Chapter 1298: Time Power

Jiang Fan frowned slightly.

So far, the Purple Giant's essence could only restore artifacts to their original state and heal physical injuries. While this essence was indeed incredibly powerful, almost defying nature, it seemed to function only as a support ability. How could it be hailed as the foremost essence in the Celestial Realm?

Suddenly, a thought struck Jiang Fan.

He recalled Hong Xiu's words: when the Purple Giant descended, her mother, a Five-Star Giant King, instantly transformed into an old woman. The other Giant Kings present turned into mummified corpses.

He suddenly understood what the Purple Giant's essence truly was: the power of time!

Only the power of time could revert the activated Bronze Grasshopper to its original state. Only it could rewind a wounded body's time to before the injury occurred. Her mother's rapid aging, her father's loss of cultivation, and the Giant Kings who welcomed her turning into dried husks — all were due to her siphoning their lifespans, converting them into her own temporal essence.

Jiang Fan's expression changed dramatically. If the Purple Giant used her time power on him now, wouldn't he...

The next moment, Jiang Fan was frozen.

It wasn't his body or soul that was immobilized, but the very time around him that had been brought to a standstill. He remained motionless, caught in a look of surprise. His thoughts, too, ceased at the moment of realization.

The essence star on the Purple Giant's forehead dimmed further. To ensure absolute certainty this time, she directly teleported in front of Jiang Fan and tightly grasped him with her colossal hand.

As she ceased activating her essence, Jiang Fan finally broke free from the temporal stasis. He was startled by his predicament but quickly regained his composure.

"Oh?" the Purple Giant exclaimed in surprise. "You're not surprised by your situation?"

Jiang Fan gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Facing a Giant King with time essence, I didn't die in the time freeze. You must have spared my life, didn't you? What, do you have something else to say to me?"

The Purple Giant showed a look of admiration. "You are truly intelligent to have deciphered my essence. If all of the Middle Earth were like you, I would genuinely advise our Ancient Giants to reconsider descending to the lower realm. However, someone like you must be one in a million."

Jiang Fan shrugged, calmly facing death. "Are you done talking nonsense? Do what you will; kill me or torture me as you please!"

The Purple Giant's massive vertical eye stared at him, revealing a hint of regret. "How wonderful it would be if you were one of our Ancient Giants. Unfortunately, you are not. Tell me your name. You are the first Middle Earth expert I will kill, and a formidable opponent worthy of respect! You should not die nameless!"

Jiang Fan straightened his chest and declared proudly, "My name is unchangeable! I am Wang Chongxiao of Middle Earth!"

The Purple Giant nodded slightly. "Wang Chongxiao. Very well, I will remember that name. Farewell, brave human."

She squeezed her five fingers, about to crush Jiang Fan.

But just as she moved, Jiang Fan suddenly smiled, a hint of playfulness in his expression. "Finally, it's time!"

The Purple Giant froze for a moment, realizing something was wrong. She tried to stop, but it was already too late! Her attack on Jiang Fan had triggered the Sage Inscription!

An invisible wave radiated from Jiang Fan's body, sweeping over the Purple Giant. Her fingers, despite her efforts, could no longer clench. Uncontrollably, she loosened her grip, bringing Jiang Fan all the way to her mouth. Her enormous, blood-red lips puckered as she moved to kiss him.

Her eyeballs darted wildly, and panicked words struggled out of her mouth. "W-what have you done to me? Why am I out of control?!"

In contrast to her panic, Jiang Fan stretched his body, which felt like it was about to fall apart from being squeezed, and a faint, knowing smile appeared on his face. "Surprised? Unexpected?"

The Purple Giant panicked. The essence star on her forehead spun rapidly as she activated her time essence, attempting to resist the strange power within her.

However, that was a Sage's law. How could a mere essence resist it? She was compelled to kiss Jiang Fan, utterly unable to control her own body.

Jiang Fan unhurriedly took out the small mirror given to him by Venerable Compassion Mirror and tapped it towards the Purple Giant's mouth. "Get in there!"

With a snap, the moment the mirror touched the Purple Giant, her enormous eight-zhang-tall body vanished into thin air.

Inside the mirror, a finger-sized purple miniature giant appeared, struggling violently. She furiously attacked the mirror's surface and even employed her time power, trying to break free. However, the mirror was unbreakable; it merely expanded and contracted like a balloon with each of her powerful impacts. Her time power was no longer sufficient to revert her to her state before being sealed.

Through the mirror, she could only shout and yell at Jiang Fan. It was clear, without a doubt, that she was uttering threats.

Jiang Fan chuckled. "Didn't you want me to take you hostage? Now you have your wish!"

He tucked the mirror into his sleeve, then swiftly began retrieving the Mystical Demonic Fluid and the Divine Transformation Undead. Approximately thirty percent of the Mystical Demonic Fluid had splattered away during the battle. The Divine Transformation Undead, however, were still relatively intact.

The most regrettable loss was the four Giant King Undead, all of which were either completely disintegrated or shattered beyond repair, making them useless. Additionally, he had wasted the black stone carving that allowed for a Divine Transformation-level attack!

After a quick calculation, Jiang Fan's heart bled. "What a huge loss! You dead female giant, when I get back, I'm definitely selling you for a high price to recoup my losses!"

In Hunyuan Prefecture, all the major sects were in a state of deathly silence.

Their eyes wide, they were all too stunned to speak, feeling as if they were dreaming. Having witnessed the Purple Giant's almost invincible combat prowess, the Venerables of the First Heavenly Tribulation present had no confidence they could survive against her.

That time essence was simply unbeatable! It could restore any injury to peak condition, fix opponents in time with temporal power, giving her absolute control over life and death. How could one fight such a terrifying essence?

Yet, Jiang Fan had contended with her back and forth, injuring her twice, and ultimately succeeded in capturing her alive!

"Is this Wang Chongxiao really... really at the Nascent Soul stage?"

"He's practically a god!"

"To single-handedly infiltrate the Ancient Giants' encampment and capture a Giant King with time essence alive!"

"How utterly defiant of natural order is that?"

"He is truly a model for us all!"

In the courtyard of Wenhai Academy, Venerable Mantra gazed at the crystal, her eyes filled with astonishment.

"Is this fellow really that formidable?"

Each of Jiang Fan's attacks posed little threat to a Venerable. Even the black stone carving struggled to inflict effective damage on them. However, Jiang Fan possessed numerous techniques, each perfectly executed, allowing him to contend effectively even with Venerables!

Particularly bizarre was the fact that Jiang Fan had used some unknown secret art to make the Purple Giant lose control of her own body!

"It's a good thing that little rascal Jiang Fan doesn't possess such immense power," Venerable Mantra mused. "Otherwise, it wouldn't be easy for me to teach him a lesson."

At this moment, Jiang Fan's perspective shifted again.

Venerable Mantra quickly looked on. She was already filled with curiosity about this middle-aged man named Wang Chongxiao.