Chapter 674: Shadow Immortal and Sword Orb

At the peak of Snow Lotus Peak, Li Qingchan gazed at the young figure before her, then lowered her beautiful eyes slightly and said softly, "The art of my Snow Lotus Peak is called 'Shadow Immortal Art.' It is a top-tier stealth movement technique, skilled in assassination. If a strike misses, one can retreat a thousand miles, and no one can pursue."

Zhou Yuan's eyes showed some surprise. He clearly hadn't expected Li Qingchan's most proficient Genesis Art to be assassination, a technique he had never seen her use before.

"Junior Brother Zhou Yuan, if you can find my true form, you win this match." Li Qingchan's red lips parted slightly. The next moment, her graceful figure, previously seated on the bluestone, rippled faintly and then vanished into thin air like a phantom.

Zhou Yuan's gaze sharpened, as he hadn't been able to perceive how she vanished the moment Li Qingchan disappeared.

The peak was now dominated by sheer cliffs, ancient pines stretching in winding forms, and protruding rocks. Continuous shadows stretched across the ground, and a profound silence reigned. Yet, within this silence, a hidden killing intent seemed to lurk.

Zhou Yuan's brows furrowed slightly. In his perception, only his own Genesis Qi fluctuations were present on the peak. If he hadn't known the situation was special, he might truly have thought Li Qingchan had quietly left the peak, leaving him alone.

Potent Genesis Qi roared out from Zhou Yuan's body, then spread outwards, sensing every minute movement. But a moment later, Zhou Yuan still found no trace of Li Qingchan.

He pondered for a moment, then extended his Spirit power from between his brows, searching inch by inch. After a while, Zhou Yuan discovered that even his Spirit perception couldn't detect Li Qingchan's presence. This sent a jolt of surprise through him: was the concealment of the Shadow Immortal Art truly this formidable? "As expected, all seven arts of the Cangxuan Sect are extraordinary."

Zhou Yuan sighed inwardly. Then he slowly closed his eyes. The next moment, when he opened them again, ancient sacred patterns quietly swirled deep within his pupils. The Obscuring Sacred Rune!

When the Obscuring Sacred Rune appeared, the world before Zhou Yuan immediately seemed to shift. He could even clearly see the subtle flows of World Genesis Qi with his naked eye. All obstructions were laid bare before him.

"Since it's the Shadow Immortal Art, it naturally uses shadows as its medium." Zhou Yuan's gaze sharply swept across the pervasive shadows on the peak. Wherever his sight fell, even the shadows themselves could not conceal anything.

However, after Zhou Yuan had thoroughly examined all the shadows on the peak, he still found nothing. This time, Zhou Yuan's expression finally shifted slightly. "How is this possible?! Even the Obscuring Sacred Rune can't find her?" He then secretly shook his head. He refused to believe that even the Obscuring Sacred Rune couldn't find her; otherwise, the Shadow Immortal Art would be far more than a high-grade Heaven Genesis Art...

"But I've already probed all the shadows on the peak..." As he thought this, Zhou Yuan's pupils suddenly contracted. He slowly lowered his head, looking at his own shadow. At that moment, deep within his eyes, as the ancient sacred patterns swirled, he directly discovered an unusual trace within his shadow. "She was actually hiding in my shadow!"

Waves surged in Zhou Yuan's mind, but his actions were swift. He stomped his foot, and mighty Genesis Qi surged violently towards the shadow. At the same time, he extended his palm and grabbed at a certain spot within the shadow. His palm seemed to reach into empty space. When he pulled it back out, a section of an arm, fair as jade, appeared out of nowhere. Following that, a graceful figure materialized before Zhou Yuan. That figure was, of course, Li Qingchan. At that moment, her delicate face was filled with astonishment. She even disregarded Zhou Yuan's firm grip on her wrist, gazing at him with wide, questioning eyes, clearly not expecting him to break her Shadow Immortal Art so quickly.

"How did you do that?" Li Qingchan couldn't help but ask. Zhou Yuan offered an apologetic smile and said, "Senior Sister Qingchan, my apologies." He released his grip.

Only then did Li Qingchan notice the faint mark on her slender wrist where Zhou Yuan had held her. She lightly bit her red lip, then gave Zhou Yuan a deep look before tossing out a jade slip. "You win," she said.

Zhou Yuan caught the jade slip and toyed with it in his hand. He had developed a strong interest in the Shadow Immortal Art. Its concealment ability was immensely superior to the Void Transformation Art. If mastered, it would be an extremely powerful life-saving technique. If he encountered a powerful enemy and couldn't win, he could use shadows to conceal himself and escape. For an enemy to detect him, it would likely require considerable effort, as even he had been forced to use the Obscuring Sacred Rune to find Li Qingchan's hiding place.

"Thank you for the match," Zhou Yuan said with a clasped-fist salute and a smile. Without lingering, he turned and darted towards Sword-Coming Peak, under Li Qingchan's somewhat complex gaze.

