Feng Xun had only been temporarily knocked out by Zhang Xuan's palm. As a combat master who possessed a huge reserve of zhenqi and a powerful body, it was natural that it wouldn't take him too long to recover.
His head was still spinning from the earlier impact, and in his moment of daze, he heard the words 'Celestial Master Teacher', so he instantaneously assumed that he was in a safe location. As such, he let his guard down and allowed words to spill out from his mouth.
"It's good that you have woken up." Seeing that the human had woken up, the Stoneleaf King heaved a sigh of relief. He was about to grab the other party to force him to spill out some words so as to alleviate the current situation when the Violetleaf King abruptly sent a foot into the other party's face.
Peng!
The foot struck Feng Xun's head squarely, and before the latter could even process what was going on, he had already fainted once more.
"Ah?" The Stoneleaf King was stunned.
Didn't you say that the both of you have a rather close relationship with one another? Why did you look as if… you were kicking a stray animal?
Paying no heed to the knocked-out Feng Xun, the Jadeleaf King glared at Zhang Xuan and spat, "End my life? You two?"
"Indeed, the two of us will suffice to deal with you! Since we have confirmed this human's identity, you no longer possess any value to us!" Zhang Xuan replied haughtily. "If you continue to live, you will only spread word of this matter and endanger us. Thus, Stoneleaf King and I have decided that as long as you join our alliance and swear not to speak of this matter to any soul or try to steal our merit, we will spare you this time around."
"Wonderful…" Seeing how the Violetleaf King was getting more and more arrogant, not showing the slightest respect toward him, the killing intent in the Jadeleaf King's eyes intensified. "Since you wish to kill me, it's only right for me to return the favor to you!"
Boom!
Right after saying those words, a powerful palm strike flew right for the Stoneleaf King.
In the Jadeleaf King's view, the Violetleaf King posed no threat at all. The one whom he should be wary of was the Stoneleaf King.
"Listen to me…" Seeing that the Jadeleaf King was completely enraged by the Violetleaf King's words, the Stoneleaf King anxiously tried to explain himself. However, before he could even finish his words, the Violetleaf King had already interjected with a loud bellow by the side, "Old Stone, quick, move according to our plan! Otherwise, we might very well die here!"
The Stoneleaf King nearly went insane from anger.
Plan?
When have we decided on a plan?
I only told you to follow my commands if the Jadeleaf King intended to make a move against us. Yet, before the Jadeleaf King even did anything, you went full out trying to provoke the other party. Just how in the world did I get myself stuck with an ally like you?
Furthermore, Old Stone? Stone your head! My surname is not Stone, alright?
However, he knew this wasn't the time for him to get into a conflict over the matter. It was apparent that the Jadeleaf King had already made up his mind to kill them. If he didn't fight back, he might just end up losing his life here.
Thus, clenching his fists, the Stoneleaf King twisted the Lightning Elemental Orb in his hand, and a thick congregation of lightning fell from the sky.
Hong long!
It collided with the Jadeleaf King's palm strike, and a huge shockwave burst into the surroundings, collapsing innumerable ancient buildings. The two powerful forces were equally matched, and they ended up neutralizing one another.
"And here I was wondering where you found the guts to stand up against me. So, you have to managed to tame the Lightning Elemental Orb and gained control of this lightning formation. However, if you think that you can kill me like that, you are dreaming!"
Seeing that his attack had been struck down by the other party's lightning, the Jadeleaf King bellowed furiously as he whipped out a long saber.
Huala!
He flicked the saber, and a vacuum cut through the air.
With just a single strike, the Jadeleaf King had succeeded in tearing a rift between the heavens and the earth. As if isolated from the world, the lightning, which had been descending furiously toward him earlier, suddenly found itself unable to enter the area.
While the Stoneleaf King had tamed the Lightning Elemental Orb, he had only gained control over a small portion of the field of lightning. Due to the limits of his cultivation, he was unable to bring forth its full might. He could easily devastate any cultivator weaker than him with it, but against a Half-Leaving Aperture realm expert like the Jadeleaf King… it was still a little lacking.
"I was indeed not a match for you in the past, but times have changed. Who knows? You might be the one who falls in the end."
Even though the Jadeleaf King had managed to fend off the first wave of lightning, the Stoneleaf King didn't despair. Instead, driving the Lightning Elemental Orb in his hands, he called forth another wave of lightning.
