First-Rank, he had advanced to First-Rank?!

Xu Qi’an’s words struck like thunder in White Emperor and Karura Tree’s ears.

White Emperor and Karura Tree’s hearts surged uncontrollably with shock, anger, bewilderment, regret, and numerous other emotions.

Xu Pingfeng’s puppet had no facial features, so its emotional changes weren’t visible, but it half-raised its chin, stiffly staring at Xu Qi’an in the sky, motionless for a long time.

He’s advanced to First-Rank warrior… While the White Emperor was immersed in this absurd, dreamlike sensation, its clear perception forced it to acknowledge that Xu Qi’an’s aura had indeed transformed dramatically.

That immaculate white physique was long and proportioned, with flowing muscle lines forming a perfect whole.

White Emperor had never seen a First-Rank warrior before. The Xu Qi’an before them didn’t emanate the mountain-like steadiness and ocean-like vastness that Karura Tree did.

It couldn’t sense any qi fluctuations or primordial spirit waves from him, but this very fact made him more formidable. He seemed to have severed all interaction with the outside world, becoming a realm unto himself.

It was a strange feeling—though no overwhelming power manifested, he triggered instinctive wariness… White Emperor growled deeply:

“What’s going on? How did he suddenly advance to First? Is the warrior system’s first rank so easily attained? Why didn’t you mention this beforehand?”

It was questioning Karura Tree and Xu Pingfeng, its voice somewhat frantic.

Its loss of composure was understandable. Though this tribulation battle had its twists, it had remained under control and should have been an assured victory. No one expected that amid battle, the Great Feng side would turn the tables.

Among all systems, warriors were acknowledged as unrivaled in close combat, and a First-Rank warrior’s fighting power surpassed other systems.

It could be stated definitively that the current Xu Qi’an was more troublesome than the Immortal of the Mortal Realm Luo Yuheng.

A single Immortal of the Mortal Realm was still within their tolerance and capacity to handle, but add a First-Rank warrior… White Emperor wasn’t confident it could maintain control of the situation.

Xu Pingfeng ignored it, offering no response, continuing to stare at Xu Qi’an like a statue.

Karura Tree Bodhisattva pressed his palms together and lowered his gaze in silence. This Buddhist sect’s most comprehensively powerful bodhisattva’s expression showed deep resignation—after the Martial Ancestor, Great Feng had produced another First-Rank warrior.

This battle would be far more arduous than imagined.

Asura, Golden Lotus, and Zhao Shou simultaneously retreated, distancing themselves from Karura Tree. Though the three transcendent experts showed exhaustion on their faces, their spirits were extraordinarily excited.

“The tide has turned!” Asura expelled the turbid qi long compressed in his chest.

“Excellent!” Zhao Shou stroked his beard and smiled.

Daoist Golden Lotus examined Xu Qi’an in the sky and sighed with complex emotions: “He is now unmatched in this era!”

Without the emergence of super-ranked experts, a First-Rank warrior could sweep through all forces.

At this moment, from within the puppet came Xu Pingfeng’s desolate laughter, suppressing various emotions:

“Well played!

“Using the Thunder-Fire Tribulation, Flower God’s spiritual essence, and dragon qi to advance to First-Rank. Very good, very good indeed… Xu Qi’an!”

The final three words were spoken through gritted teeth.

Xu Qi’an looked down at the white-robed puppet, extended his right arm, pointing lightly, and said flatly:

“Wash your neck clean, and wait for me to kill you!”

Bang! With a nerve-grating sound, the metal-forged puppet shattered, and Xu Pingfeng’s trace of divine consciousness rapidly dispersed.

Without even a glance, Xu Qi’an first turned to the three—Asura and his companions—saying:

“You three stay back and observe the battle, restore your strength.”

Then he turned to White Emperor and Karura Tree, grinning ferociously:

“I’m going to tear you apart with my bare hands.”

White Emperor’s blue vertical pupils narrowed, showing no fear, and retorted:

“Being of the same rank, come as you will. I too wonder what First-Rank warrior blood tastes like.”

