CHAPTER 241: ONLY ONE REMAINS [4]

Jun Zha, meanwhile, frowned slightly, his usual casual air fading.

’Three opponents... even for me, this isn’t ideal.’ he thought, the gourd hummed faintly at his side, responding to his Qi.

Then his gaze flicked across the battlefield — to the distant figure of Yu Xuan, who was calmly fighting three disciples at once, suppressing them as if they were children.

Jun Zha’s mouth twitched.

’That monster... he’s not even going all out,’ he thought.

’Who is he? Why have I not heard of him?’

But his brief distraction nearly cost him — because when he turned his attention back to Wu Tianjian, something had changed.

The golden swordsman now stood in two places at once.

Two Wu Tianjians faced him — identical in form, aura, and sword intent, each radiating a terrifying pressure.

The air around them crackled as both of them raised their blades in unison, their movements perfectly mirrored.

Jun Zha’s pupils contracted. That kind of presence, that sheer authenticity of existence — this wasn’t some mere illusion or clone technique.

"This..." Jun Zha whispered, his voice barely audible.

"This isn’t a technique. It’s a Divine Ability."

Even Li Shen’s expression shifted faintly — a flicker of recognition passing through his usually emotionless eyes.

A divine ability was something beyond martial arts, beyond comprehension.

It was the gift of the heavens to the cultivator.

As both Wu Tianjians stepped forward in perfect synchronization, golden radiance enveloping their swords, the pressure in the area spiked sharply.

Jun Zha’s grip on his gourd tightened, and even Li Shen was on guard.

Wu Tianjian’s voice rang out, proud and resonant —

"Bright Light Immortal Sword – Judgement!!!"

Twin pillars of blinding radiance erupted from each of their blades, their brilliance so intense that even the clouds above were split apart.

The strike then, shot forth like divine punishment — one hurtling toward Jun Zha, the other toward Li Shen.

Jun Zha’s expression turned grave as he rapidly formed hand seals.

Dozens of talismans ignited in the air around him, forming a shimmering array of protective layers — fire, wind, earth, and water — all at once.

Yet, when Wu Tianjian’s light struck, those barriers shattered as if they were paper.

"Impossible—!" he hissed, before realizing the strike’s momentum had weakened.

Taking the chance, he flipped his gourd, the mouth of it widening like a miniature void, and swallowed the remnant attack whole. The interior glowed briefly before sealing it away.

On the opposite side, Li Shen stood unmoving, his deathly aura flaring.

Waves of Death Qi surged from him, forming a protective veil that collided against the incoming sword beam.

It managed to blunt the attack, though he was forced back several steps, blood trickling from his lips.

Behind him, the specter of Piao Ling was less fortunate — her translucent body flickered violently as the radiant energy tore through her weakened form.

Even so, she endured, her lifeless eyes still locked on Wu Tianjian.

Wu Tianjian’s sword aura settled briefly, his eyes burning with killing intent.

Jun Zha let out a half-hearted laugh.

"Haha, Fellow Daoist seems a bit too angry. Why don’t you—"

He didn’t finish. Another flash of golden light seared the air, cutting him off mid-sentence. His instincts screamed — he leapt aside, narrowly avoiding a slash that could have cut him in half.

’Tch. What a mess,’ Jun Zha thought bitterly. ’Why am I, a Soul Nurturing realm expert, forced to deal with these lunatics?’

He knew that, at the Supernatural Realm (Tier 6), cultivators awakened Divine Abilities, gift of the heavens. Either you were born with one, or you cultivated enough to have one.

Either way, it meant monsters.

’Good thing our cultivations are sealed,’ he thought.

’If not, I’d already be dead a dozen times over.’

"Fellow Daoist Wu," Jun Zha called, flicking another talisman to deflect a lingering sword aura, "why go this far? Using your divine ability now will only drain you faster!"

He got no answer.

Instead, Piao Ling’s specter lunged at him with a shriek, claws extended, her presence freezing the air.

"What the—?! Are you both targeting me now!?" Jun Zha shouted, twisting his body as her claw sliced through where his heart had been moments ago.

Wu Tianjian’s cold voice cut through the chaos.

"You’re too slippery and your voice is annoying."

Now the battlefield had split — Wu Tianjian’s true form engaged Li Shen, while his divine clone harried Jun Zha relentlessly.

