A faint silhouette appeared above the iron sword. It seemed to bear a resemblance to Xiao Shanhe, and it was as though the person himself had arrived as it covered the heaven and earth to fill the entire Thousand Cliff realm. Fang Xing was like a pitiful little lamb in the face of this silhouette; he was suppressed by the enormous power of a Foundation Stage cultivator and pressured to drop to his knees.

　　Xiao Jianming’s body was covered with blood. “Looks like you’re still going to die by my hands, brat,” he viciously yelled out, his fear and pride mixing together as madness and excitement rose to the fore.

　　Although the moment had been short, Xiao Jianming had truly felt Fang Xing’s strong murderous intent towards him not long ago, and—no matter how unwilling he was—he had to admit he’d been scared at the time. He’d realized at that moment that not only did Fang Xing want to kill him, but he also had the power to do so. That terrifying yet mysterious skill had placed him under an enormous amount of pressure, and that onslaught could have killed him at any time. Those sword lights weren’t the same as the illusionary sword force from his Qing-Yun Nine Swords; Fang Xing’s sword lights actually formed into tangible blades….

　　Although it was unpleasant, Xiao Jianming had to admit that Fang Xing’s battle prowess had indeed surpassed him at that moment. It was fortunate for him that he still had one more trick up his sleeve—his uncle had sealed a single attack of a Foundation Stage cultivator onto his iron sword.

　　This was a special attack Xiao Jianming’s uncle had given to him five years ago. Xiao Jianming had been about to leave the Qing-Yun Sect, after all, and he was the only cultivator related to Xiao Shanhe by blood; his uncle wasn’t about to let him leave by himself without any form of safety net. Yet despite four years of traveling out in the world and coming across many dangerous situations, the seal had remained untouched—until now….

　　The insane pressure churned down towards Fang Xing like a violent tidal wave.

　　Fang Xing’s skin had turned bright red as though all of his blood was trying to seep out, and a bit of light began to show from beneath his skin, giving his flesh the appearance of being burned. In spite of this, however, he was not completely suppressed and worked to support himself upright. This was only possible because of his initial efforts with the Hundred and Eight Thousand Swords, when he’d gone against the strength of a thousand-foot waterfall and trained to be able to face and withstand enormous pressure. Furthermore, after training with the True Samadhi Fire for nearly four years, the strength of his body was far more than any ordinary Spirit Stage cultivator, and not even the pressure from a mid-tier Foundation Stage cultivator like Xiao Shanhe was enough to force him to kneel.

　　“Even if you bring out your grandfather , today is the day I kill you!” Fang Xing yelled out, the golden wings behind him curling up like a human-sized Golden Peng bird before rushing towards Xiao Jianming. Despite being confronted with the pressure from a Foundation Stage cultivator, he’d still chosen to take the initiative and attack.

　　Xiao Jianming hadn’t thought Fang Xing would be so willful and was left in a bit of a shock. Panicked, he quickly sent out a blow with his iron sword.

　　Boom ….

　　A violent power surged out with the sword force and covered the heavens and sky, so powerful as to be unmatchable.

　　The golden wings behind Fang Xing’s back crossed in front of him to help protect against such a powerful blow. The insane force from Xiao Jianming’s sword continued to crash against the wings, steadily destroying the illusory swords that made it up and causing the golden wings to start to vanish.

　　Fang Xing held himself up with one hand after being pushed back a good hundred feet with his face pale and lips smeared with blood. It was too powerful! The strength of a Foundation Stage cultivator was indeed something a Spirit Stage cultivator couldn’t defend against, not even after studying an Ancient beast tribe technique. Furthermore, Fang Xing could only manage up to thirty-six sword lights from the Hundred and Eight Thousand Swords—he hadn’t even reached basic mastery yet. In the end, this was not enough to successfully kill Xiao Jianming!

　　As Fang Xing’s golden wings were destroyed, his Qi began to dry up as well, and it didn’t take long before he couldn’t reform his wings anymore. Although his Qi was extremely pure, his cultivation was still only at Spirit Stage tier seven, and so the total amount of Qi he had was far less than Xiao Jianming’s.

　　This was also the reason why after he’d used all sorts of methods to anger Xiao Jianming, he hadn’t used the Hundred and Eight Thousand Swords even when faced with so many continuous strikes. Fang Xing had been trying to waste Xiao Jianming’s Qi while trying to find weak spots so when he did go on the offensive, he’d be able to take his enemy down in one go. He understood that if the two of them were to attack each other with their most powerful attacks, he wouldn’t be able to last long at all during the clash. His strategy nearly worked, but he hadn’t thought Xiao Jianming still had such a move in reserve.

　　“Hehe, the brat’s Qi is nearly used up. Let’s see what else you have!” Xiao Shanhe coldly exclaimed. “Jianming, cut off all his limbs and destroy his meridians… but keep him alive!”

　　Hearing this, Tie Rukuang nearby jumped up in fury. “Xiao Shanhe, this is just an inner sect tournament; why such cruelty?”

　　Xiao Shanhe returned a chilling gaze and coldly responded, “The brat hasn’t admitted defeat, so no matter what Jianming does, it’s all within the rules!”

　　Tie Rukuang released a maddened howl and a sledgehammer appeared in his hands. Just as he was about to smash it into Xiao Shanhe, however, Chen Xuanhua suddenly intervened between them and stopped the weapon from moving while reluctantly shaking his head at Tie Rukuang.

　　What was done was already done; even if Tie Rukuang were to fight it out with Xiao Shanhe, it wouldn’t solve the problem at hand. If anything, it would only make the grudge between the two that much worse, and Xiao Shanhe would cause nothing but trouble for Tie Rukuang once he inevitably broke into the Golden Core Stage.