Throughout the realm, countless Cangxuan Sect disciples watched Zhou Yuan descend towards Sword-Coming Peak, secretly clicking their tongues in astonishment. In less than an hour, Zhou Yuan had defeated four peaks consecutively, gathering their respective arts. Zhou Yuan now possessed five arts, matching Chu Qing. If he secured another victory, he would become the first person in a century to master six arts. "Next, it's up to Senior Brother Kong Sheng of Sword-Coming Peak."

At the peak of Sword-Coming Peak, Kong Sheng stood with one hand behind his back, his expression calm. One hand was extended, and in its palm, a perfectly round, azure sword pellet quietly floated. The sword pellet was smooth and lustrous, as if crafted from azure jade.

"Junior Brother Zhou Yuan, you must have seen Baili Che perform the Demon-Slaying Sword Pellet Art at the Genesis Pool Festival. However, his sword pellet was only barely formed and couldn't display much of its true power." Kong Sheng held the sword pellet, his eyes as sharp as sword blades, his aura astonishing. "Today, if Junior Brother Zhou Yuan can withstand one strike from me, my Sword-Coming Peak's Demon-Slaying Sword Pellet Art will be yours." Zhou Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly. "Please."

Kong Sheng waved his sleeve, and the sword pellet in his hand slowly rose. Majestic sword qi roared out from it, condensing around the pellet to form a sword light, which manifested as a three-foot-long azure sword shadow. As the azure sword shadow formed, the very void trembled slightly, and faint traces appeared as if torn by the sword qi. The surrounding ground was already scarred with countless sword marks from the whistling sword qi.

Kong Sheng gazed at the azure sword shadow and flicked his finger. A sword hum echoed through heaven and earth. In that instant, a streak of azure light flashed, seeming to pierce through the void, heading directly for Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan's eyes narrowed. He waved his sleeve, and a golden Genesis Qi ribbon roared out, like a golden flood dragon, carrying a fierce momentum as it collided directly with the azure sword light. Bang! Bang! The two collided, but amidst the vibration, the azure sword light ripped through the Genesis Qi ribbon with a tearing sound.

Throughout the realm, the disciples of Sword-Coming Peak erupted in cheers. This was the first time Zhou Yuan's attack had been stopped since the start of today's Saint-Seizing Battle.

Zhou Yuan looked at the azure sword light that had cut through his Genesis Qi ribbon, his gaze flickering slightly. Yet, he still didn't choose to dodge. Instead, he slowly spread his five fingers. The Heavenly Yuan Brush within his Qi Dwelling vibrated slightly, and snowy-white hairs emerged from Zhou Yuan's palm, finally condensing into a pure white gauntlet that covered his hand.

The sword light whistled closer. The ground was torn open. "Source Break!" A low murmur sounded in Zhou Yuan's mind.

The snowy-white gauntlet instantly turned pitch black. His internal Genesis Qi erupted without reservation, and his physical body boiled in response. Zhou Yuan's eyes sharpened. He extended a palm and, amidst countless astonished gazes, directly seized the rapidly approaching azure sword light.

Violent sword qi erupted at that moment, instantly tearing the surrounding boulders into dust. Countless gazes were fixed on the dust-filled area. As the dust dispersed, Zhou Yuan's figure reappeared. He seemed to have taken several steps back, but the azure sword light had vanished into thin air. "Where's the sword pellet?" a disciple from Sword-Coming Peak exclaimed in surprise.

On the peak, Zhou Yuan exhaled deeply. He stared at Kong Sheng, and the gauntlet of black hairs slowly opened. There, resting quietly in his palm, was an azure sword pellet. The black hairs quickly vanished, revealing some sword marks on Zhou Yuan's exposed palm. However, these marks quickly healed under Zhou Yuan's formidable physical body.

Throughout the realm, countless disciples stared dumbfounded, especially those from Sword-Coming Peak, all appearing utterly shocked. Zhou Yuan had actually, by brute force, seized Kong Sheng's sword pellet in his hand.

In front of the many Sword-Coming Peak disciples, Zhao Zhu and Chief Baili Che exchanged glances, both seeing the bitterness in the other's eyes. Zhou Yuan's ability to break through the sword light with his bare hands and seize the sword pellet proved how terrifying his current strength was. This newcomer, whom they once thought was barely qualified to be a chief, had now truly surpassed them. This time, however, they were genuinely convinced.

On the peak, Zhou Yuan released the sword pellet, which shot back and was swallowed by Kong Sheng. At this moment, Kong Sheng's expression was also somewhat complex. After a moment of silence, he said nothing, merely flicking out a jade slip. "Junior Brother Zhou Yuan, you win." He continued, "Go. If you defeat Chu Qing, you will forge a legend. Since the founding of my Cangxuan Sect, no disciple has ever truly gathered all seven arts through the Saint-Seizing Battle..."

Zhou Yuan took the jade slip and nodded. Then, under the gaze of countless eyes, he raised his head, looking at the peak of the last remaining towering mountain in the distance. On that peak, a figure sat cross-legged, gazing intently at him. Their gazes met, and both became serious.

All the disciples of the Cangxuan Sect watched this scene with bated breath... One was the Cangxuan Sect's strongest disciple from the past... One was the Cangxuan Sect's strongest disciple now... Today's highly anticipated Saint-Seizing Battle had finally reached its ultimate climax.