

The moment the words left his lips, his hand pressed downward.

The monks suspended in the air suddenly felt their bodies grow unbearably heavy. The immense force of Earth Vein Magnetism crushed them, causing blood to spurt from their mouths as they plummeted to the jade platform below.

Boom!

Under Lu Qing’s immense power, the entire jade platform distorted and warped. The bodies of the Xuankong Mountain monks, regardless of their cultivation levels, were crushed and deformed beyond recognition.

In an instant, the vast platform was drenched in blood, the stench of death thick in the air, resembling a scene straight from hell.

Every monk—be they Innate or Foundation Establishment—was slain without exception.

Thud!

A figure halted abruptly in midair, his gaze fixed on the gruesome scene below. The man standing amidst the carnage was Lu Qing.

“Old bald monk, you’ve finally decided to show yourself?” Lu Qing looked up at the figure—a portly monk in a kasaya robe, his skin smooth and ruddy like that of an infant.

Yet the Abbot’s eyes lingered on the lifeless bodies of his disciples, filled with grief. He knew Xuankong Mountain was finished.

This platform had once been home to the sect’s most elite cultivators. Now, all of them had perished at Lu Qing’s hands.

Even if he managed to kill Lu Qing, the death of so many disciples ensured Xuankong Mountain’s inevitable decline.

The thought of the sect’s foundation, built over tens of thousands of years, being destroyed under his watch filled the Abbot with violent rage. His eyes turned bloodshot as he glared at Lu Qing.

“Demonic cultivator! What grudge does Xuankong Mountain hold with you that you must go to such lengths to annihilate us?”

“Grudge?” Lu Qing replied calmly. “I suppose it’s normal that you’ve forgotten. The evil deeds of Xuankong Mountain are too numerous to count.

If you’ve lost track of your enemies, let me simplify it for you. Today, I’ve come to uphold the will of heaven.”

“To uphold the will of heaven?” The Abbot laughed in fury. “Then I shall first destroy you, fiend!”

A terrifying aura surged from the Abbot, his presence growing stronger as the jade platform beneath Lu Qing began to writhe.

The blood spilled on the platform seeped into the ground, along with the corpses of the fallen monks.

The Abbot’s aura surged once again, black qi swirling around him.

“A spiritual artifact?”

Lu Qing realized the source of the abnormality.

“So, Xuankong Mountain’s spiritual artifact, which maintains this hidden realm, is integrated with the mountain itself.

You’ve been biding your time, stabilizing your realm through its power.”

Lu Qing casually unleashed a blade energy slash toward the Abbot.

Before the energy could land, a radiance emerged around the Abbot, deflecting the attack.

“A spiritual artifact shield,” Lu Qing noted.

Unless he could destabilize the foundation of the mountain beneath them, breaking the spiritual artifact’s defense would be nearly impossible.

Seeing the Abbot’s aura grow increasingly unstable as black qi surrounded him, Lu Qing moved swiftly into the sky.

He summoned a small, ancient cauldron, which expanded rapidly in size as it hovered before him...