Chapter 253: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

Seeing Yun Che, Fen Juebi almost laughed aloud. He narrowed his eyes and approached slowly with Fen Juecheng. "Yes, what a coincidence, to run into you in this vast, boundless place. But you don't seem to be in very good shape; it took you so long to get here. It looks like your previous injuries haven't healed well."

"No need to waste words with him," Fen Juecheng said coldly. He looked at Yun Che with a dark gaze and sneered faintly. "Yun Che, do you really think our encounter here is a coincidence?"

"Isn't it?" Yun Che paused, then seemingly understood. "Oh! I get it. You must think it's too dangerous here and want to travel with me, right? Of course, that's no problem."

"No! We're just sending you somewhere, and as for traveling together, there's no need," Fen Juecheng said with an even darker smile.

"Sending me somewhere?" Yun Che looked puzzled. "Where?"

"The Road to the Underworld!" Fen Juecheng sneered. A red glow flashed in his hand, and he held a long, crimson blade. Its tip, radiating searing killing intent, pointed directly at Yun Che's face.

A flicker of panic crossed Yun Che's eyes. He quickly retreated, his words a little stammered. "Young Sect Master Fen... Fen, we have no past grievances or recent animosity. What is the meaning of this?"

"Hahahaha!" Fen Juebi burst into delighted laughter, seeing Yun Che's frightened expression. "No grievances or animosity? You're truly comically naive. Alright, since you're about to die, I'll be merciful and let you understand. It's bad enough that you gravely injured me in the Ranking Tournament and made me lose face, but Princess Cang Yue is a woman my elder brother fancies! How dare you even touch her?! You clearly don't know how to spell death!"

"Huh?" Yun Che's eyes widened, an expression of disbelief on his face. "This... this shouldn't be! Princess Cang Yue and I are deeply in love and have been together for years. How come I've never heard her mention you having any thoughts about her? Oh! I understand now. Young Sect Master Fen, you must be simply wishful thinking. My Princess Cang Yue has never paid you any mind, which only proves your charm isn't enough. What does that have to do with me, Yun Che?"

"You!" Fen Juecheng's brows furrowed sharply, his face contorted in anger.

Yun Che seemed to ignore his growing rage and continued, "Besides, even if you really kill me today, what good would it do? Forgive my bluntness, Young Sect Master Fen, but there doesn't seem to be anything about you that could possibly be worthy of my Cang Yue... My Cang Yue is a dignified imperial princess. In terms of noble status, no woman in the Blue Wind Empire can compare to her. Meanwhile, you, Young Sect Master Fen, are merely a young sect master of a sect. There is only one princess in the Blue Wind Empire, but there are countless young sect masters, as numerous as stones in a latrine pit. It's truly the difference between a white cloud and muddy sludge. And as for looks, my Cang Yue is as beautiful as a celestial fairy. Look at you: a donkey's face, a monkey's nose, an ox's head, a horse's mouth, a grotesque grimace. Not only are you ugly, but your face is also filled with dark energy, clearly indicating a short lifespan. Even I, as a man, pity you."

"As for achievements, I'm only seventeen this year, yet I've defeated a Level Three Earth Profound practitioner and won first place in the Ranking Tournament. You're already twenty-three or twenty-four, and apparently only at Level Two Earth Profound. The gap is simply too vast. Between you and me, only someone blind would choose you... Oh, and I occasionally overheard Little Hong, Little Lu, and Little Zi from the Yin Chun Brothel mentioning that Young Sect Master Fen's little *thing* is only half an inch long and as thin as a hemp stalk... Tsk, tsk. Given your situation, let alone my Cang Yue, even a widow of forty years wouldn't be interested in you. Alas, as a man, my sympathy for Young Sect Master Fen is like a flowing river..."