　　“Cut off all his limbs and destroy his meridians, but keep him alive?” Inside the Thousand Cliff, Xiao Jianming sneered at Fang Xing when he heard his uncle, a cold smile appearing on his face. “I really like my uncle’s plan. Little brat, I’m going to turn you into a human stick and torture you day and night….”

　　Xiao Jianming hadn’t previously wanted to keep Fang Xing alive—his hate was so great he wanted to kill him as quickly as possible—but he was certain of his victory now, and he could no longer restrain his restlessness after learning Fang Xing was the tenth bandit who’d escaped from Guiyan Valley. He wanted to capture Fang Xing and force the brat to reveal where to find the nine coffins’ treasure.

　　The Foundation Stage power surged out with a wave of the iron sword, and numerous illusory chains moved to tightly bind Fang Xing, who didn’t even have the power to dodge. Foundation Stage power was so different from that of Spirit Stage as to be incomprehensible to him, leaving him completely unable to dodge, let alone resist.

　　Xiao Jianming gripped his iron sword and walked closer, a cold smile forming on his face as he flourished his sword to cut off Fang Xing’s left arm. The Duanzhen disciples, Qin Xing’er, and Liu Heihu all turned their heads, unwilling to watch, unwilling to see the bloody scene about to occur. As for Fang Xing, his anger was as great as the ocean, and he gritted his teeth so hard it could even be heard.

　　As Xiao Jianming’s sword drew close, the danger that could only be felt between the boundaries of life and death flickered across Fang Xing’s mind. A mysterious light flashed in his eyes, and he saw a wave of carnage appear in front of him while a loud howl rose up within his ears. In front of him now was the very same painting that had once etched an unforgettable memory in his mind.

　　“Decapitation’s Portrayal,” Fang Xing muttered, the thought striking his mind and spirit….

　　Within Fang Xing’s Sea of Consciousness, the golden-winged Giant Peng watched the flaming ocean in front of him with terror, unable to understand why the True Samadhi Fire within Fang Xing’s Sea of Consciousness had started to burn with rage. To avoid being digested, he had no choice other than to hide beneath the altar of Fang Xing’s True Spirit.

　　This True Samadhi Fire didn’t belong in this realm, and it was so horrific as to be impossible to put into words. Even more terrifying, however, was that in the depths of this flaming ocean was a sword light. The one sword light flickered in and out of existence and filled the Giant Peng with a terrible fear towards the unknown.

　　He couldn’t understand what this was or what was happening, but the terror it invoked was all too clear.

　　One had to know that the Giant Peng King was a Golden Core Stage beast king, and although he’d lost his physical body and cultivation level, his knowledge was still intact. Despite his extensive and varied knowledge, however, not even he could understand the mysteries behind that single sword light….

　　That feeling was like the will of heaven itself! The depth of this divine sword simply could not be measured!

　　Vmmmm ….

　　Just as the Foundation Stage power bound Fang Xing and Xiao Jianming’s strike was about to land, a strange buzzing sound began to rise up. This crisp sound that seemed to come from far away sounded like someone was gently playing a stringed instrument with their sword—it was extremely beautiful, yet containing a terrible power.

　　Once the sound began, the Foundation Stage power that had bound Fang Xing began to break, torn apart as though it was paper. Xiao Jianming—who’d nearly completed his strike—staggered a few steps backwards as his expression changed, his gaze settling on Fang Xing with disbelief. He could sense a mysterious and terrifying aura form around Fang Xing, and the essence of that aura filled him with so much fear he even felt the sudden urge to drop to his knees and kneel.

　　It was as though he was now facing heaven’s will! It was ethereal and traceless, with power that could not be measured!

　　The will of heaven was an existence mightier than mere immortals! Why would the power of a Foundation Stage matter? In front of heaven’s will, it was no more than a tiny seed!

　　Outside the Thousand Cliff, Xiao Shanhe’s face began to change as well. The higher one’s cultivation level, the more they were able to sense just how terrifying the aura around Fang Xing truly was. Although Xiao Shanhe was also unable to determine what sort of aura that was, something inside him told him it was dangerous—extremely dangerous!

　　“No! Jianming, quickly retreat!” Xiao Shanhe yelled out without a care for anything else. He wished for Xiao Jianming to leave the Thousand Cliff immediately, and he didn’t care anymore even if it meant an immediate forfeit. Yet to his dismay, Xiao Jianming’s senses were completely overwhelmed by what was taking place and he couldn’t hear anyone calling out anymore.

　　“Quickly, quickly, quickly! Open the Thousand Cliff!” Xiao Shanhe yelled as he flew up and arrived at the front of the Thousand Cliff in a bid to open the realm from the outside. He didn’t dare to delay in the slightest, afraid that the last successor of his Xiao family would lose his life any second now.

　　As soon as he arrived, a red shadow followed along to join him, then someone in a blue robe also drew over—Elder Qin’nyao and Shuwen Valley’s Chen Baoyan. The three of them began to form a spell towards the Thousand Cliff, sending forward beams of light to desperately unlock the formation sealing it from the outside.

　　The formation of the Thousand Cliff was extremely complex, however, and opening it up from the outside was extremely difficult. Even with the three of them together, it was hard to open in a short time.

　　“Are you two going to watch someone die and not lend a hand to help?” Xiao Shanhe angrily yelled while turning.

　　Atop the viewing platform, Chen Xuanhua gave a soft sigh and began to slowly walk over, although the speed was perhaps not much faster than an eighty-year-old woman. Tie Rukuang, on the other hand, simply turned his head and revealed a cold smile. “Their fight isn’t finished yet; what’s the rush?”