Chapter 464: Counterattack

In the mist-shrouded colossal mountains, a patch of mist was suddenly torn apart as a streak of light shot out. Behind it, two more streaks of light followed closely, their surging Genesis Qi fluctuations rippling out and dispersing the surrounding mist.

The streak of light in front was, naturally, Zhou Yuan.

The two who were pursuing him were Chu Yang and Liu Xiang from Lu Hong's lineage.

"Source Sever!"

Zhou Yuan's gaze swept behind him. He clenched his hand, and the snow-white tip of the Heavenly Yuan Brush instantly turned an inky black, extraordinarily mysterious.

The Heavenly Yuan Brush whistled out as Genesis Qi from heaven and earth converged, forming a thousand-zhang-long light tail. It then shot fiercely towards Chu Yang with the speed of lightning, carrying an extremely sharp aura.

Chu Yang's eyes narrowed slightly as he formed hand seals. Immediately, a powerful pillar of Genesis Qi shot up from above his head. Within the pillar, a sword shadow hummed, finally colliding directly with the incoming Heavenly Yuan Brush.

The clang of metal resounded, and the sound waves spread out, cracking the nearby mountain walls.

Chu Yang's sword shadow was also a Quasi Heavenly Yuan Weapon. Evidently, Lu Hong's lineage had made thorough preparations for this chief disciple competition, even providing such treasures as Quasi Heavenly Yuan Weapons to each participant.

However, it was, after all, only a Quasi Heavenly Yuan Weapon. Compared to the Heavenly Yuan Brush, which had reached the low-grade Heavenly Yuan Weapon tier, there was still a gap. Thus, in that first collision, the sword shadow was directly repelled.

Moreover, as the inky black tip of the Heavenly Yuan Brush swept past, it also tore apart the Genesis Qi enveloping the sword shadow.

The Heavenly Yuan Brush, having repelled the sword shadow, as if possessing sentience, once again absorbed Genesis Qi from heaven and earth and whistled towards Chu Yang with lightning speed.

But just as the Heavenly Yuan Brush entered Chu Yang's ten-zhang range, another sword shadow howled in, colliding with the Heavenly Yuan Brush.

This time, it was Liu Xiang who acted in time, also activating a Quasi Heavenly Yuan Weapon.

While the Heavenly Yuan Brush was momentarily obstructed, the two sword shadows entangled it. Between their collisions, an astonishing Genesis Qi eruption occurred.

Seeing this scene, Zhou Yuan waved his hand, and the Heavenly Yuan Brush shot back into his grasp. He looked at Chu Yang and Liu Xiang, who were no more than ten steps away, and his brows furrowed slightly.

These two indeed had an extremely tacit understanding.

Moreover, they were extremely cautious, consistently refusing to separate. Both their offense and defense were coordinated. Furthermore, while defending, their keen eyes were searching for his weaknesses. Once found, they would unhesitatingly launch a combined assault.

This made things somewhat tricky for Zhou Yuan.

His eyes flickered, and immediately his speed sharply increased as he plunged into the mist.

Seeing this, Chu Yang and Liu Xiang in the rear both sneered, pursuing closely. They could sense that facing their combined efforts, Zhou Yuan seemed to be quite restricted.

As long as they continued to be cautious and searched for Zhou Yuan's weaknesses, they would eventually have a chance to defeat him.

Consequently, in the time that followed, the three figures moved like lightning through the mist, fighting and pausing. But everyone could perceive that Zhou Yuan, facing the united Chu Yang and Liu Xiang, seemed somewhat exhausted and unable to regain his previous advantage.

"It seems Zhou Yuan has finally hit a wall..."

"Those two, Chu Yang and Liu Xiang, are quite clever. If this continues, Zhou Yuan will eventually collapse, and once he shows a weakness, those two will likely launch a thunderous assault."

"It's normal. Zhou Yuan's strength is at most comparable to one of them. As long as he isn't given a chance to sneak attack, how could he possibly fight two against one?"

Outside Chief Peak, numerous disciples whispered amongst themselves, all feeling somewhat regretful. It seemed that Zhou Yuan, this dark horse, could only go this far.

Elder Lu Hong, who had been constantly observing, saw this and sneered, saying, "Boy, this is where you stop."

