Chapter 1213: Song Hwang

“Hahaha!”

Zhou Yuan’s voice still echoed through the sky, but Song Huang burst into laughter, tilting his head back. A moment later, a grim look appeared on his face as he stared at Zhou Yuan. “What arrogance! Do you truly believe that merely repelling those three small fries gives you the right to be so presumptuous in front of me?”

“Boom!”

He took a step forward, and instantly, the primordial energy of heaven and earth surged. A pillar of light shot up from the crown of his head. Within it, a nascent soul was faintly visible. It was clearly an impressive 8.3 inches in size—a genuine peak Nascent Soul stage expert! Furthermore, the primordial energy fluctuations emanating from him reached the level of 78 billion.

This was over four billion stronger than Zhou Yuan’s. One should not underestimate this difference of four billion. Back when Zhou Yuan was at the peak of the Heavenly Sun stage, his total primordial energy reserves were only that amount. Now, the mere difference between their energy levels was greater than his entire cultivation base back then. This clearly showed how much deeper the Nascent Soul stage was compared to the Heavenly Sun stage.

“Zhou Yuan, your talent is indeed formidable. To possess such a foundation with a nascent soul of only six inches – if given more time, I might truly be no match for you!” Song Huang stared fiercely at Zhou Yuan, his eyes filled with both envy and mockery. “But that’s not now!” He envied Zhou Yuan’s talent and foundation, yet scoffed at his excessive arrogance. After all, there was still a full cultivation stage difference between the two of them at present. He did not believe Zhou Yuan could suppress him in a fight.

Zhou Yuan did not reply, his expression indifferent. A phantom of a nascent soul shimmered faintly above his head. This was the manifestation of his nascent soul as his primordial energy surged throughout his body. Clearly, he understood that Song Huang’s strength was far greater than that of the three previous Nascent Soul stage experts, and thus he naturally had no intention of holding back. Lapis lazuli light shimmered on his skin, giving him a somewhat sacred appearance.

Seeing Zhou Yuan ignore him, Song Huang snorted coldly. He knew further words were useless; a direct confrontation was necessary now.

Song Huang stepped forward, and the primordial energy in the world rioted. Suddenly, a colossal shadow descended from the sky—it was a massive stone pagoda, ten thousand feet tall. Ancient patterns covered the pagoda, which seemed to breathe in and out the primordial energy of heaven and earth.

“Spirit Suppressing Pagoda!”

The primordial energy cultivated by Song Huang was called Imperial Pagoda Qi, a top-tier seventh-grade energy. At his level, the power unleashed by seventh-grade primordial energy in his hands was incomparable to that cultivated by someone in the Heavenly Sun stage.

The stone pagoda directly bore down on Zhou Yuan. As it crashed down, the towering mountain where Zhou Yuan stood crumbled, sending countless boulders tumbling. However, at that very moment, a resounding dragon roar echoed through heaven and earth. The descending pagoda suddenly vibrated violently. The next instant, a massive dragon claw punched out from within the pagoda, directly shattering its walls. Loud crashes continued to resound as the dragon claw struck, causing the pagoda to crack and break apart. When the pagoda finally shattered completely, a coiling azure-gold dragon was revealed, with Zhou Yuan standing upright on its head, his hands at his sides.

The azure-gold dragon was covered in realistic dragon scales. The dragon’s might it exuded was almost tangible, spreading everywhere. With his entry into the Nascent Soul stage, Zhou Yuan’s mastery over the Heavenly Dragon Qi had also become increasingly refined, far surpassing his previous capabilities.

“Hmph!”

Seeing his attack thwarted, Song Huang snorted coldly. The next moment, his hands rapidly formed seals. Immediately, the void vibrated, and one stone pagoda after another materialized. Counting carefully, there were ninety-nine of them!

The ninety-nine stone pagodas stood in the void, obscuring the sky and sun, creating an immense sense of oppression. “Suppress!” With a wave of Song Huang’s sleeve, the ninety-nine pagodas crashed down, overwhelmingly pressing towards Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan’s eyes narrowed. The azure-gold dragon beneath his feet roared, then shot directly into the sky. Carrying an immense and powerful momentum, it directly crashed into the cluster of ninety-nine stone pagodas.

Booming! Tremendous roars echoed wildly between heaven and earth. Primordial energy shockwaves continuously spread outwards, destroying everything in the vicinity. Both combatants were unleashing their full primordial energy in their attacks. The ferocity of this exchange far surpassed any battle Zhou Yuan had experienced before.

As time passed, Song Huang’s expression gradually turned grim. This was because his ninety-nine stone pagodas were completely blocked by the giant dragon formed from Zhou Yuan’s primordial energy. The power of the dragon’s claws was terrifying; a single strike could shatter a pagoda.

