Heaven-Surpassing Divine Emperor

BOOM!

With a wingspan exceeding twenty meters, the Fiery Fire Sparrow King was sliced in two by a single strike from Jiang Chen as it dove at high speed. Its body slammed into the ground with a tremendous roar.

The ground beneath their feet even trembled slightly.

At that moment...

At the entrance to Black Cloud Valley, the hundred Demon Beasts that had followed the Fiery Fire Sparrow King, along with Lui Yifa and Yulan Tianpeng, were all completely dumbfounded!

A Snow Wolf that had followed close behind the Fiery Fire Sparrow King, hoping to scavenge some easy scraps of human flesh, now stood with its jaw agape. It was completely oblivious as drool streamed from its mouth and pooled on the ground.

Next to the Snow Wolf, an Iron-Backed Cang Bear had just seen the Fiery Fire Sparrow King about to rip Jiang Chen apart with its talons. It was still fantasizing about the delicious human flesh it would soon taste.

But before the bear could even swallow its saliva, the Fiery Fire Sparrow King was sliced in two.

The hundred Demon Beasts seemed petrified, silently blocking the entrance to Black Cloud Valley.

Motionless.

"H-holy shit, am I seeing things? That was the almighty Fiery Fire Sparrow King! Even Yulan Tianpeng would have to treat it seriously, but Boss just... killed it with a single strike?"

Lui Yifa, his face a mask of confusion and shock, pinched his own cheek. The sharp pain made him wince, and as he dazedly came back to his senses, he stammered, "I-it’s all real!"

Of course, the most shocked of all was Yulan Tianpeng.

He had entered the Saint Martial Sword Sect at seventeen, trained arduously for five years, and finally stepped into the True Martial Realm, hailed by his clan as a once-in-a-century genius.

He believed that among the countless peers in the vast Yulan Mansion, only Zhao Qiankun and Si Xiaosheng were worthy of his serious consideration!

Zhao Qiankun was already thirty, eight years his senior, and Yulan Tianpeng was confident he could surpass him within five years.

As for Si Xiaosheng, while they were the same age, he had entered the True Martial Realm a year later than Yulan Tianpeng had.

In his heart, Yulan Tianpeng had always placed himself on the pedestal of Yulan Mansion’s number one genius. He believed that in this corner of the world, no peer could ever compare to him!

But now...

He stared wide-eyed at the young man before him, the one holding the Cyan Blade Sword who had just slain the Fiery Fire Sparrow King with a single strike. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was in a dream.

’How is this possible? Th-this kid is clearly only at the Martial Arts Ninth Stage! Why is he so strong? That strike just now...’ The image of Jiang Chen slaying the Fiery Fire Sparrow King replayed in his mind. Yulan Tianpeng couldn’t help but swallow hard. Though it was difficult to admit, he knew he couldn’t have guaranteed he would emerge from that attack unscathed.

The more Yulan Tianpeng thought about it, the angrier he became. He glared at Jiang Chen and roared, "You bastard! You’re clearly so strong, yet you pretended to be weak. You lured me into trying to save you, only to solve the problem yourself. Were you just trying to make a fool out of me?"

Jiang Chen paused, then shrugged helplessly. "Well... I don’t recall ever asking you to help me."

"Er..."

Yulan Tianpeng was left speechless. Thinking back, he realized it was true!

’From start to finish, it was all just my own assumption. I assumed Jiang Chen and his friends were weak, no match for the Fiery Fire Sparrow King. I assumed I was stronger than him and that I could protect them.’

SLAP! SLAP! SLAP!

Yulan Tianpeng’s face flushed crimson, and it burned as if he’d just been slapped hard several times.

"Yulan Tianpeng, right? You don’t need to feel so bad." Seeing that Yulan Tianpeng had, after all, tried to save them out of kindness, Jiang Chen decided not to crush his pride any further and offered some comfort. "To have such strength at your age is actually very impressive!"

"My age? Very impressive?"

