Chapter 1237: Splitting Secret Technique

"Tsk, tsk..."

Zhang Xuan covered his eyes.

It was too cruel; he couldn't bear to watch.

This was the longsword that had accompanied him for a long time. If it pierced that spot, how could he use it in the future? It would definitely stink! Poor Ice Rain Sword... it was truly miserable!

While he felt sympathy for his own weapon, Emperor Qingtian, on the opposite side, felt like he was about to go mad. As an emperor of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, a high-ranking official controlling a region, it was already beneath him to personally fight a mere Embryonic Soul realm youngster. To then have his backside violated by the opponent... What was worse, the cauldron above him kept rubbing its massive bottom all over his face, seemingly enjoying itself. The dual assault, coupled with an intense feeling of humiliation, drove him to the brink of madness.

"You will all die..."

With a roar, his true energy exploded within him. He expelled the longsword from his body, and the cauldron was also sent flying backward.

"So strong!"

With a shriek, the Golden Origin Cauldron flew in the air, looking at the opponent with extreme caution. Under the impact of the opponent's true energy, its bottom had turned red.

"Indeed strong!" Zhang Xuan nodded. He knew he couldn't injure the opponent with his own strength alone, so he had carefully set up a trap, allowing the Golden Origin Cauldron and Ice Rain Sword to cooperate and succeed in one fell swoop! He had thought that even if the opponent didn't die from the penetration, they would at least be crippled. He never expected them to be able to force the sword out with true energy and erupt with such immense power! As expected of an emperor from the Qingtian lineage... his resilience in that area was truly admirable.

*Whoosh!* Before he could finish his thought, Emperor Qingtian, amidst a roar, began to swell rapidly as if he had consumed an expanding agent, growing to over three meters tall in the blink of an eye. Zhang Xuan blinked, filled with confusion. What was the point of growing so large? Increasing one's body size would reduce agility and enlarge the target area for attacks, which was a major taboo in combat. Under normal circumstances, unless there was a specific reason, one wouldn't enlarge their body. This sudden growth left him utterly perplexed.

"Ah..." Before he could comprehend what was happening, he saw the opponent grab his right hand with his left and violently tear himself apart. *Rip!* His body had actually split into two halves.

"This... could it be that, feeling his dignity violated, he had no face to see anyone and committed suicide out of shame?" Zhang Xuan blinked. It wasn't just him; the Golden Origin Cauldron also hovered motionlessly in the air, somewhat dazed. The Ice Rain Sword, off to the side, even stopped its dry heaving and stared blankly, as if it had seen a ghost. So what if it was *violated*? It made its whole body stink and feel nauseous... Did it cry? Did it throw a tantrum? No! One must be strong as a person! And strong as a weapon! It endured such discomfort, yet you, an emperor, are so fragile? You even tore yourself apart... How ruthless!

"Master, he's not bleeding. He must have used some secret art..." As Zhang Xuan and the two weapons stared dumbfounded, completely bewildered, the voice of the Vicious Fella suddenly echoed in his mind.

"Secret art?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

"Yes, my memory is incomplete and somewhat hazy, but seeing him like this just now reminded me of a special secret art of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe's royal family!" The Vicious Fella explained, "This secret art is similar to the human race's sudden surge in power. It involves enduring immense pain to split oneself into two in a short period! Once successful, combat power effectively doubles. However, it's temporary; once the duration passes, the user automatically reverts to normal, and their cultivation plummets... The opponent must have known he wasn't your match and intended to use this secret art!"

"Splitting? There's such an ability?" Zhang Xuan's eyes widened. One Emperor Qingtian was already so difficult to deal with. If he successfully split, wouldn't there be two? The most crucial point was that two Emperor Qingtian figures weren't just a simple one plus one equals two; they possessed a shared consciousness. Their cooperation would likely be even more terrifying than the previous Red-Blue Two-Form Sword.

"Golden Origin Cauldron, Ice Rain Sword, quickly stop him!" With a shout, Zhang Xuan charged forward first. One was already tough; two... they might all perish here.

*Whoosh!* Before he even reached him, his palm had already chopped down. The blade aura was like a dragon. He used his hand as a blade, intending to decapitate the opponent. The Golden Origin Cauldron and Ice Rain Sword also reacted. Without a word, they both rushed forward simultaneously. However, before they reached him, they saw the two halves of Emperor Qingtian continuously writhing. In the blink of an eye, two more arms and legs grew, and he had already transformed into two identical figures.

One of them caught Zhang Xuan's palm-blade, and with a slight shake, Zhang Xuan was immediately sent flying backward, his back slamming against the wall. His face flushed, and he spat out a mouthful of blood. *Bang, bang, bang!* He circulated his Heaven's Path true energy to suppress his injuries. Looking up, he saw that the Golden Origin Cauldron and Ice Rain Sword had also been struck away; one was stuck in the ground, and the other had created a large crater.

The two split Emperor Qingtian figures indeed had significantly increased combat power. Even though the Golden Origin Cauldron was a late-stage Nascent Divinity realm expert, it couldn't withstand even a single attack.

"Forcing me to use this move, you can at least die knowing you earned it..." The two voices intertwined, creating an eerie illusion. Emperor Qingtian looked at Zhang Xuan, seemingly wishing to tear him to shreds. The indignity suffered, after countless years of preservation, had driven him to lose all reason.

