Chapter 211: Stinky Kid, Bragging Again

"Suspected, passive points +1."

"Suspected, passive points +1."

Xu Xiaoshou was paralyzed by the spiritual energy that subconsciously surged from the old man, his face a picture of misery. Shouldn't he be the victim? Why was this old man still sarcastic after bumping into him?

Just as he was about to retort, several powerful figures (referred to as 'thrones') who had been following closely behind the old man swiftly flew over, each standing in mid-air with an imposing aura. However, the mottled bloodstains and numerous slash marks on their bodies were truly horrifying to behold. Xu Xiaoshou's eyelids twitched wildly.

"This..."

Looking again at the bloody small axe in Cen Qiaofu's hand, the answer seemed self-evident. He was secretly glad he hadn't blurted out his reckless words. Could it be that this old man was also a "Holy Slave"? Or the kind of person who could single-handedly defeat everyone present?

Xu Xiaoshou's face turned pale, and his confident demeanor instantly vanished. He could only nod with difficulty. "Yes, I am a hedgehog."

Cen Qiaofu: "..."

This sudden confession left the old man speechless. However, as Xu Xiaoshou was merely an ant at the nascent stage of the Yuan Court Realm, Cen Qiaofu's attention was clearly no longer focused on him. He turned his head to look at the two main combatants of the great battle.

Elder Sang stared intently at the masked figure in the distance, clenching the terrifying sword energy that had instilled fear in everyone.

"Puff!"

After a faint puff, the sword energy that had torn through the night sky was utterly burned to ash, not even a wisp of mist remaining in this world.

Cinderflame Heavenly Fire, burning all to ash!

This sight of sword energy being burned bare-handed startled Cen Qiaofu.

"Who are you?" This person was clearly not on the same level as the other young men. He vaguely felt that this technique seemed familiar, but he couldn't confirm it. Alas, they were still too young and not from his era, Cen Qiaofu mused.

"Cen Qiaofu?"

The old man didn't recognize Elder Sang, but Elder Sang looked at him, his expression changing rapidly. "Why are you here too?"

Cen Qiaofu was astonished to hear this; the tone clearly belonged to someone very familiar with him. So, so many youngsters in this era still remembered him? His hunched back seemed to straighten slightly, and a faint, unconscious trace of pride appeared on his face. "You recognize me?"

Elder Sang said no more, turning to look at the masked figure. He gently pulled down his straw hat, and darkness shrouded his face. "I warned you not to come to the Spiritual Palace again."

The masked figure's expression instantly changed upon hearing this, and he exclaimed, "Woodsman!"

Cen Qiaofu turned, bewildered. From the sound of it, the one wearing the straw hat intended to stop him?

"Heh heh, arrogant youngsters!"

Puff, puff!

No sooner had he spoken than he realized the air instantly grew hot, the ground dried up, and the void trembled and wavered, as if enduring the scorching heat of a blazing sun.

Sizzle—

A circle of white flame patterns rose from the ground, drawing a vast circle that then enveloped the three figures. The next second, with a deafening roar, a white world of flame, hundreds of zhang in size, instantly enveloped the three. The terrifying temperature scorched, blurring the void, and what seemed like crystalline liquid droplets dripped down.

"Dragon Melting Realm?"

The masked figure was shocked, roaring in surprise, "Are you crazy?"

Everyone outside also changed their expressions, discovering that this world of white flame could even directly incinerate spiritual senses, making it impossible to peer inside. Xu Xiaoshou's "Perception" indeed passed through it, but he only felt his soul burn intensely, as if his entire body was on fire.

"Attacked, passive points +1."

"Attacked, passive points +1."

The info bar scrolled rapidly, leaving Xu Xiaoshou somewhat speechless. He wanted to block "Perception," but this passive skill currently didn't seem to have such a function.