Swish! Swish!

Three streaks of light, one in front and two behind, darted like lightning through the mist.

"Zhou Yuan, you currently look a bit like a stray dog." Chu Yang, from behind, locked his gaze onto Zhou Yuan's figure. His faintly laughing voice, enveloped by Genesis Qi, reached the ears of the figure in front.

However, facing his taunt, the figure showed no reaction, still rushing forward with his head down.

Seeing this, the sneer on Chu Yang's lips deepened. His eyes met Liu Xiang's beside him, and they sped up, following closely. Next, they intended to stick to Zhou Yuan like glue.

Their figures once again plunged into the mist.

However, the moment they plunged into the mist, they suddenly felt an unusual surge of Genesis Qi from the surrounding heaven and earth. The mist began to swirl, and the surrounding scenery changed.

At this moment, both also lost sight of each other.

"Genesis Rune Barrier?!"

Chu Yang's expression changed. It was clear that this was a pre-arranged Genesis Rune Barrier!

His expression turned grim. This cunning Zhou Yuan, who seemed to be fleeing, had actually set up a dangerous trap long ago, just waiting for them to step into it!

Boom! Boom!

In the surrounding heaven and earth, extremely violent Genesis Qi converged. Thunder and crimson flames began to emerge, finally covering everything overwhelmingly.

Chu Yang's brows furrowed tightly. A thousand-zhang pillar of Genesis Qi shot up, directly repelling all the howling thunder and crimson flames. Then a sword shadow shot out, fiercely slashing at the empty space in front.

Tear!

The void seemed to be torn open, revealing a rift, and Chu Yang's figure then shot out like lightning.

After rushing out of the rift, the Genesis Qi in heaven and earth returned to calm, and the familiar mist reappeared before his eyes.

Chu Yang breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed he had broken through the Genesis Rune Barrier. This trap set by Zhou Yuan was truly vulnerable.

"Liu Xiang?"

However, the next moment, he suddenly sensed something was wrong. He abruptly looked behind him, only to see the mist there converging frantically, with crimson thunder roaring madly within. At its deepest point, a figure was trapped.

It was Liu Xiang.

It turned out that the barrier's power had all been concentrated on Liu Xiang's side, which was why he had been able to escape so easily.

"Now it's just you."

A calm voice came from the front. Chu Yang grimly raised his head, only to see Zhou Yuan standing in mid-air in front of him, his eyes emotionlessly fixed on him.

This Genesis Rune Barrier had been set up by him after he dealt with Wu Hai earlier, its purpose being to limit the opponent's numerical advantage.

Chu Yang glanced at the Genesis Rune Barrier behind him and sneered, "Do you think this barrier can trap Liu Xiang for long?"

He knew Liu Xiang's strength very well. Although this barrier was not weak, it probably wouldn't be long before Liu Xiang could break free.

Zhou Yuan smiled and said, "Although it won't be for too long... it's enough to deal with you..."

The moment his voice fell, his figure shot out, with jade light appearing on his body. The Heavenly Yuan Brush in his hand also vibrated and hummed, and its snow-white tip rapidly turned pitch black.

"Myriad Whale Pattern!"

"Heaven-Piercing Black Flood Dragon Scales!"

A giant whale-like phantom appeared above the Heavenly Yuan Brush, and scales emerged on Zhou Yuan's jade-glowing skin.

Terrifying power surged.

This strike was made without reservation.

The brush shadow whistled down, and a mountain peak below was instantly severed.

Chu Yang's expression also became extremely grave at this moment. He had clearly perceived the terror of Zhou Yuan's assault and dared not delay. A sword shadow slowly rose, gripped in his hand.

It was a long sword as thin as a cicada's wing. Its blade shimmered with ripples, chilling like ice.

"Low-grade Heavenly Origin Art, Sword Celestial River!"

Genesis Qi whistled out. Sword shadows flowed, forming an ominous river of sword qi that finally surged upwards fiercely and violently collided with the fiercely descending Heavenly Yuan Brush.

Chu Yang had clearly gone all out.

The two terrifying attacks collided. The shockwaves swept out ferociously, instantly destroying the surrounding mountain peaks and sending rocks flying.