"You... which one is the clone and which is the main body?" Hovering in the air, his eyes vigilant, Zhang Xuan prepared to dodge the opponent's attacks at any moment, asking simultaneously. Whether it was a split or not, one was definitely a clone and the other the main body. It was impossible for both to be the original.

"Once you're dead, I'll tell you..." The two Emperor Qingtian figures charged forward simultaneously.

*Whoosh!* The underground palace seemed to be sealed by killing intent, making every movement difficult for Zhang Xuan. "Block him!" With a press of his palm, breaking through the spatial restraints, Zhang Xuan roared.

"You, who had your backside violated! If I don't defeat you, I'm not the great Cauldron!" Hearing the command, the Golden Origin Cauldron roared and charged forward.

"You will die too!" Both Emperor Qingtian figures' eyelids twitched; they were furious enough to explode. Having just suffered such an indignity, which was arguably their greatest pain, for the opponent to openly shout about it was unforgivable! One of them met the charge. *Boom, boom, boom!* The two clashed.

Seeing that the Golden Origin Cauldron had drawn one away, Zhang Xuan sighed in relief. With a flick of his wrist, a long spear appeared in his palm. This weapon, like the Ice Rain Sword, was also a low-tier Saint artifact. He had acquired many weapons in Qiuwu Palace, but most of them had lost their sentience.

*Whoosh!* Raising his arm, he thrust the spear forward. *Zzzzz!* It pierced the air, producing a piercing hum. Although Zhang Xuan rarely practiced spearmanship, Zheng Yang's spear techniques were, after all, taught by him. When the Heaven's Path Spear Art was unleashed, it was in no way inferior to his sword arts.

"Gugugu!" Seeing the spear thrust coming, Emperor Qingtian didn't dodge. His eyes narrowed, his fingernails rapidly elongated, and with a light flick, he parried the spear's tip. His fingernails were dark and sharp, seemingly a type of special weapon. As the spear collided, Zhang Xuan immediately felt an immense force surge towards him, making him stumble back several steps.

Had it been anyone else, sustaining so many consecutive attacks would have surely resulted in severe injuries and rapidly diminishing strength. However, Zhang Xuan possessed Heaven's Path true energy, which granted him incredible recovery abilities. Even when injured, he could heal quickly, so his strength was not significantly affected in the short term. However, although the Golden Origin Cauldron was on the same level as Emperor Qingtian, without Zhang Xuan's direct guidance, it was definitely no match. The Ice Rain Sword was even less so... If this continued, they would likely be killed by the opponent sooner or later.

"To be able to split into a clone, truly powerful!" Taking a deep breath, he recovered from his internal injuries. Zhang Xuan retreated a few steps, his eyes narrowed.

"Forcing me to split and create a clone, you... are destined to die!" Emperor Qingtian gnashed his teeth and charged again. Still in mid-air, his palm chopped down. His five fingernails, like five streams of sword qi, were ready to tear a person apart even before reaching them. Zhang Xuan's long spear trembled as he hastily blocked. At the same time, he activated "Traveler Without Bounds," retreating tens of meters away.

*Whoosh, whoosh!* No sooner had he left his spot than the opponent appeared before him again. Emperor Qingtian, having used the secret art, was surprisingly no slower than him. After retreating seven or eight times and changing direction multiple times, Zhang Xuan felt the hairs on his back stand on end. He hastily turned around, only to see the other Emperor Qingtian figure had appeared behind him at some unknown point. The Golden Origin Cauldron was currently stuck upside down in the ground, its "legs" twitching continuously, seemingly having been severely battered by the opponent and unable to fight for a while. The Ice Rain Sword was also stuck in the ground, motionless, not even having the inclination to vomit anymore.

"You... splitting into a clone, a dignified emperor, two against one... that's not fair!" Retreating slowly, Zhang Xuan gritted his teeth.

"Fair? It will be fair once you're dead!" The two Emperor Qingtian figures' voices rang out simultaneously, accompanied by sneers. "If you can split, feel free to do so. I don't care how many you split into!"

"I... don't know such a secret art!" Zhang Xuan shook his head.

"Then don't blame me. Today, I'll crush you with my clone..." With cruel expressions on their faces, the two Emperor Qingtian figures grinned malevolently.

As both simultaneously unleashed their power, the surrounding space seemed to instantly solidify. Zhang Xuan was like an insect trapped in amber, unable to move. His true energy boiled within him. Using all his might, Zhang Xuan managed to break free from his spot. He hadn't flown far before the two emperors appeared before him again. A sharp pain in his chest sent him flying backward, slamming violently into the wall and getting embedded in it. "Pfft!" Struggling to fly out, Zhang Xuan looked as if he could fall from the air at any moment, clearly gravely wounded and on the verge of death.

"At worst, we all die together..." Feeling despair, Zhang Xuan roared, his true energy surging dramatically, seemingly intending to self-destruct.

"Want to self-destruct? It's not that easy..." The two Emperor Qingtian figures raised their palms in the air, just about to make a move. Before their true energy could reach their fingertips, a sharp pain erupted in their heads, and both their heads simultaneously exploded. They exploded like dazzling fireworks. Immediately after, two fists emerged from behind their necks.

"You..." With their heads blown open, Emperor Qingtian seemed unable to believe it. Their rolling eyeballs clearly saw the figure who had ambushed them, and it was none other than... Zhang Xuan. They then saw the 'self-destructing' Zhang Xuan stop, his eyes filled with disdain.

"Just a clone, acting like it's such a big deal. Who the hell doesn't have one or two?"