CHAPTER 723: CHAPTER 589: THE GREAT BATTLE IS IMMINENT!

Blood Sea.

A man named Gu Qingshan had just returned to the raft, when he suddenly looked up at the sky.

A streak of flame shot through the sky and transformed into a talisman as it fell.

Gu Qingshan caught the talisman.

Immediately, a voice came from the talisman:

"We’ve waited too long, the era and history are still firmly in the grasp of human civilization, making all mysterious evil objects restless."

"For the ritual to proceed smoothly—"

"They are coming."

The voice faded.

Within the clouds above the Blood Sea, massive shadows suddenly appeared, shrouding all the Void.

The sky grew dark.

The great battle was imminent!

"Young master, I’m worried..."

A worried female voice sounded from behind.

Gu Qingshan also sighed, looked up at the endless evil objects, and said with slight nervousness,

"You’re right to worry."

"Counting the days, today is the final of the Grand Cooking Competition."

"I hope the battle here does not interfere with the live broadcast signal, nor affect the performance of the contestants, otherwise..."

"We’ll only be able to watch the edited replay."

The female voice muttered, "I’m not interested in the Grand Cooking Competition, young master."

"Next week you should go to the fashion show, I remember you’ve been quite interested in that recently," Gu Qingshan said.

"Oh dear, the enemies are here, young master, be serious," the female voice said irascibly.

A piercing scream suddenly sounded in the sky:

"Still want to watch TV? Doomsday, aha, you will be killed here and become the last pool of blood in the Blood Sea!"

"A new era will be started by us!"

Gu Qingshan came to his senses and nodded to the sky, saying:

"Sorry, I ignored you just now."

"Politely speaking, you are also right, I really should not worry about the TV coverage issue. After all, you are so powerful and there are so many of you, I will be killed here by you."

The Void fell silent for a moment.

The mysterious beings seemed somewhat surprised, not expecting him to show weakness.

But then he suddenly smiled broadly and said:

"Don’t be so gloomy, I was just joking."

A sword appeared in his hand.

In an instant, thousands of flying swords emerged from the Blood Sea, whistling through the sky like a hurricane, rushing endlessly like a fierce tide.

The entire Blood Sea World was filled with the sound of sword clashing.

...

Elsewhere.

"Beep... Beep..."

The call connected.

"Who are you looking for?"

"Is Professor Stephen there? We have received your award certificate and a check, please come and collect it this morning, otherwise it will be sent back."

"...Okay, I’ll be there this morning."

The call ended.

A bald man with gold-rimmed glasses turned to look at his sick wife in bed and the baby in the cradle next to it, crying for food.

He walked to the bedside, took his wife’s hand and said, "Daisy, we have money now, and soon we’ll be able to cure your illness."

The wife moaned in bed and said weakly,

"Then what the hell are you waiting for, why don’t you go get the check?"

"I’m going now!" the man said.

He dressed promptly and quickly left the house.

He had not gone far when he received another call.

"Professor, the materials you ordered for the experiment are ready, will you come this morning?"

Stephen hesitated.

He had to pick up the check in the morning.

As for the experiment—

The afternoon was not impossible.

After all, the money at home had been spent on his experiments.

If the check was sent back, he and his wife would go hungry this week.

"Postpone this morning’s experiment, I have something to do," Stephen answered.

"Okay, got it."

The call ended.

Stephen started the car and drove slowly toward the bank.

On the rooftop of his house,

Wu Xiaode was holding his phone, silently activating Flame Magic to burn a pile of materials to ashes.

—It was the other party’s experiment materials.

The next second.

Lines of ice crystal text emerged in the Void:

"You have unlocked the sixth critical point, triggering an unknown power."

"Please note, this critical point has a myriad connections with mysterious beings, and you will be transported by the curse of the mysterious beings to—"

Crack!

Someone tapped Wu Xiaode’s shoulder.

The woman wearing a veil and dressed in a colorful feathered robe placed her hand on his shoulder and said in a low voice:

"Misdirection."

In an instant,

A passage opened in the Void, and the woman was violently pulled by a force, instantly entering the passage and disappearing.

The passage closed.

A female voice came from not far behind Wu Xiaode:

"Only one last critical point remains."

Wu Xiaode turned to look and saw the woman sitting cross-legged in the Void, as if she had never moved.

In fact, she had been teleported away in place of him several times before—

Yet, she was still perfectly fine right here.

This was truly miraculous.

The heart given was well worth it!

"Thank you for your help, I’ll go break the last critical point now."

Wu Xiaode clasped his hands together.

"Let’s pause for a moment," the woman said.

"Why?" Wu Xiaode asked.

"While there’s still time, let me give you some guidance, so you won’t always be in such a sorry state," the woman said.

She made a hand gesture.

In an instant, they were transported away, arriving directly at a desolate Great Desert.

Wu Xiaode was startled, then overjoyed, and hurriedly bowed deeply, saying:

"Thank you, Your Excellency!"

"Although you carry a sword, what is your preferred form of combat?" the woman asked.

Wu Xiaode clenched his fists and said, "Melee!"

"Melee... Unfortunately, fists and feet are inherently not as sharp as swords, nor as powerful as magical treasures. Why would you choose this?" the woman asked, puzzled.