Huala!
The sky abruptly grew darker, and the rumbling of the thunder sounded more fearsome than ever. In the blink of an eye, the lightning shattered the vacuum that the Jadeleaf King had formed with his saber qi and appeared right above the Jadeleaf King's head.
Upon seeing the lightning above him, the Jadeleaf King didn't choose to flee immediately. Instead, an illusory figure appeared behind his back.
At Half-Leaving Aperture realm, while one's Primordial Spirit was still unable to free itself fully from the confines of the body, it could still escape from the Yuanshen acupoint and form something like an avatar, enhancing the strength that one could call forth significantly.
As expected, as soon as the illusory figure materialized, the space surrounding them was sealed off all of a sudden, trapping the Stoneleaf King and Zhang Xuan like animals in a cage. The furious streaks of lightning struck relentlessly on the cage, but the lightning was unable to breach it at all.
"Die!" After doing that, the Jadeleaf King's eyebrows shot up. He raised the saber in his hand and hacked it down upon the Stoneleaf King.
On the other hand, the Stoneleaf King knew that he wouldn't be able to match the Jadeleaf King without the augmentation of the lightning formation, so he began to panic. He quickly whipped out a long spear to face the Jadeleaf King's saber while shouting, "He is using his Primordial Spirit to seal the surrounding space. He can only sustain this state for a very short period of time, and it will be highly damaging to his Primordial Spirit. This is the perfect opportunity to bring him down, attack!"
It would be difficult for him to stand against the Stoneleaf King alone, but with the Violetleaf King's assistance at this moment, he should be able to corner the Jadeleaf King through a pincer attack.
The sealing of space through one's Primordial Spirit was a powerful technique, but it was incredibly depleting as well. Furthermore, his lightning was also striking the seal ferociously, so no matter how powerful the other party was, he couldn't hold on for too long.
With his full might, the Stoneleaf King barely succeeded in withstanding the Jadeleaf King's assault. At that moment, he couldn't help but realize that the Violetleaf King had yet to make a move despite it being the perfect opportunity, so he quickly turned his gaze over to see what was wrong.
That glance left him nearly spurting blood.
That fellow was looking at their battle by the side with his hands crossed, seemingly not intending to help at all!
In this instant, the Stoneleaf King suddenly came to a realization. Damn it, I fell for that fellow's ploy.
From the very start, the Violetleaf King didn't intend to collaborate with him! The entire matter was a ploy to have him and the Jadeleaf King kill one another.
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The previous vow had only restrained the other party from making a move against him, so it wasn't against the rules for the other party to have the Jadeleaf King deal with him.
Furthermore, no matter who died in the fight, the surviving side would still have to let him live for the time being in order to ensure that the Celestial Master Teacher remained under control. In other words, that fellow would be the ultimate victor of the fight regardless of who won!
What a fearsome scheme.
This won't do. I can't let that fellow succeed!
Understanding this, the Stoneleaf King quickly sent a telepathic message to the Jadeleaf King while fending off the latter's attacks. "Jadeleaf King, don't fall for that fellow's tricks! He is trying to turn us against each other and have us kill one another."
"Have us kill one another?"
Seeing that there was room for negotiation, the Stoneleaf King heaved a sigh of relief as he quickly replied, "That's right! The merit from finding the Celestial Master Teacher is huge; it is more than sufficient for the three of us to share it. There's no need for us to turn against one another over such a small matter."
"Hmm…" Pondering over the Stoneleaf King's words, the Jadeleaf King was about to reply when he suddenly felt cold killing intent behind him. Unknowingly, a sword had emerged behind him, and it was aimed straight for one of his flaws, making it hard for him to deal with it.
Hu!
The Jadeleaf King quickly leaped aside to dodge the attack, but even so, the sword still managed to leave a deep slash on his back, causing him grievous injuries. Crimson blood flowed down his back profusely.
Turning around, he saw the Violetleaf King retreating several dozen meters away with his sword tightly in his grasp, fleeing out of his attack range. There was an excited gleam in the other party's eyes as he shouted, "Old Stone, you were right! That spot is indeed his mingmen."
"Damn it!" the Jadeleaf King bellowed furiously.
He had thought that there was some truth to the Stoneleaf King's words, but who would have thought that it was only a ploy to distract him while the Violetleaf King launched an assault on him? With a frenzied cry that was overflowing with fury, he sent a palm strike toward Zhang Xuan while bringing his saber down upon the Stoneleaf King simultaneously.