Ever since he could remember, Fen Juecheng had always known himself to be a dragon among men, belonging to the absolute pinnacle of the younger generation, enough to look down upon everyone. Yet now, Yun Che had painted him as utterly worthless. Fen Juecheng was not easily provoked, but Yun Che's words were truly malicious. Although he knew the other party was intentionally humiliating him, his face still turned a liver-like color, and his killing intent erupted dozens of times over. "You... are... asking... for... death!"

Fen Juecheng furiously attacked. His blade ignited with blue flames and thrust towards Yun Che's chest. Fen Juecheng held nothing back in this strike, pouring all his furious rage into it. Under the might of the Earth Profound Realm, all the nearby snowflakes instantly turned into vapor, and even the thick snow below sank at an alarming rate.

As the blade thrust directly at him, a cold smile appeared at the corner of Yun Che's mouth. He instantly grasped the Dragon Fault sword and swung it forcefully, striking Fen Juecheng's flaming blade.

With a loud crash, blue flames scattered, and the snow on the ground was kicked up several dozen feet high, completely blocking their view. Fen Juecheng's entire body shuddered, and his arms went numb. The flaming blade in his hand nearly flew out. His heart jumped, and his mind instantly cleared. Yun Che was no longer in front of him. Without hesitation, he flashed, a crimson shadow, retreating thirty paces away. At that moment, he heard a miserable shriek from Fen Juebi...

As the swirling snow settled, Yun Che's figure was revealed. He stood there, smiling faintly, holding the Dragon Fault. Beneath his foot, Fen Juebi was clearly pinned. The Dragon Fault's weight of over eight thousand catties, combined with Yun Che's stomp, pressed almost entirely onto Fen Juebi, making his eyes roll back, his face turn green, and him wail in immense pain.

Fen Juecheng's expression drastically changed, his eyes becoming incredibly dark. "You... your injuries, actually..."

"That's right, I was faking it." Yun Che shifted his foot from Fen Juebi's back to his waist, pressing down until Fen Juebi let out a pig-like shriek. "The purpose was to wait for a few overconfident small fries to come and die by themselves!"

The recovery ability brought by the Great Way of the Buddha was beyond ordinary imagination. Yun Che's internal and external injuries had already healed, and his profound energy had recovered to about seventy percent. While dealing with Fen Juecheng would still be a stretch, tormenting an unrecovered and severely injured Fen Juebi to death was as easy as flipping a hand. Of course, it was also enough to scare Fen Juecheng; Yun Che could even defeat Xia Qingyue, a Level Three Earth Profound practitioner, so Fen Juecheng, with his Level Two Earth Profound energy, certainly wouldn't be naive enough to think he was Yun Che's match.

"Impossible! I inquired about your injuries; you were not only gravely wounded, but your profound energy was completely depleted! It's utterly impossible to recover in just five days! And... how did you know beforehand that I was coming to kill you?" Fen Juecheng gnashed his teeth. Although he uttered "impossible," his heart was filled with dread. The numbness from Yun Che's strike still lingered in his arm; if Yun Che's strength hadn't recovered, how could he have unleashed such a terrifying blow?

"Heheheheh," Yun Che sneered mockingly. "That's why I said, you, Young Sect Master Fen, are just an arrogant idiot. After this Heaven Pool Secret Realm closes, all traces will vanish, making it the perfect place for you to kill. It's the same for me; I've never known how to spell 'mercy' when it comes to those who want to kill me... So, let's start with your pathetic brother."

Before his words finished, Yun Che's foot suddenly pressed down harder, making Fen Juebi shriek again, his internal organs twisted under the immense pressure. Although Fen Juebi's strength was not weak, he was simply a dish before Yun Che, especially being severely injured and with his power significantly reduced. Fen Juecheng's face turned as dark as a storm cloud. He gritted his teeth and said, "Go ahead and try! To be safe, the Grand Elder placed special soul imprints on both me and him before we entered the secret realm. If he dies, the Grand Elder will know immediately who killed him! At that time, you... and everyone connected to you, will suffer the full, relentless revenge of the Burning Heaven Clan! You will all die in the most miserable ways imaginable in this world!"