It only regretted that one horn had been used to seal the Supervisor; otherwise, it could have served as a killing weapon against this newly advanced First-Rank warrior.

Karura Tree said deeply:

“This battle will be incredibly difficult!”

He was even more confident than the White Emperor—with his Vajra Dharma Body complementing his Immovable Wisdom King Dharma Body, he had absolute faith in his defense.

The three led by Asura watched expectantly.

White Emperor lowered its body, brewing between its horns a water-lightning ball whose core continuously collapsed while electric arcs danced on its surface.

It glanced at Karura Tree Bodhisattva—no matter how strong its physical body might be, it couldn’t surpass Karura Tree’s two great dharma bodies. Letting him take the lead to test the First-Rank warrior’s level was most fitting.

Karura Tree Bodhisattva understood its meaning. Looking skyward, his knees bent slightly, and with a “boom” that collapsed the ground, he shot upward in a golden light.

The fire ring behind his Vajra Dharma Body exploded, his golden-forged body radiating ten thousand rays of Buddhist light. It symbolized power and majesty—merely the leaked aura could make middle and low-ranked cultivators feel as if facing an abyss, prostrating themselves.

Twelve pairs of arms spread open, forming fists, each containing mountain-crushing divine power.

Seeing these twelve pairs of fists, Asura felt his whole body ache, his mouth twitching slightly.

Facing the fists falling like the sky itself, Xu Qi’an took a gentle breath, clenched his right fist, and drew it back.

How many years had the Nine Provinces gone without a First-Rank warrior?

Since the Martial Ancestor’s ascension and Shenshu’s sealing, the warrior system’s ceiling had been Second-Rank, with First-Rank extinct.

The Vajra Dharma Body claimed unmatched combat power.

Then let him see just how strong an orthodox warrior, renowned for close combat, truly was… Golden light shot from Xu Qi’an’s eyes, his muscles rippling block by block, flaunting power unrestrainedly as he threw his punch with full force.

Boom!

One fist against twenty-four fists—between them, a barrier-like shockwave exploded.

The shockwave rapidly traversed space, making the surrounding dozens of li appear like wrinkled clothing.

Thud thud thud… Karura Tree Bodhisattva staggered backward, his footsteps cracking the earth.

In contrast, Xu Qi’an remained motionless. After withdrawing his fist, he raised his right knee. Without visible leg movement, his body shot like a cannonball toward Karura Tree, delivering a brutal knee strike to his chest.

The retreating Karura Tree quickly formed hand seals, knowing he couldn’t get caught in a First-Rank warrior’s combo, thus planning to use the “Immovable Wisdom King Dharma Body” to withstand this strike.

Hum!

The surrounding airflow solidified; not even the slightest breeze could stir.

Xu Qi’an’s knee struck the space prison. Bang! The space prison shattered. Relying on a warrior’s unmatched violence, he broke through the “Immovable Wisdom King Dharma Body’s” spatial lockdown, successfully landing his knee on Karura Tree’s face.

Karura Tree remained motionless, his skin seeming to petrify, not deforming under the knee strike.

“Heh, if the Supervisor with the power of all beings couldn’t break your Immovable Wisdom King, guess what? Can a First-Rank warrior with the power of all beings shatter your shell?”

Xu Qi’an withdrew his knee, and suddenly flexed both arms, and the power of all beings swarmed in, covering his arms like armor.

He didn’t use the Force Gu’s “Berserk” ability. After merging essence, qi, and spirit into one furnace, his strength had reached a limit—the world’s limit.

Force Gu’s berserk state could no longer increase his power.

Xu Qi’an pressed both palms against Karura Tree’s chest and suddenly exerted force.

Dong!

A great bell seemed to toll across heaven and earth.

Karura Tree lost consciousness for an instant. When he came to, he found his body flying backward uncontrollably, fast as a meteor.

