Chapter 1844: 斩仙

Previously, Zhao Hao had held back from using his primordial spirit because the High Priest's dying counterattack had gravely wounded him, requiring a period of recuperation. With his period of five degenerations of heaven and man drawing near, every day was precious. However, now consumed by rage, he disregarded the consequences, intent on killing instantly, even if it meant spending much more time recuperating.

The moment the opponent's primordial spirit emerged, Zhao Hao instantly felt the surrounding air grow viscous, making his movements difficult. Every cell in his body screamed in alarm. Almost simultaneously, Zu An activated his 'Iku Experience Card' skill.

This wasn't a conventional attack, nor did it induce physical pain, yet it caused heart-wrenching reactions. Sun En had previously suffered greatly from this move, despite his cultivation being no less than Zhao Hao's. Struck by this skill, Zhao Hao trembled uncontrollably, and even his primordial spirit wavered, nearly dissipating. "Iku! Iku!" Zhao Hao cried out in shame, utterly bewildered.

In the instant Zhao Hao was stunned, Zu An, who had already prepared, flashed to his side. He activated the *Shattered Star Profound Seal*, unleashing a tenfold attack. A dark dagger slashed towards Zhao Hao's neck.

Although Zhao Hao was still trembling from the humiliating sensation, his instincts made him shift sideways, avoiding the vital spot on his neck. However, Zu An already knew this strike wouldn't hit a vital spot; instead, he aimed to graze Zhao Hao's finger. The dagger was poisoned, designed to cause an instant-death effect with any inflicted wound, no matter how minor, even if it only broke the skin.

The sharp dagger, amplified by the tenfold attack of the *Shattered Star Profound Seal*, was something even Zhao Hao's Earth Immortal protective qi could not withstand. The dagger had reached his finger and was poised to inflict a wound when a water-like ripple suddenly emanated from Zhao Hao's body, deflecting the blade.

Zu An was startled. Having missed his strike, he retreated hundreds of feet away. Zhao Hao, his face grim, pulled a heart-protecting mirror from his robes. A crack suddenly appeared on its surface, followed by a sharp snap, as it shattered completely.

A hint of surprise flashed in Zhao Hao's eyes. "I didn't expect you to nearly threaten my life just now. To push me to this extent, you can certainly be proud!"

Zu An's brows furrowed deeply. As expected of an emperor with boundless resources, Zhao Hao possessed an astonishing number of protective artifacts. His carefully prepared combination attack had been thwarted with such ease.

Helpless, Zu An once again activated his 'Iku Experience Card,' then flickered his body, assailing Zhao Hao from all directions. Various humiliating images continued to flash through Zhao Hao's mind, but having gained experience from the previous encounter, he strenuously controlled his body to respond. "Hmph, repeating the same trick? Do you think I'll fall for it again?" Zu An attempted several more times but could no longer harm his opponent, and was even nearly captured on multiple occasions. Left with no choice, he had to re-establish a safe distance.

Zhao Hao glared at him furiously. "What exactly is that skill of yours? Can you stop using it?" Despite knowing these experiences were mere illusions, his body's instinctive reactions left him feeling an uncomfortable tightening sensation. He absolutely did not want to continue this experience.

Zu An smiled. "How does Your Majesty feel?" Zhao Hao could no longer restrain himself. His primordial spirit re-formed, and a golden giant stretched out a massive hand, sweeping towards Zu An. Zu An narrowly dodged, and the mountain peak beneath his feet was instantly blasted to smithereens.

"Let's see how long you can dodge!" Zhao Hao's face was grim. At this moment, he was filled with profound regret, wishing he had crushed this little bastard the first time he met him years ago, thereby avoiding him becoming such a grave threat and inflicting such humiliation.

The golden primordial spirit giant relentlessly pursued Zu An. Wherever it passed, the surrounding air grew viscous, making Zu An's movements and evasions difficult. He could only barely cope by summoning strong winds to perform teleportation, but the golden giant could easily cover the distance he teleported in just a few strides. Had it not been for Zu An constantly using skills like 'What Are You Looking At?', 'Iku Experience Card,' and 'Golden Snake King's Eye' to disrupt Zhao Hao's focus, he would surely have perished on the spot. This, however, only fueled Zhao Hao's rage, making his attacks increasingly frenzied.

Zu An secretly groaned. No wonder it was said that all beneath the Earth Immortal realm were mere ants. Once their primordial spirits emerged, the power was simply overwhelming. It was fortunate that the High Priest had previously severely wounded Zhao Hao, making him hesitant to fully unleash his primordial spirit for a time. That was the only reason Yun Jianyue and Yan Xuehen were barely able to contend with him.

