Chapter 977: Retreating Wang Xi

Under the watchful eyes of countless spectators beneath the starry sky, Zhou Yuan appeared before the most ancient stone statue, deep in the stellar expanse.

Here, Wang Xi sat cross-legged in the air, a terrifying murderous intent rippling like an ocean around him. His eyes had turned blood-red, and the malevolent aura sent shivers down countless spines.

When Zhou Yuan arrived, Wang Xi's blood-red eyes fixed on him, and a chilling voice resonated: "This path is blocked. Get out!"

Zhou Yuan's face remained impassive. He glanced at Wang Xi and said, "Move aside. Your strength is not enough to contend for this stone statue."

If it had been before he fully unsealed his Nine Divine Dwellings, Zhou Yuan might have had to use every trick in his arsenal to contend with Wang Xi. But unfortunately, circumstances had changed.

Now, Zhou Yuan's Genesis Qi reserves were so vast that even he was astonished!

Wang Xi, who had made him wary just half an hour ago, was now no longer a concern.

The Primordial Chaos Divine Dwelling only truly revealed its terrifying power after all Nine Divine Dwellings were fully unsealed.

Upon hearing this, Wang Xi's expression instantly turned icy. His gaze, sharp as a blade, shot towards Zhou Yuan. Before this, he had never even considered Zhou Yuan a rival, yet now, the latter dared to provoke him so openly.

From Zhou Yuan, Wang Xi could sense a stronger Genesis Qi fluctuation than before, indicating that the former had indeed fully unsealed his Nine Divine Dwellings.

But Wang Xi truly refused to believe that unsealing the Nine Divine Dwellings could instantly elevate Zhou Yuan to such heights!

Without another word, Wang Xi's body vibrated. Blood-red Genesis Qi surged, and sixty-six million Genesis Qi stars materialized from the void.

After revealing his Genesis Qi reserves, he did not stop. He let out a sharp cry to the sky, and in that instant, a surging sea of blood seemed to roar forth from within him. As the blood sea churned, countless more blood-red Genesis Qi stars rose.

Finally, the number of Genesis Qi stars stabilized at eighty-five million!

Clearly, he had activated a secret art of the Blood Sea Domain!

This level of Genesis Qi strength was indeed formidable, far surpassing top talents like Yuan Kun and Xu Ming on the rankings. It even allowed him to begin to catch up to the likes of Zhao Mu Shen, Wu Yao, and Su Youwei.

"Sky-Engulfing Art!"

Wang Xi's fierce roar echoed through the heavens and earth. Vast and mighty Genesis Qi swept forth, transforming directly into a turbulent sea of blood, permeated with a bloody stench, as if formed from actual blood.

Whoosh!

The blood sea roared, as if intending to drown the world, carrying a massive shadow as it swept directly towards Zhou Yuan, engulfing him.

Yet, facing the terrifying might of the blood sea, Zhou Yuan stood unmoving in the void, as firm as a bedrock.

Seeing this, Wang Xi was instantly enraged. With a cold snort, he urged the blood sea to surge down, directly engulfing Zhou Yuan within it, causing the void to tremble.

As the blood sea swallowed Zhou Yuan, numerous exclamations of surprise erupted from beneath the starry sky. No one expected Zhou Yuan to be so overconfident, allowing Wang Xi's blood sea to engulf him directly when facing such a formidable opponent.

It was well known that the blood sea possessed an extremely terrifying corrosive power; once caught within it, even cultivators of the same rank would find it unbearable.

Just as everyone watched in doubt, suddenly, from the depths of the blood sea, the faint roar of a flood dragon echoed.

The next instant, the blood sea began to tremble violently. Billions of azure-gold Genesis Qi pillars shot out from within, tearing the entire blood sea into a thousand holes within a mere few breaths.

Countless astonished gazes turned towards where the blood sea had dissipated. There, vast azure-gold Genesis Qi permeated the void, and within it, countless Genesis Qi stars twinkled. The number...

Ninety-three million!

The entire starry sky fell into a deathly silence at this moment.

All eyes stared almost blankly at the countless Genesis Qi stars that had appeared behind Zhou Yuan: ninety-three million!

"How is that possible?!"

Yuan Kun exclaimed in shock. Even the usually aloof Jiu Gong was visibly flustered, her rosy lips slightly agape.

Ninety-three million Genesis Qi stars!

Moreover, there was no sign that Zhou Yuan had activated any secret art, meaning this was his true Genesis Qi foundation!

But it was important to note that even Su Youwei, with her Ten Divine Dwellings, only possessed a foundation of eighty-three million!

Yet Zhou Yuan was actually ten million higher than her?!

What rank was this guy's Divine Dwelling, exactly?!

