One more catty, one more attribute point

Although it was a tie, anyone with clear eyes could see that King Dingxuan was in bad shape.

His body was bathed in blood, his eyes bloodshot, and his aura fluctuated violently—it was obvious he had fallen from his peak state.

Especially painful were his several bouts of coughing, black blood spilling from the corners of his eyes and mouth like little snakes.

A Heavenly King, covered in blood!

He did not stay long on the battlefield.

After casting a deep glance at Su Heng, he turned and left.

His robust body transformed into a streak of blue light, disappearing into the Void Mansion.

In front of King Dingxuan, Su Heng stood in the void. As the Dragon Blood surged through the course of the fight, he grew increasingly fiercer, and his injuries were almost completely healed, even the dragon wings that had been torn off and swallowed had regrown.

They naturally extended outward, casting a shadow as he stood above the clouds, obscuring the sun with reckless abandon.

The enormous, pitch-black rolling clouds seemed to envelop the entire Void Mansion within them.

On the city walls of the Void Mansion,

whether it was ordinary martial artists who had just broken through their physical limits or a Heavenly Deceit master, everyone trembled internally when they looked up at Su Heng. That innate majesty, towering above, felt almost tangible, heavily pressing on their chests, making it hard for them to breathe.

Su Heng certainly wasn't about to vent his frustration on these unrelated people.

He glanced at the blazing azure flame in the distant sky, then turned around. The Dragon Transformation State was deactivated, and his body quickly shrank. Stepping forward, he disappeared from the battlefield with a piercing whoosh sound.

The battlefield fell silent.

The few cold presences lingering around seemed somewhat disappointed.

After a sigh, they quietly dissipated.

At the edge of the sky far away, the substantial menacing presence of King Qingyang also gradually retreated.

Splash!

The Sword Qi that had cut through the Qilan River dispersed.

The river water resumed its flow, creating a thunderous roar.

Hearing the thunderous, dull roar, the crowd gradually regained their senses from the aftermath of the battle. Seeing the earth riddled with holes and the mountains that were forcefully split and collapsed, they fell silent again.

Then a few began to whisper.

The whispers grew louder as more people joined in until they finally exploded like a resounding blast.

"The Heavenly King is injured, at a disadvantage, unbelievable!"

"Who is that person with such vigorous blood and sharp spirit? Definitely young," said an elderly man with white hair, "yet he already possesses the combat ability of a Heavenly King. His future is... simply immeasurable."

"Isn't it said that the Wilderness is a desolate place, scarce in resources and where martial arts do not prosper? I heard that many people living there don't even know what demons are. How could such a monster suddenly emerge?" said a young man born into a prestigious family.

Very strong for his age and considered exceptional in cultivation skills.

He had once heard his family elders disdainfully comment on the Wilderness, but now, he felt his worldview was being reshaped.

"King Qingyang appeared too but did not make a move, just leaving like that," another person said with a frown, sounding troubled, "His demeanor was quite peculiar, I wonder what he is contemplating."

"The matter of the Heavenly King is too distant from us," another replied, "It's better to focus on cultivating and handle the matters at hand first!"

Some could not withstand the aura unleashed during the battle between the Heavenly King and Su Heng, which tore through the sky, and their spirit crumbled right there.

Yet others had a bright gleam in their eyes, swearing in their hearts that with arduous cultivation and some luck, in these turbulent times, they could perhaps take his place. The flame named ambition burned within them, urging them to keep moving forward.

...

Meanwhile, at this very moment,

in an ancient and gloomy mansion within the Inner City of the Void Mansion,

Bang!

King Dingxuan staggered as he stepped out of the dissipating blue light.

The bluestone-paved floor seemed unable to bear his weight, cracking forcefully with spreading fissures. In the center of the courtyard was an octagonal well with a wooden crank for drawing water, and next to it stood a large vat, over three meters high, seemingly cast from bronze.

A locust tree grew in the corner of the yard wall, lush and broad-leaved, casting shadows that shielded the sunlight.

The entire courtyard was unusually quiet.

There were no birds singing or insects chirping, nor even the sound of leaves rustling as the breeze blew.

Snap!

King Dingxuan stepped forward, his hands tightly grasping the edge of the vat.

The bronze-cast vat was extremely sturdy. Yet in his hands, it was as fragile as decaying wood, crackling, twisting, and shattering.

The vat, filled with well water, stirred ripples.

You could vaguely see the shattered tree's shadow and a grotesquely twisted face.

Ahh!

King Dingxuan felt his internal organs spasming violently.

A wave of intense discomfort surged up from his stomach along his esophagus.