He still maintained his hand seal position, but the “Immovable Wisdom King” couldn’t hold. That terrifying force had physically sent him flying—after five hundred years, he once again tasted the feeling of having his defenses broken.

The last time was against Shenshu when that semi-divine warrior had destroyed his Immovable Wisdom King with three punches.

Simultaneously, Karura Tree felt a burning pain in his chest, where two palm prints had been impressed.

Boom!

Karura Tree crashed heavily into the ground, creating an enormous crater and sending yellow sand flying everywhere as if an earthquake had struck.

At that moment, White Emperor suddenly thrust its head forward, launching the water-lightning ball!

Its timing was perfect, attacking in the instant Xu Qi’an sent Karura Tree flying.

How fast is lightning?

But not faster than the Immortal of the Mortal Realm Luo Yuheng. Dense electric arcs and air currents surged around her body as she intercepted the water-lightning ball!

Luo Yuheng’s hands emerged from her wide sleeves, forcefully clamping down on the water-lightning ball. This terrifying lightning sphere, charged for so long, was instantly extinguished.

A body forged by the Golden Core was immune to all magical attacks.

The reason the Dao Sovereign could drive the divine-demonic descendants from the Nine Provinces back then was because he could counter most of their magic.

After extinguishing the water-lightning ball, Luo Yuheng held out her palm, conjuring a small flame that she gently blew from her small mouth.

Whoosh!

The flames, as if possessing intelligence, drew a circle on the ground, trapping White Emperor inside.

She used fire spirits to counter water spirits.

“Roar!”

White Emperor let out an agonized howl. Its mane turned to ash first, the scorching heat causing its snow-white scales to crack inch by inch, approaching carbonization.

Cold killing intent flickered in Luo Yuheng’s eyes as she raised her peerless divine sword and charged at the White Emperor.

The Human Path sword techniques were renowned for their lethality; their killing arts weren’t weak like those of the Earth Path and Heaven Path.

White Emperor released a deep growl, actively meeting the sword light, disregarding the fierce incoming blade as it bit toward Luo Yuheng’s arm.

Slash!

The iron sword pierced the White Emperor’s neck, spraying vast amounts of blood, while it successfully bit Luo Yuheng’s arm.

Luo Yuheng’s arm rapidly turned to sand, scattering in the wind.

This was the ability of the Earth Phase among the Four Phases. After ascending to Immortal of the Mortal Realm, Luo Yuheng could freely alter her body’s structure, switching at will between “Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire.”

White Emperor’s pupils dilated slightly, temporarily losing consciousness.

Heart Sword!

After landing the strike, Luo Yuheng withdrew violently—in close combat, she couldn’t possibly match a divine-demonic descendant.

During her retreat, she saw Xu Qi’an flash before White Emperor, drawing back his right arm, his muscles bulging block by block.

Luo Yuheng directed her thoughts, causing the surrounding raging flames to swarm toward Xu Qi’an’s fist, forming a blazing sun.

Bang!

Xu Qi’an’s fist struck White Emperor’s head with explosive force, blackening its scales, cracking its skull, and causing hot flames to spurt forth.

White Emperor’s body collapsed heavily, its head smashing into the ground, raising clouds of dust.

The intense pain instantly restored the White Emperor’s consciousness. A desperate gleam flashed in its eyes as its horns turned incandescent white, lightning arcs spreading wildly.

In the next second, the horns exploded, plunging everything around into a sea of lightning.

Karura Tree Bodhisattva seized the moment when Xu Qi’an was engulfed by the lightning sea and paralyzed, descending from the sky with his Vajra Dharma Body’s twelve pairs of arms drawn back into fists.

Suddenly, his pupils contracted. Peering through the lightning sea, he saw Luo Yuheng standing before Xu Qi’an, her palm extended outward, maintaining an energy shield with dramatic electrical currents running along its edges.

This barrier not only protected them but also contained the White Emperor within.

Even the most tyrannical magic was useless before an Immortal of the Mortal Realm… Karura Tree Bodhisattva felt his scalp tingle.