It was as though both had silently agreed that Jun Zha was weaker than them.

Jun Zha’s lips twitched in irritation.

"Heh... taking me for granted, are we?"

As the clone raised its sword again, Jun Zha smirked faintly and twisted his gourd open.

A golden radiance exploded outward — the same attack Wu Tianjian had unleashed earlier when fighting him.

Bright Light Immortal Sword — Second Form: Immortal Sun Wheel!

"What?!" Wu Tianjian’s clone barely managed to dodge, the edge of the golden energy tearing across his side and dispersing his Qi shield.

Both the real Wu Tianjian and Li Shen froze in alarm.

’That’s my own technique!’ Wu Tianjian thought, stunned.

’He absorbed it earlier, and now he can release it?! What a unique treasure!’

Jun Zha wasn’t done. He flung a handful of talismans forward — each one igniting into blazing infernos that detonated near Piao Ling, forcing her back with each explosion.

Her dark-blue form began to distort, unable to withstand the rapid bursts of power.

’He’s been hiding his true strength this entire time,’ Li Shen thought, his expression as unreadable as ever.

The tension grew thick. The clone returned to Wu Tianjian’s side, its golden aura dimming, while Piao Ling drifted closer to Li Shen, her body tattered but functional.

Jun Zha exhaled softly, brushing dust off his robe. His tone was calm, but his eyes had grown colder.

"I must say, Fellow Daoists... you’re truly admirable. Both of you joined hands just to deal with me."

He paused, then his expression shifted, his voice turning thoughtful.

"Still, this isn’t over. You’ve both noticed it too, haven’t you?"

His gaze turned toward the far distance — where Yu Xuan was battling three disciples alone, utterly dominating them. The sky rippled from the clash of powers.

"I saw that monster fight," Jun Zha said, his tone leveling to neutral.

"If we want to survive, we’ll need strength and cooperation. Once he’s gone, we can settle our differences however you like."

His calm voice made it sound like a casual competition, not a life-and-death trial.

Li Shen was silent for a moment, weighing the words. Wu Tianjian’s fists clenched knowing it’s hidden meaning, golden light flickering around him.

Then, slowly, he dispelled his divine clone.

They exchanged glances — each hiding their own intent.

’If I can make that one as my puppet,’ Li Shen thought, glancing at Yu Xuan in the distance, ’my victory is guaranteed. But I’ll have to guard against betrayal.’

’If I refuse, they’ll turn on me,’ Wu Tianjian thought.

’Joining them now might give me a chance to even save my brother later... and perhaps strike when the time is right.’

"Fine," Wu Tianjian said at last, his tone icy.

"But don’t expect me to save you."

Jun Zha smiled faintly.

"I wouldn’t dream of it."

Then both turned toward Li Shen.

"...Alright," Li Shen finally said.

And so, the three of them — a golden swordsman, a death dealer, and a wily diviner — formed a tenuous alliance.

Without another word, they shot into the air, streaking toward the distant battlefield, where Yu Xuan, calm and smiling, was toying with the three disciples who still dared to face him.

***

Yu Xuan stopped another attack from Kong Xuanyi with the same calm precision as before — the lean youth’s spatial tricks fizzled out the moment he appeared near Yu Xuan’s and Kong vanished into the distance again, frustrated.

"As expected. You’re the tricky one, mastering spatial arts. No wonder these two are relying on you for attack," Yu Xuan said coolly.

He turned slightly, his sword flashed once and a dark red slash bloomed from his blade like spilled ink across the sky and lashed toward Wu Jianxiao.

Wu Jianxiao barely had time to raise his sword before the attack struck.

BOOM!

The impact sent him flying backward, blood spraying across the fractured sky.

He crashed into a mountain peak, reducing it to rubble before stabilizing midair, panting, his arm trembling under the strain of blocking that single strike.

Wu Jianxiao coughing blood, said.

"You... you bastard!" he spat.

Luo Xianyin had already given up on her zither; sound, mental and soul attacks proved useless against him.

Now she launched herself into the air, threads of sapphire Qi snaking from her fingers like living wire.

"Even if I must give my life, today you shall die!" she screamed, trying to bind his movements.

Her plan was simple: she and Wu Jianxiao would act as bait, while Kong Xuanyi would use his spatial attacks to sneak in the killing blow.

It should have worked on any cultivator.

But Yu Xuan wasn’t ordinary.