Hearing this, Yulan Tianpeng felt a tightness in his chest. He gave Jiang Chen a complicated, aggrieved look.

’You’re younger than me, but you’re already this powerful, and you have the nerve to tell me my strength is ’impressive’ for my age?’

’Are you sure you’re trying to comfort me?’

’And not just showing off?’

’And not just flexing?’

Yulan Tianpeng glanced at Jiang Chen, only to find him crouching by the Fiery Fire Sparrow King’s corpse, completely focused. He pulled out a fist-sized Demon Core and said with a look of pure joy, "The Fiery Fire Sparrow King’s Demon Core is rich with Fire Energy! It’s a priceless treasure that many with a Fire Martial Soul dream of. We can’t let it go to waste!"

’Looks like he really was just trying to comfort me, not showing off. He just... flexed without even meaning to...’

Yulan Tianpeng felt his nose sting and his eyes grow moist. ’An unintentional flex... is the most devastating of all!’

...

"Boss, I’ve finished collecting the Essence Blood!"

Lui Yifa held up a special vessel made for storing Essence Blood, his face beaming with an excited smile.

Before, he had doubted whether Jiang Chen could win his bet against Lui Xun. Now, however, he was a hundred percent convinced that Jiang Chen would be victorious in half a month!

Jiang Chen nodded and looked toward Black Cloud Valley. "There are four Tier One High-level Demon Beasts in Black Cloud Valley. Killing them all should be enough to exchange for one spot. If we can slay that Black Cloud Demon Bear, we should be able to get at least two more."

"The Black Cloud Demon Bear is a Tier Two Demon Beast, after all. Its Essence Blood is worth the Essence Blood of ten Tier One High-level Demon Beasts!" Lui Yifa nodded, then his expression grew worried. "But it’s still a Tier Two Demon Beast, comparable to an expert in the True Martial Realm. With your strength, Boss, defeating it shouldn’t be difficult. But if the Black Cloud Demon Bear senses things are going badly and just tries to run for its life, killing it won’t be easy!"

Jiang Chen agreed. The Black Cloud Demon Bear was known for its defense and its will to survive. Defeating it wouldn’t be difficult, but killing it...

His gaze swept to the side and landed on Yulan Tianpeng. Jiang Chen broke into a grin. "Don’t worry, I’ve already found our helper!"

「A moment later...」

Yulan Tianpeng’s eyes went wide with disbelief. "What did you just say? You want me to team up with you to hunt the Black Cloud Demon Bear?"

"That’s right. Once we kill the Black Cloud Demon Bear, you get half of the Essence Blood," Jiang Chen said.

There were two reasons for this. First, the Black Cloud Demon Bear was powerful, so having an extra hand was a safer bet. Second, Yulan Tianpeng’s straightforward personality made Jiang Chen want to befriend him.

Yulan Tianpeng blinked. The baby fat on his cheeks wobbled as he suddenly gritted his teeth. "Alright, you’ve got a deal!"

"Then let’s get moving!"

Jiang Chen glanced around, noticing Little White happily trotting over while carrying the Fiery Fire Sparrow King’s two massive wings. Its body was so small it was completely dwarfed by its prize, which was why Jiang Chen hadn’t noticed it at first. "Little White, what are you doing?"

"Boss, I’m getting breakfast ready! Make me roasted wings tomorrow morning!" A white blur flashed past, and Little White was at Jiang Chen’s side, its eyes shimmering with a watery, pleading light.

Jiang Chen stored the Fiery Fire Sparrow King’s wings in his Storage Ring and ruffled Little White’s head. "You little foodie. Don’t worry. Once we’ve cleared out Black Cloud Valley, you can have your pick of sparrow king wings, tiger king whips, bull king tripe—whatever you want!"

"Long live the boss!"

Little White leaped up, its eyes sparkling with excitement. It licked its sharp fangs and cackled, "All you snacks in Black Cloud Valley, your Master Little White is here!"

The three men and one beast marched confidently toward Black Cloud Valley!