"Right... right... You... you can't kill me! If you dare to kill me... the Grand Elder will know... You can't kill me!!"

As the son of the Burning Heaven Clan's Sect Master, Fen Juebi had never been stepped on by anyone, and this was his first true encounter with the threat of death. People like him were often the most afraid of death. At this moment, Fen Juebi's face was deathly pale, his lips blue, partly from the resurgence of injuries inflicted by Yun Che, and partly from sheer terror.

"What he says is true. Special detection imprints were indeed left on both of them. If they die, the person who left the imprints will immediately know who killed them," Jasmine said.

"Is that so?" Yun Che's expression remained unchanged. Instead, he sneered at Fen Juecheng, "Do you really think that will stop me from killing him? Do you think I'm afraid of your Burning Heaven Clan?"

As he spoke, the Dragon Fault sword in Yun Che's hand suddenly descended, smashing mercilessly onto Fen Juebi's right leg. With a loud "CRACK," Fen Juebi's right leg bone snapped, and a piercing, ghost-like wail echoed, carrying far across the snow-covered plain.

"You!!" Fen Juecheng hadn't expected Yun Che to be so ruthless. The sword strike, which would cripple Fen Juebi for life, fell without a shred of hesitation. Fen Juebi's agonizing shriek twisted Fen Juecheng's entire face, and the bones in his fingers cracked audibly.

Although Yun Che's profound energy had recovered seventy percent, it didn't mean his overall strength had recovered to that extent. Due to forcibly burning the Phoenix blood, he couldn't use Phoenix flames for three months, which significantly reduced his comprehensive power. In his current state, there was absolutely no chance of defeating Fen Juecheng.

Yet, Yun Che's expression was utterly confident. The brief exchange of blows earlier had also made Fen Juecheng wary, and in front of him, Yun Che showed no apprehension at all. Instead, he crippled Fen Juebi in just a few moves, clearly acting as if he wasn't afraid of enraging Fen Juecheng; on the contrary, he seemed to deliberately provoke him. This made Fen Juecheng, despite his extreme fury, even more hesitant to act rashly. Not only did he not dare to advance, but he also became fully vigilant and prepared for a full retreat, just in case Yun Che suddenly attacked him.

CRACK!

Yun Che brought his sword down again, directly shattering Fen Juebi's left leg bone. Amidst Fen Juebi's hoarse screams, Yun Che slowly lifted his head, a mocking and provocative smile on his face... This smile made Fen Juecheng's scalp tingle, and his body involuntarily reeled backward. He suddenly roared towards the sky, "Castle Lord Mu! What are you doing...?! Attack now!!"

No sooner had Fen Juecheng's voice fallen than the wind and snow above Yun Che suddenly grew chaotic. From within the violent blizzard, a silver spear flew forth with a terrifying howl. Wherever the spear passed, the wind and snow were brutally swept aside. From a distance, it looked like a dazzling silver line carving through the sky-sealing ice and snow.

The deathly aura carried by the spear instantly made all the hairs on Yun Che's body stand on end, yet his eyes remained incredibly calm. Instead, a sinister smile curled at the corner of his mouth. He allowed the Dragon Fault sword to descend, slamming it hard into the ground.

BOOM!!

With Yun Che's heavy strike, the ice and snow on the ground were dramatically thrown upwards. Beyond the ice and snow, Fen Juebi's body was also flung into the air. Before the airborne Fen Juebi could even react, a silver spear pierced through his chest...

This was a killing blow from a Sky Profound expert, its power terrifying beyond measure. Fen Juebi, impaled by the spear, didn't even have time to scream before his body exploded, shattering into a dozen pieces that scattered far and wide... The silver spear continued downwards, piercing through the afterimage left by Yun Che's Star God Broken Shadow, then embedding itself deep into the earth.

Flawless!