"I…" Not expecting that the Violetleaf King to leap into battle right when he was about to convince the Jadeleaf King, the Stoneleaf King felt incredibly stifled and crazed within.
Never in his life had he encountered anyone who was so shameless!
How can you make me take responsibility for the trouble you have caused? That's really too much!
Furthermore… turning his glance over, he realized that the Violetleaf King was already standing a safe distance away from the Jadeleaf King after launching his assault. The other party's arms were crossed before his chest as he watched upon the commotion with a look of interest.
Feeling so indignant that he could spurt blood, the Stoneleaf King knew that it was futile for him to attempt to explain himself to the Jadeleaf King anymore. He had already lost the latter's trust for good, so he could only grit his teeth and focus on the battle.
Boom boom boom!
Even though the Jadeleaf King possessed higher cultivation than the Stoneleaf King, the Stoneleaf King was able to even the playing field with the powerful Lightning Elemental Orb in his hands and his superior physical defense. On top of that, the Violetleaf King's previous assault had dealt significant damage to the Jadeleaf King, so the both parties found themselves evenly matched for the time being.
However, the devastating shockwave that emanated from their powerful clashes caused the entire ancient city they were in to collapse uncontrollably, forming rubble all around.
Incredible… Seeing the strength the battling duo wielded, Zhang Xuan gave them a huge thumbs up.
No wonder they were the Five Upper Kings, the fighting prowess that they possessed was indeed frightening!
With Zhang Xuan's current strength, he could easily decimate any Saint 2-dan pinnacle cultivator. However, against experts of the Stoneleaf King and Jadeleaf King's caliber, the only option for him was to flee as far as he could.
Putting aside battling them, even the shockwaves emanated by their fight were hard for him to bear.
As time passed, the battle between the both of them intensified.
Logically speaking, with the Stoneleaf King's superior defense and control over the powerful lightning field, the Jadeleaf King should have fallen already. Yet, the both sides were still fighting on equal grounds.
Nevertheless, it was apparent that the Stoneleaf King held the decisive advantage in the battle. With the lightning formation in his hands, he was able to send wave after wave of powerful strikes at the Jadeleaf King relentlessly, causing injuries to gradually accumulate all over the Jadeleaf King's body. Without a power source like the lightning formation to fuel his attacks, the Jadeleaf King found his stamina and zhenqi depleting swiftly as well.
"Damn all of you… Even if I have to die, I will bring the both of you down with me!" Knowing that he would only be killed at this rate, the Jadeleaf King roared furiously as immense power burst forth from his body. The illusory figure behind him suddenly grew larger, and finally, as if breaking past its bottleneck, it freed itself entirely from the body.
That… He drew his Primordial Spirit out from his body forcefully! Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes in alarm.
Back then, he had encountered such a situation with the Waterleaf King as well.
Back then, in a moment of rage, the Waterleaf King had used a secret art to draw out his Primordial Spirit to attack him. However, it was a pity that the other party had chosen the wrong method of attack, resulting in his failure!
Currently, the Jadeleaf King was steadily accumulating injuries, and he knew that he would be killed eventually. Thus, he decided to go all out and use the secret art to draw his Primordial Spirit from his body.
Using the secret art, even if he were to survive the side effects, he would sustain permanent damage, and his cultivation would decline sharply. However, one thing was for sure—he would surely be able to kill the darned duo before him.
If the Stoneleaf King is killed, it is unlikely that I will be spared… I should find a place to hide in first. Considering the drastic side effects that came with the utilization of the secret art, Zhang Xuan knew that the Jadeleaf King was already determined to kill the both of them, and he couldn't help but frown.
This situation wasn't advantageous for him.
He had intended to spectate the battle from afar, but if the Jadeleaf King were to become desperate and go after him right before his death, that would be disastrous.
Thus, Zhang Xuan immediately got up and prepared to flee from the battle. At that moment, however, a figure gradually rose from the ground.
As that figure rose, he shook his head vehemently to shake out the grogginess in his mind.
That figure was Feng Xun. Due to his powerful constitution, his ability to recover was truly incredible!
"What is going on? Where am I?" Feng Xun mumbled in confusion beneath his breath.
Just as he barely opened his eyes, he saw a brick heading right toward his face.
Padah!
With his eyes rolling up, Feng Xun fainted once more.