Zu An took a deep breath, and suddenly his aura surged dramatically. He directly broke through the restraints of the opponent's primordial spirit, shifting hundreds of feet horizontally before ascending into the air on his *Wind-Fire Wheels*.

Zhao Hao grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed. He had guessed Zu An possessed some hidden trump cards, but he never imagined there would be so many. Crucially, with his own cultivation, many spells were ineffective against Zu An. Yet, this opponent's skills seemed to bypass the typical power dynamics and take direct effect, their profound underlying principles astonishing Zhao Hao. Fortunately, these skills were not very damaging; otherwise, he would be in real trouble. However, their highly insulting nature was taking a severe toll on his mental state. And what was happening now? How could Zu An's aura suddenly surge so dramatically?

Zhao Hao, being well-versed in such matters, quickly had a realization. He looked towards the vast mountain ranges on the ground, sensing an invisible, intangible, strange qi gathering towards Zu An. "No wonder you chose this place as a battlefield," he mused. "You intended to utilize the dragon pulse power of these mountains."

"Your Majesty is indeed insightful," Zu An replied. He had used the *Di Tian Sui Chan Wei* to gather the dragon pulse power from the surrounding mountains, giving him the confidence to confront Zhao Hao head-on.

"After all, you're not a true Earth Immortal. How long can borrowed power last?" Zhao Hao retorted, completely unafraid. The vast difference in their cultivation realms was evident; in terms of both power application and combat techniques, they were on entirely different levels. His primordial spirit temporarily retreated back above his head. He intended to delay, denying Zu An a chance for a direct confrontation, waiting for the borrowed power to wane before launching his own attack.

Zu An naturally saw through his plan and denied him any chance to retreat. Water-like ripples suddenly appeared in the air behind him. During this time, he had refined nearly all his weapons into the *Azure Luan Sword Array*, and with the aid of the *Divine Rune Weapon Manual*, he could now conjure even more sword qi. He yearned to conjure weapons like 'Dongfeng missiles' for a 'nuclear carpet bombing' as he had in the Xia Dynasty secret realm. Unfortunately, although this world's fundamental essence was slightly stronger than that of the Great Zhou world, it was only marginally so; the density of vital energy simply could not sustain such terrifying consumption. As for the power of a 'Gatling gun,' it might not even compare to his current refined sword array.

"Your abilities..." Zhao Hao's expression shifted. This move from Zu An even stirred him. He couldn't comprehend how someone so seemingly weak could possess so many heaven-defying skills. Reason dictated that he should leave and return once Zu An's momentum waned. However, having been repeatedly provoked, a persistent voice in his mind urged him: "Kill him! You must kill him!" He feared that if he left, the boy would seize the opportunity to escape, so he ultimately chose to remain.

At that moment, the weapons in the air had already taken form, and beams of light, carrying unparalleled sword qi, shot forth. Zhao Hao scoffed, "Mere parlor tricks!" He immediately unleashed the *Human Emperor Seal*, blocking the most powerful among them, the *Tai'a Sword*. Next, the primordial spirit above his head suddenly grew larger, swinging its huge fist directly at the remaining weapons. They were, after all, only Heavenly-tier weapons; how much more powerful could they be, even if amplified? Soon, a large swathe of weapon phantoms shattered directly under the golden giant's fist. Even the few stragglers that managed to penetrate the primordial spirit's body caused not the slightest ripple.

Zhao Hao sneered, "You haven't reached the Primordial Spirit realm, so you don't understand its might. How could your weapons possibly harm..." Mid-sentence, he suddenly cried out in alarm, "What... what is this?" Several unremarkable flying knives had suddenly pierced directly through his primordial spirit's body. Unlike the other weapons that vanished within the primordial spirit, these knives flew straight through and out the other side. Immediately after, those flying knives darted back and forth again, and soon, wounds appeared on the golden primordial spirit. Each flying knife that passed seemed to slice away a piece of "flesh" from the golden giant's body.

Zhao Hao screamed in agony. The entire golden giant rapidly retracted back into his body, and he gazed in terror at the unassuming flying knives. The flying knives circled in the air a few times, and finding their target gone, they emitted a buzzing sound, as if displeased by their prey's disappearance.

Zu An was momentarily stunned. These knives were, in fact, the *Immortal-Slaying Flying Knives* he had accidentally acquired previously. He had collected a total of five but had never found a practical use for them. Since he needed to refine various weapons into the *Azure Luan Sword Array*, and the more weapons the better for the array, he had incorporated all the ones he could. He never expected these ordinary-looking flying knives could actually harm a primordial spirit! He was only momentarily surprised; he certainly wouldn't miss such an opportunity. The *Divine Rune Weapon Manual* conjured even more weapon phantoms, giving Zhao Hao almost no time to breathe. Countless weapon phantoms, like a torrential downpour, instantly engulfed Zhao Hao.