“The primordial energy this guy cultivates is also quite extraordinary!” It was important to note that Song Huang’s primordial energy reserves were over four billion greater than Zhou Yuan’s. Yet, in this head-on clash of primordial energy, he gained no advantage. Clearly, Zhou Yuan’s cultivated primordial energy was of a higher grade than his. This only intensified the envy in his heart.

Boom! Boom!

In the sky, as the last stone pagoda shattered, the azure-gold dragon also couldn't hold on, eventually dissipating into a wisp of smoke. In this exchange, neither combatant gained the upper hand.

This sight, observed by Zhao Lefu, Xue Qinglong, and Yi Yan, who had been closely watching, left them utterly astonished. Previously, when Zhou Yuan claimed he could contend with a peak Nascent Soul stage expert, they hadn't taken him seriously. But now, it was clear he truly possessed such capability. Although Song Huang's strength was slightly inferior to theirs, he was still a genuine 8.3-inch peak Nascent Soul stage expert. Yet, he was being forced into a stalemate by Zhou Yuan, who only had a 6.3-inch nascent soul. Zhou Yuan's combat power was simply astounding.

After their initial shock, they secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed Zhou Yuan was holding his ground, which would alleviate some of the pressure on them. They hoped that time would continue to drag on like this; as long as the Ancestral Dragon Lamp finished burning, their mission for the day would be complete.

Zhou Yuan looked at Song Huang, whose expression in the sky was constantly shifting, and a contemplative look flashed in his eyes. After the preceding exchanges, he had a rough understanding of his current strength level.

Against a peak Nascent Soul stage expert like Song Huang, whose nascent soul was around 8.3 inches, he would not be at much of a disadvantage. However, based on his estimates, if he encountered a peak Nascent Soul stage expert with primordial energy reserves exceeding 80 billion, he might start to fall behind in a pure primordial energy contest. This, of course, was assuming he didn't use other techniques.

Zhou Yuan’s gaze shifted to the distant mountain peak behind him, where the Ancestral Dragon Lamp was still burning. For them, time was currently the most crucial factor.

In fact, defeating Song Huang wouldn't be difficult. However, Zhou Yuan had a faint feeling that something was amiss. After he dealt with the previous three opponents, Song Huang immediately appeared, suggesting some connection between their appearances.

Zhou Yuan glanced at the massive barrier encompassing the entire space, which must have resulted from his master's struggle with Grand Elder Wan Zu. Inside the barrier, many individuals attempting to infiltrate the space were still trapped, including several whose nascent soul fluctuations emitted an extremely strong sense of danger, even to Zhou Yuan.

If he repelled Song Huang now, would the next person to arrive be even stronger? Zhou Yuan's eyes flickered with suspicion, and he immediately decided it would be better to keep Song Huang occupied to buy time.

As he considered this, the surging primordial energy around Zhou Yuan subtly began to recede. However, this change was noticed by Song Huang. Being a perceptive individual, he immediately said with a half-smile, "Elder Zhou Yuan is truly clever. It seems you've detected something?"

Zhou Yuan remained expressionless.

“You’re half right.” Song Huang chuckled lightly and said, "There are rules within Grand Elder Cang Yuan's barrier that limit the number of people who can enter this space. That's why only after we are defeated can someone else enter to replace us. However, Grand Elder Wan Zu has also set up a rule: as time passes, the individuals who arrive will become progressively stronger. Eventually... even Law Domain experts will descend, completely breaking the balance."

He stared at Zhou Yuan and said playfully, "In other words, if you truly want to break this stalemate, the longer you delay, the more you will fall into a dead end. This isn't much of a secret, as you would have soon realized it anyway."

Zhou Yuan's brows furrowed tightly. So that was it. He had indeed misunderstood. The current situation not only couldn't be delayed but required them to act with lightning speed, constantly defeating incoming opponents. This would continuously break the enemy's momentum, preventing them from sending more Law Domain experts.

Zhou Yuan glanced higher up, where Law Domain experts from both sides were clashing. The Law Domain experts were currently in a delicate balance, but if even one more were to join, that balance would be shattered. As for the Nascent Soul stage, Zhou Yuan could still hold his own for now, but against a Law Domain expert, he would likely be powerless despite his willingness.

Zhou Yuan exhaled deeply, then turned his indifferent gaze to Song Huang. "Since that's the case, why are you still standing here being an eyesore?"

“Arrogance! You haven't even defeated me in our previous exchanges!” Song Huang's eyes hardened.

Zhou Yuan, however, no longer paid him any attention. His five fingers slowly closed into a fist. Within his Divine Dwelling, the silhouette of a seven-colored gourd faintly appeared. Clear and resonant sword hums echoed through the air at that moment. It was the Seven-Colored Heaven-Slaying Sword Light!