Ignoring Karura Tree above, Xu Qi’an stepped on the White Emperor’s neck and wrapped his arms around its head, his spine bending like a taut bow.

White Emperor’s body shook violently as they entered a contest of strength.

Xu Qi’an released a low roar, his waist and back suddenly snapping straight. With his body’s extension, the White Emperor’s head was forcibly torn off.

Even a divine-demonic descendant with a naturally powerful physique couldn’t compete with a First-Rank warrior in pure strength.

Luo Yuheng drew a deep breath, her small mouth slightly parting to release an intense tongue of flame.

In an instant, White Emperor’s head was burned to charcoal, only its two horns remaining intact.

Having completed this, Luo Yuheng and Xu Qi’an simultaneously raised their heads, coldly gazing at the descending Karura Tree.

Not good… Karura Tree’s eyebrows twitched violently as he forcibly halted his descent, withdrawing his twelve pairs of raised arms and making an instant decision to flee through the air.

This First-Rank Bodhisattva had lost all will to fight.

Meanwhile, a black shadow with a sheep’s body and human face floated out from White Emperor’s shell, transforming into green smoke and gracefully escaping into the distance.

Luo Yuheng formed a sword seal, controlling her flying sword to shoot forth, instantly piercing through that divine consciousness.

The sheep-bodied, human-faced shadow distorted, nearly collapsing, but managed to endure and continue its escape, quickly disappearing into the horizon.

“Its divine consciousness is very strong, more resilient than First-Rank.”

Luo Yuheng frowned.

Among peers of the same rank, unless they were shamans or fellow Daoists, few could withstand her Heart Sword attack.

“Its true form is from the Great Wilderness, naturally stronger than ordinary First-Rank beings. You chase it, I’ll pursue Karura Tree!”

Xu Qi’an wasted no time in conversation, bending his legs and launching skyward, pursuing Karura Tree.

Karura Tree’s escape direction wasn’t westward but toward the imperial capital.

He hadn’t given up, hoping to shift the battlefield to the capital and thereby destroy Great Feng’s imperial city.

In the imperial capital.

Xu Pingfeng, facing off against Wei Yuan, suddenly changed expression, looking unprecedentedly grim.

His two puppet avatars simultaneously transmitted back their experiences—one at Qianlong City under attack by Nangong Qianrou and other Fourth-Rank experts leading their army in a direct assault.

The other was from the Northern Borders, where Xu Qi’an had advanced to First-Rank warrior.

Two daggers simultaneously struck vital points, completely reversing what had been a favorable situation, leaving the Yun Province army in an awkward position.

The power base he had carefully cultivated for twenty years now stood in precarious danger.

Even someone as arrogant as he couldn’t help but tremble inside.

Wei Yuan observed his expression and smiled: “You can’t intervene in the Northern Border battle now. Make your choice—return to reinforce Yun Province or fight to the death with me here in the capital.

“With your transmission technique, you could return to Yun Province headquarters within a quarter-hour. As for these tens of thousands of Yun Province elite troops, I’ll help myself to them. You haven’t lost out—consider my two adopted sons and ten thousand heavy cavalry as having fed you.”

As he spoke, clear light surged beside him as Sun Xuanji appeared on the city walls with Kou Yangzhou.

The surprise attack on Qianlong City was a strategy, but this choice between two options was the true overt strategy.

Choose either the headquarters or the Yun Province troops before him.

Xu Pingfeng had no third option, just as Wei Yuan himself had no third option.

With an ashen face, Xu Pingfeng said through gritted teeth:

“Wei Yuan, you’re ruthless!”

Wei Yuan slowly withdrew his smile, his gentle gaze gradually sharpening as he said coldly:

“Before they set out, I had already made clear the benefits and risks.

“I’m not like you, who can treat even his son as a disposable piece. Xu Qi’an is my valued junior—your actions have made me very displeased!”

Xu Pingfeng gazed at him deeply and shouted:

“Attack the city!”

Boom boom boom!

War drums thundered both atop and outside the city walls.