"Is this old geezer really that strong?" Xu Xiaoshou realized he had never truly seen Elder Sang make a move; even during the masked figure's night attack on Goose Lake, the old geezer had dismissed it with a mere glance. To see him exert such full strength today was truly a first!

With a whoosh, Qiao Qianzhi landed beside him. "Xiaoshou? Why are you here too?"

After Ye Xiaotian landed, he was also surprised and doubtful. "This kid... Why was he everywhere? Could it be that he had gotten overconfident after performing a great service in the previous battle with Lei Shuangxing, and planned to come here to teach that masked figure a lesson too? A mere Xiantian realm cultivator, how daring..."

"Didn't I tell you to hide?" Ye Xiaotian said, displeased.

"Yes, hide!" Xu Xiaoshou nodded, as if it were obvious.

"Then why are you still running here, looking for trouble?" Ye Xiaotian looked Xu Xiaoshou up and down, trying to find any injuries, but found that besides his clothes being a bit disheveled, the kid wasn't injured in the slightest.

"Isn't hiding just going home?" Xu Xiaoshou said. "My spiritual residence is right here, where else can I run off to?"

Ye Xiaotian: "..." He chose to remain silent.

At this moment, Xiao Qixiu also recovered thanks to Elder Sang's medicinal pills, finally stabilizing the collapse of his Grand Dao, and flew towards Xu Xiaoshou's direction.

"You've worked hard." Ye Xiaotian patted Xiao Qixiu's shoulder. In his opinion, Xu Xiaoshou's survival must have been due to Xiao Qixiu. Unexpectedly, the middle-aged man shook his head, glancing at the young man in front of him with a complicated expression, and then sighed.

"This time, it truly wasn't my doing. If it weren't for this kid, I might not be here anymore."

The others froze upon hearing this, and even Jiang Bianyan, who had arrived late, was stunned. A mere Xiantian realm cultivator, what role could he play in this great battle?

Xu Xiaoshou felt a little embarrassed, but seeing the disbelief in everyone's eyes, he could only smile modestly and point to the white world of flame before them. "See? The sword wound on that masked figure, I inflicted it."

The air seemed to freeze for a second.

Qiao Qianzhi slapped Xu Xiaoshou on the head. If it weren't for the inappropriate timing for loud laughter, he probably would have burst out laughing. "Brat, boasting again!"

"Suspected, passive points +3."

With a thud, the hand that had slapped Xu Xiaoshou's head was sent flying back by the impact. Qiao Qianzhi looked at his palm, somewhat astonished. He looked again at Xu Xiaoshou's grinning face, vaguely feeling that this kid seemed somewhat different from before.

Xiao Qixiu took a deep breath and said, "It really was him who stabbed him!"

"Suspected, passive points +3."

Xu Xiaoshou shook his head at the info bar. Indeed, that's how people are; sometimes, even when the truth is right in front of them, they still refuse to believe it. Watching everyone's expressions change from doubt to astonishment, Xu Xiaoshou couldn't help but mumble, "It was just one sword strike, no need to make such a fuss..."

Xiao Qixiu glared fiercely at him.

"Cursed, passive points +1."

"Is a fight about to break out?" Ignoring the powerful figures, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly looked at the white world of flame and spoke, and everyone's gaze instinctively followed.

The dazzling flames made one's eyes ache. Cinderflame Heavenly Fire was originally formless and colorless; this was only the second time Xu Xiaoshou had seen it in this white flame form. Hmm, the first time was when he had just cultivated "Cinderflame Heavenly Blaze."

"Is it a return to simplicity?"

As he was pondering, Qiao Qianzhi delivered another slap to his head.

Xu Xiaoshou: "???"

It didn't hurt, but these sudden scares were enough to give someone a heart attack, weren't they?

"What's going on?"

Wiping tears from the corner of his eyes, Qiao Qianzhi grimaced and said, "Brat, boasting again! I can barely see anything clearly, and you're talking as if you can see right through it."