With a thought, Wu Xiaode’s body suddenly emitted bursts of flashing, serpentine Thunder Radiance.

— Thunder Radiance activated!

With just one look, the woman immediately said, "I see, your every move naturally contains the power of the three disasters and six calamities, and also the pain of the Heavenly Tribulation you’ve endured—"

"If someone engages you in melee, they must constantly endure the suffering of the Heavenly Tribulation."

"—But why would you do this?"

Wu Xiaode spread his hands and said, "I must let those high and mighty individuals taste the sufferings of all living beings."

A hint of admiration flashed in the woman’s eyes as she murmured softly:

"That’s quite brave of you... unfortunately..."

Wu Xiaode bowed deeply and clasped his hands, "Your Excellency previously in the Blood Sea World seemed to have something on your mind, and now again you speak of ’unfortunately’—please be straightforward with me, I can handle it."

The woman shook her head and said, "It’s unfortunate that you’ve never had a master to guide your cultivation properly."

"I have a master, he is the Human Emperor among the Heroic Spirits," Wu Xiaode said.

"Alright, let’s not talk about this, try to strike me with a few punches," the woman said.

Wu Xiaode hesitated.

"It’s okay, come on," the woman encouraged with a light laugh.

Wu Xiaode stepped forward a few steps, raised his fists, then stopped.

"What’s wrong?" the woman asked.

Wu Xiaode sighed, "I don’t hit women."

Before his words fell, his hands had already thrown a barrage of punches, glowing with Thunder Light, almost covering all the Void around the woman.

The woman’s gaze remained calm, but the corners of her mouth curled into a smirk.

Thud.

With a muffled sound, Wu Xiaode was sent flying, rolling dozens of meters before managing to get up.

"What was that punch just now? I didn’t see it at all."

He jumped to his feet, asking in astonishment.

"Watch closely," the woman said.

She gently punched towards the Void.

That punch instantly manifested as a shadow, disappearing into the Void, hidden from sight.

The woman casually scooped up a handful of sand and placed it where the fist shadow was hidden—

Pop!

The sand flew up, scattering in the wind.

Wu Xiaode realized, "So before I even made my move, you had already hidden a punch in the Void, just waiting for me to get caught."

"One punch? No, it wasn’t just one punch."

As the woman spoke, she gently stroked the Void.

Suddenly, dense masses of fist shadows burst forth from the Void, covering every spot within seven or eight meters around the woman.

—No matter where Wu Xiaode attacked from, he would only get hit first.

Wu Xiaode was dumbfounded, muttering to himself:

"Shameless..."

The woman’s smile widened as she spoke earnestly:

"I see every one of your punches, every move must be turned into your own style, but this transformation inevitably consumes other Combat Skills, so you need some real sustenance for cultivation."

"Your heart is very useful; it can allow me to descend from the Void and participate in the impending war."

"This action is crucial; with this boundless Merit, I will impart some Cultivation Techniques to you."

"You can transform them into your Combat Skills."

Wu Xiaode waved his hand, "I’d like to ask for more guidance. As for those combat moves, my inheritance has many."

"Then why haven’t you turned them into your power?" the woman asked.

Wu Xiaode was stunned.

Right.

With so many moves and skills in the Human Emperor’s Teachings, why haven’t I offered them to the Wall of Sighs to enhance my Fist Skill?

I used to practice a millennium of boxing techniques...

And I’ve always been practicing.

Wu Xiaode closed his eyes slightly, searching through the various Human Emperor’s Teachings techniques in his mind.

No!

I clearly remember so many techniques!

Why did I forget to offer them?

He randomly invoked a set of claw-type attack moves, silently thinking "offer".

The Book of the Dead instantly opened, revealing the Wall of Sighs.

A line of ice crystal tiny text appeared on the wall:

"Current technique cannot be offered."

Cannot be offered!

Clearly, any will or move can promote the evolution of my Death Skill, but my inherited knowledge cannot be offered!

Why is that?

Watching Wu Xiaode’s bewildered expression, the woman softly said:

"The great war is upon us, and we no longer have time to discuss this. I will transfer power to you, hoping that you will soon master the Fist Skill, gain mastery, and establish your own style."

She slipped a bracelet off her wrist and handed it to Wu Xiaode, saying:

"This contains many Cultivation Techniques and secret manuals collected by my sect; you only need to learn, and you will be able to do it."

Wu Xiaode received the bracelet with both hands, unable to resist saying:

"But don’t you still have disciples? Is it appropriate to give this bracelet to me?"

"Are you talking about Gu Qingshan? It’s okay, he has learned these before and has now forged his own path," the woman said.

Wu Xiaode instinctively infused Soul Power into the bracelet.

A dramatic transformation occurred—

Suddenly, a majestic Jade Mountain Range fell down, obscuring the sunlight, and causing an earthquake-like tremor in the desert.

Wu Xiaode looked up at the Jade Mountain Range and couldn’t help saying, "I’ve heard that Cultivators use jade slips to record matters, but this is too—"

"Correct, this jade slip includes many methods, including a vast array of boxing techniques, enough for you to practice," the woman nodded.

Wu Xiaode looked at the mountain range-sized jade slip, muttering to himself:

"Now I finally understand why your disciple is called Gu Qingshan..."