All of the Chen family’s high-level martial experts have gathered here at this moment, leaving their clan’s defenses completely exposed.

Now is the perfect time to find the Natural Blood Spring within the Chen family’s territory and revive our clan’s totem. This is a rare and golden opportunity!

Once the totem awakens, our family will no longer need to concern itself with the struggle between the two clans. We can withdraw cleanly and emerge as the ultimate victors of this conflict.

He didn't come up with this plan on the spur of the moment—it had been discussed with him long ago.

At that time, however, the discussion was based on the assumption that the Shi family would not lend their support, so it was an alternative strategy.

That’s why Liu Ziming was able to understand him so quickly.

The Chen family members left behind to guard their clan’s totem were hardly worth worrying about. Before the battle began, he handed over all of the bamboo leaves left by Lord Qingshan to Liu Ziming. With the totem's divine power aiding them, contending against the sacred tree might be difficult, but slipping past unnoticed and locating the Natural Blood Spring shouldn't be.

"Just you?"

The masked man glanced at Chen Qingyu, who was closing in on him, and let out a faint chuckle.

"I admit you have some talent, but that’s all it is—just a little talent."

As he spoke, the masked man clearly had no intention of dragging this out any longer. Blood energy began to condense in his hands.

Having the Chen Clan annihilated to celebrate his breakthrough—now that was thoughtful!

He accepted the gesture of goodwill without hesitation.

BANG!

BANG!

BANG!

Chen Qingyu strode forward slowly. With each step, a spray of blood burst from his body, and his blood energy grew denser.

As his footsteps echoed, the iron sword hidden behind his back was firmly gripped in his hand.

During his earlier battle with Liu Ziming, he had neither used the Five Viscera Ascension Technique nor unleashed his Earth-Tier combat skill. The reason was simple—he had been saving them for a situation exactly like this.

This man has been here for quite some time, yet I still haven’t seen any other Shi family experts appear. It seems they only sent him. In that case, I have nothing left to worry about!

Chen Qingyu quickened his pace, and the iron sword in his hand trembled slightly as a faint glow emerged along its surface.

The sword glowed in five colors, a concept that Chen Qingyu had only recently grasped.

During the earlier battle, the Seven Emotions Six Desires Sword had awakened within him. Hidden yet unmoving, its power had quietly accumulated, with countless strands of emotional force surging into the iron blade. Now, all he needed to do was unleash the full might of this combat art.

With each step, the sword’s radiance grew brighter, its blade exuding a chilling gleam and an aura that made hearts tremble.

Not far ahead, Shi Chengzong, who had been calmly gathering his blood energy, ready to strike with full force and end Chen Qingyu in one blow, shifted from ease to solemnity and finally to grim resolve.

He could feel the aura of death closing in.

Staring at the glowing iron sword in Chen Qingyu’s hand, Shi Chengzong's expression turned cold. He spoke,

“An Earth-Tier combat skill… So you’re the one who killed Po Tian and the others.

“You deserve to die!"

His voice thundered with rage; yet, beneath that furious roar, a trace of panic lurked.

There was no room left to retreat. Shi Chengzong abandoned his waiting stance and charged forward.

His innate state was fully awakened, lending his face a calm and composed confidence—the kind granted only by the power of the Innate Realm.

As he charged toward Chen Qingyu, a tricolored divine stone appeared in his hand!

This tri-colored divine stone contained the clan’s totem's complete divine power!

As his blood energy surged, the stone erupted in his hand with a dazzling brilliance. Within that radiance, Shi Chengzong’s aura became even more imposing. An invisible strike was hidden inside the divine stone, and a thin, transparent veil now shrouded his body.

This sacred clan stone didn’t just hold immense divine power; it combined offense, defense, and support into one!

Now that he was unleashing it without reservation, even a Heaven-Tier martial expert would have to dodge its power!

But Chen Qingyu didn’t retreat. Instead, he accelerated his advance. In his other hand, he crushed a half-black, half-green locust leaf to dust.

When the locust leaf shattered, a surge of powerful blood energy flooded into Chen Qingyu’s body.

The leaf had fallen from the clan’s Divine Tree the day before when Chen Xingzhen prayed before it. Ten full points of life force had been infused into the leaf by Ji Yang using the One Leaf Veils the Eye technique—enough for Chen Qingyu to pair with the Five Viscera Ascension Technique and break through once more!

Once he had absorbed all of the leaf’s energy, his cultivation advanced from mid-stage Innate Realm to late-stage Innate Realm.

The iron sword in his hand, now fully awakened, erupted with a blinding brilliance.

Shi Chengzong was no less formidable. He was at the Innate Realm Great Completion stage, empowered by the clan’s divine stone and a fully activated innate state. He was also armed with a perfected Profound-Tier combat skill. This strike would be anything but ordinary.

In that instant, the two of them transformed into blazing spheres of light, colliding and merging!

The other martial artists in the arena wore fearful expressions and retreated step by step. However, the members of the Chen Clan held a glimmer of hope in their eyes as they silently awaited the outcome of this clash.

The two opposing sides, locked in battle moments ago, halted, their attention completely drawn to the duel before them.

All the emotions surging through the crowd—fear, hope, and tension—were converted into invisible power and flowed into the iron sword in Chen Qingyu’s grip.

"It’s time!"

Amid the fierce clash, Liu Ziming—who had long since slipped away from the center of the battlefield—finally arrived outside the Chen family estate.

Having visited once yesterday, his movements were smooth and confident this time.

Under the cover of night, the Chen family compound lay in utter silence.

Although Liu Ziming knew most of the Chen Clan’s martial experts had left, he didn’t rush inside. Instead, he took a slightly yellowed bamboo leaf from his robe.

When the leaf flickered with a faint glow, he finally leapt forward, vaulting over the unfinished outer wall of the estate and landing within the clan grounds.

The scene inside was exactly as he had expected: eerily quiet, with only the occasional silhouette of a patrolling guard appearing in the distance.

Given his strength, eliminating the remaining Chen family members wouldn't be difficult.

But that wasn’t the mission he had come for. Though avenging the clan was important, reviving the totem and ensuring the family’s prosperity were even more important. He couldn’t afford to alert the enemy, especially with the Shi family lurking nearby, ready to pounce at the slightest misstep.

Gazing at his unfamiliar surroundings, a trace of confusion flickered across Liu Ziming’s face.

When he came to scout yesterday, he hadn’t scaled the outer wall, so he had no idea where the Natural Blood Spring was located. The information provided by the Shi family didn't mention it either. Even the totem’s power couldn’t help him here; he would have to rely on himself to find it.

Yet, after scanning the area, the confusion quickly faded and was replaced by a glimmer of determination in his eyes.

He might not know the Blood Spring's exact location, but one thing was certain: it would be heavily guarded by the Chen Clan.

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