The river of sword qi shattered under the brush shadow. As the brush shadow passed, even the sword shadow let out a mournful cry and flew backward.

Pfft!

Chu Yang was also affected. His face turned pale, and he immediately spat out a mouthful of fresh blood as his figure awkwardly flew backward. There was a hint of horror in his eyes.

Only when Zhou Yuan truly displayed his strength did he finally understand how terrifying the former's combat power was.

No wonder even Wu Hai had been defeated by him.

Swish!

However, as Chu Yang's figure flew backward, Zhou Yuan's figure appeared in front of him like a ghost. His mouth puffed out, and the next instant, a low sound seemed to resonate.

"Heavenly Sun Fire!"

Azure flames whistled out, spraying towards Chu Yang with terrifying temperature.

Sensing the high temperature of the azure flames, Chu Yang's expression changed again. Ignoring his internal injuries, he hurriedly circulated his Genesis Qi, which whistled out with chilling sword intent, colliding with the azure flames.

Sizzle! Sizzle!

When the two collided, even space itself became distorted.

The mountain peak beneath their feet was ignited at this moment, and even the rocks were melting.

"Damn it!"

Chu Yang's face was ashen. Zhou Yuan's attacks were continuous and ferocious. In just a single exchange, he had been forced into such a pathetic state.

"I can't fight him head-on, I need to drag this out," he thought. "Liu Xiang will soon be able to break through the Genesis Rune Barrier. Then, by joining forces with him, we can turn the situation around!"

Thinking this, Chu Yang took a deep breath. Within his Qi Dwelling, the Genesis Qi stars vibrated, continuously releasing powerful Genesis Qi, which finally whistled out, resisting the spread of the azure flames.

However, just as the azure flames and his chilling sword qi were in a stalemate, suddenly, an arm reached out from behind the azure flames, scales glimmering on it as it grabbed out.

Sword qi tore through, but only ripped some scales on the arm. However, beneath the scales, as jade light appeared, it directly repelled all the sword qi.

The arm, with its five fingers tightly clenched, punched, blasting away the Genesis Qi and creating a sonic boom, rapidly enlarging in Chu Yang's pupils.

Layer after layer of Genesis Qi defense shattered completely at this moment.

Chu Yang simply had no time for any further action. That punch, containing terrifying force, heavily struck his chest.

Pfft!

Chu Yang spat out a mouthful of blood, his face pale. His gaze was fixed on the front, only to see the azure flames slowly recede, revealing a slender figure standing within.

"See, I told you... the time was enough." Zhou Yuan raised his face, looked at Chu Yang, and revealed a brilliant smile.

Chu Yang's mouth was filled with bitterness and his heart with regret. This Zhou Yuan was too cunning. They should have, at the very first moment, assigned the most personnel to drive him out of the competition.

Unfortunately... now they had already ruined a perfectly good situation.

"Zhou Yuan... don't be so smug. Even if you really can beat us, what then? You can't get past Senior Brother Yuan Hong!"

"And your people won't be a match for Senior Brother Yuan Hong either!"

Chu Yang desperately clutched Zhou Yuan's wrist, a sarcastic smile appearing on his lips. Finally, his eyelids slowly dropped, clearly having fallen into a severely injured unconscious state.

Zhou Yuan's gaze was indifferent. He grabbed Chu Yang with his hand and lifted him up.

"Whether I can or not, you're speaking too soon."

On a stone platform, the Genesis Rune Barrier suddenly exploded.

A figure shot out from within, it was Liu Xiang. As he rushed out of the barrier, a sharp cry rang out: "Zhou Yuan, do you think a single barrier can stop me?"

He raised his head and looked forward, his pupils suddenly contracting sharply.

Only to see on the mountaintop there, a figure sat on the edge of the cliff, with one foot dangling over the edge. On his shoulder, a black brush was resting, its snow-white bristles dangling from its tip like white chains.

And on the dangling bristles, a disheveled figure was bound, its fate unknown.

It was none other than Chu Yang!

On the mountaintop, the young figure lowered his head slightly, his eyes calmly observing Liu Xiang, who had broken out of the barrier. He then slowly stood up, tossed the bound Chu Yang aside, and looked down at Liu Xiang.

"So you're out?"

"Since you're out, prepare to join your senior brother."