In the Martial God Domain, Liu Qingshu's face alternated between green and white as she stared at the Genesis Qi stars behind Zhou Yuan. After a moment, she couldn't help but swallow, muttering, "How can this be..."

While Zhou Yuan's grey, indistinct Divine Dwelling aura clearly indicated a mutated Divine Dwelling, no one had imagined that his Genesis Qi reserves would skyrocket to such an extent after fully unsealing his Nine Divine Dwellings.

Previously, Zhou Yuan only had thirty-eight million!

What was it now? Ninety-three million! A staggering increase of fifty-five million?!

Liu Qingshu felt as though she was going crazy. She had never heard of anyone's Ninth Divine Dwelling causing such an astronomical surge in Genesis Qi reserves. Not even Su Youwei's Ten Divine Dwellings were that terrifying!

After a moment of shock, Liu Qingshu gritted her teeth and stubbornly retorted, "So what if it's ninety-three million? At this level, the Divine Dwelling stage has a limit."

Su Youwei's Genesis Qi reserves also surpassed Zhao Mu Shen's, but once they both reached the ninety-million tier, the gap between them wasn't significant. Ultimately, it still came down to their individual techniques.

Therefore, Liu Qingshu believed that if Zhao Mu Shen could defeat the combined forces of Wu Yao and Su Youwei, he could naturally subdue Zhou Yuan as well!

Amidst the countless astonished gazes across the land, Zhou Yuan felt a touch of emotion. The surge in his own Genesis Qi reserves to this extent had also somewhat exceeded his expectations.

Originally, he had thought that reaching eighty million would be perfectly ideal, but now, it seemed he had underestimated his Primordial Chaos Divine Dwelling.

Before the Ninth Divine Dwelling, this Divine Dwelling hadn't seemed particularly extraordinary. But who could have imagined that the opening of the Ninth Divine Dwelling would trigger such a monumental transformation?

Zhou Yuan calmly met Wang Xi's shifting gaze. At this moment, even without speaking, a terrifying pressure emanated from him.

Wang Xi took a deep breath, his eyes complex. He hadn't given Zhou Yuan much thought before, but he never imagined that this dark horse, who had risen to prominence in Hunyuan Heaven in less than two years, would reach such a terrifying level.

"Ninety-three million Genesis Qi reserves..."

"Zhou Yuan, you are truly strong. Perhaps you are the only one who has a chance to defeat Zhao Mu Shen."

"Everyone underestimated you."

The blood sea around Wang Xi slowly retracted at this moment, eventually fully reabsorbing into his body. His expression was somewhat dejected; clearly, Zhou Yuan's power had dealt him a considerable blow.

"Go then. I hope you can make this Nine Domains Grand Assembly more exciting."

Wang Xi stepped aside. Facing Zhou Yuan, who was accompanied by ninety-three million Genesis Qi stars, even a battle-hungry individual like himself had no choice but to yield.

Beneath the starry sky, countless gazes became complex.

Who would have thought that Zhou Yuan's current strength could force a fierce individual like Wang Xi to willingly concede and step aside? This clearly showed the immense pressure brought by those ninety-three million Genesis Qi reserves.

Everyone sighed inwardly. From today onward, it seemed another titan was about to rise on Hunyuan Heaven's Divine Dwelling rankings.

Only time would tell who would emerge victorious when this new titan clashed with the old ones.

Under countless gazes filled with a mix of hope and curiosity, Zhou Yuan nodded slightly to Wang Xi. Then, with a movement of his body, he directly shot into the Genesis Qi membrane.

The Genesis Qi membrane offered Zhou Yuan no resistance at all. In just a few breaths, he pierced right through it.

Above the statue's head, which was as vast as a plain.

The black mist spewing from the illusory beast behind Zhao Mu Shen slowly ceased. He had to halt his preparation to devour Wu Yao's destiny. He raised his head, watching the slender figure descend from the sky.

He let out a soft sigh and said, "Now I finally understand why even the Grand Exalted has personally taken notice of you."

He never expected that the little mouse he had easily let go of would now become so threatening; even he felt a strong sense of danger.

This sparked a hint of regret in Zhao Mu Shen, who had never regretted anything before. If only he had known, he wouldn't have toyed with him that day, but rather slain him directly...

Zhou Yuan glanced at Wu Yao and Su Youwei, who were sealed by the Sacred Lotus, then turned to Zhao Mu Shen and said, "Do not covet what does not belong to you."

Zhao Mu Shen stared at Zhou Yuan with a peculiar gaze. "I hadn't realized before that you also possess destiny..."

He felt a touch of pity. If he had discovered this earlier, he would have dealt with Zhou Yuan then, and wouldn't be facing this trouble now.

But it no longer mattered.

He gave Zhou Yuan a slight smile and said, "Are you here to deliver destiny as well?"