Opening his mouth, he spewed forth a gush of black blood into the vat, where it slowly spread. Staring at the dark red blood stains in the well water, spreading like ink, King Dingxuan's twisted face gradually calmed.

He unfastened the armor on his hands and set it aside.

Scooping water from the barrel, he washed his face.

But as he washed away the blood on his hands and face, fresh blood continued to seep out.

In the end, the entire barrel was dyed a strange, dark red. Looking at his crimson reflection in the water, King Dingxuan suddenly let out a long sigh. He squinted his eyes, lifted his head, and through the gaps between the leaves, he looked up at the gradually rising fire-red sun in the sky.

"Turbulent times are coming, and with them, demons," King Dingxuan's chapped lips moved slightly as he whispered softly, "The ancients did not deceive me."

Snap!

Footsteps approached from behind.

A young servant dressed in blue appeared under the archway of the courtyard.

He bowed his head, first bowing to King Dingxuan and then lowered his voice as he spoke, "My lord, there is a secret letter from the third prince."

Whoosh!

A sudden cold wind blew.

At the edge of the courtyard, the lush locust tree swayed gently, making a sound.

"My lord?" The young servant, sensing that something was amiss, trembled slightly and looked up. A blood-drenched, beast-like face appeared in his vision, now turning back to look at him. Bloodshot filled those authoritative pupils, and two black streams of blood flowed down from the cracked corners of his eyes.

"Ah! My king, you—" the young man felt as if he had been heavily struck on the head.

The ground stirred with flying dust and stones.

An intense aura of authority surged through the air.

The young man was terrified, his vision darkened, and he nearly screamed out loud. It took all his strength to control his muscles from collapsing on the spot. Yet despite not stumbling, he felt utterly panic-stricken, his face pale.

For in that moment of eye contact, he had distinctly detected an icy intent to kill in King Dingxuan's wounded, beast-like gaze.

"The third prince..." King Dingxuan nodded slightly, "I understand."

The icy killing intent dissipated.

The young man breathed an imperceptible sigh of relief, "Then, my king, this subordinate will take his leave first."

"Go," King Dingxuan said.

The young servant bowed his head to King Dingxuan and slowly backed away. As he neared the archway behind him and was about to leave the courtyard, he turned around.

At that moment—thud!

A powerful force flashed, piercing his heart. The young man collapsed into his own pool of blood, eyes wide open, dead.

"Even you disdain me, thinking I should not lose, not even be wounded, haha," King Dingxuan stayed briefly by the young man's corpse, coldly chuckled, and shook his head. He then stepped over the body and quickly disappeared into the quiet courtyard.

Rustling sounds came.

Black vines with thorns crawled out from the soil, covering the young man's body.

With a wriggling motion, the blood-drenched vines retracted back into the flower bed, leaving no trace of the young man, not even the bloodstains and remnants of his clothes on the ground. The courtyard was once again as calm as if no one had ever been there.

...

...

...

King Dingxuan stepped into a ceremonial hall situated at the rear of the mansion.

This hall was specially built for communication with the third prince; the ceiling was over nine meters high, supported by red dragon-encircled columns.

In the shadows on either side stood statues of ancient generals, each clad in scale armor, their faces fierce, surrounded by dragons and tigers.

At the center of the room was a long altar table.

On it were placed an incense burner, candlestick, and a plaque of the God of Eternal Heaven. Two Heavenly Contract Masters in white robes stood guard beside the altar.

They bowed slightly to King Dingxuan, then lit the incense in their hands and placed it in the incense burner.

The two of them chanted softly, bowed earnestly towards the plaque and the incense burner on the altar.

Afterwards, they stepped back slowly and left the hall.

Bang!

Behind King Dingxuan.

The heavy doors closed shut.

The originally bright room instantly became dim, a substantial aura of authority flowed through the shadows. The spacious hall seemed unable to bear it, buzzing as dust fell from the walls and beams overhead.

Under the shadows, the statues of the generals on either side seemed to come to life, their eyes reddening, angrily staring at King Dingxuan at the center of the room.

Even though King Dingxuan was a revered Heavenly King.

When he felt the tremendous power descend from the Heavenly Realm, his heart faltered slightly.

Bang!

His knees buckled, and he knelt on one knee on the ground.

He directly broke through the floor, leaving a huge crater.

Wisps of smoke rose from the burning incense, growing more and more intense, eventually forming a curtain-like plume. Accompanied by a long sigh, flames ignited in the void.

An imposing figure, somewhat ethereal but extremely majestic, emerged from the smoke.

It was like the War Witch or Giant from the myths, only a torso filling the nine-meter-tall hall to the brim.