High Martial: I Grind Professions

Chapter 318: Chapter 182: A Mere Entry-Level Marquis

Viperfang wasn’t one for wasting words. His figure blurred in an instant, leaving only an afterimage in his place.

He reappeared like a phantom at Zhao Zheng’s flank. His palm formed a claw, and from his five fingertips extended ghastly green energy blades, stabbing straight for Zhao Zheng’s ribs.

The strike was vicious and cunning, and it also contained a powerful corrosive force that targeted the Primordial Spirit. Had it been an ordinary cultivator at the Peak of the Great Sun Realm, they would have been grievously injured in an instant.

Though startled, Zhao Zheng remained composed. With a loud shout, he unleashed the Primordial Spirit power he had just condensed without reservation, mobilizing his True Essence to form a thick, golden shield of light in front of him.

HSSS!

The energy blades pierced the light shield, emitting a harsh, corrosive sound.

The light shield fluctuated violently, and spiderweb-like cracks appeared on its edges.

Zhao Zheng was sent stumbling back by a tremendous force. His qi and blood roiled, and a trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.

The disparity was laid bare. He was only barely holding on, completely at a disadvantage.

But holding out for a short while was enough.

As he withstood the blow, Zhao Zheng silently crushed a simple, ancient-looking Jade Talisman he had been clutching in his hand.

A faint yet incredibly unique spatial fluctuation suddenly spread out, penetrating the area faster and more covertly than any ordinary signal.

At almost the exact same instant Zhao Zheng was attacked and his energy shield shattered—causing the first violent burst of energy—something happened hundreds of miles away.

Inside a temporary meditation chamber carved into an unremarkable mountain, the seated Mountain Rain King’s eyes snapped open.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. A faint smile touched his lips as he whispered, ”The fish has finally taken the bait.”

The moment the words left his lips, the Mountain Rain King’s figure vanished from the chamber like a soap bubble, leaving only a nearly imperceptible ripple in space.

In the next instant, he had transformed into an invisible streak of light, tearing through the sky and rocketing toward the coordinates of Zhao Zheng’s distress signal.

At the same time, in the underground control center of Changning City, a shrill alarm, signifying a high-intensity energy conflict, suddenly blared.

A blinding red light instantly lit up Zhao Zheng’s position on the map, and the energy index skyrocketed past the alert threshold for a Marquis Level clash.

Li Wen, who had just returned to his courtyard, simultaneously received a top-level emergency buzz and coordinate data from his wrist communicator.

His pupils contracted. His gaze fell upon the familiar coordinates—it was an area Zhao Zheng had to pass through on his flight path to the Fire Hall.

’Senior Brother Zhao?!’ Li Wen’s heart sank, and he instantly understood.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he stepped out of his quiet room. His True Essence and qi and blood erupted from his body as the terrifying speed granted by his fully mastered Ninth Layer Nine Heavens Divine Body was unleashed to its absolute limit.

WHOOSH—!

A blazing rainbow of light tore through the sky at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye. It shot straight through Changning City’s defensive energy layer, so fast that it left a temporary vacuum tunnel in its wake.

His momentum was even a notch faster than the Mountain Rain King’s from a moment ago!

Back in the desolate valley, the battle grew even more intense.

Viperfang’s attacks were like a torrential storm—vicious and cunning.

Zhao Zheng pushed his newly acquired Primordial Spirit power to its limits. Paired with his exquisite defensive Martial Arts, he was like a small boat in a raging sea under the Marquis Level expert’s assault. He seemed on the verge of capsizing at any moment, yet he tenaciously weathered one crisis after another.

The ground was blasted with massive craters, sending shattered rock flying.

His injuries were mounting and his movements grew sluggish, but his gaze only became more focused. Beneath his facade of ”terror,” there was a steady and tenacious resilience.

”A desperate struggle!” A hint of impatience and agitation flashed in Viperfang’s eyes as his prolonged assault failed to break through. His attacks grew even more frenzied.

He decided to delay no longer. Spreading the fingers of both hands, he began to gather an even more sinister and terrifying energy in his palms, preparing to launch a killing blow.

But at that critical moment!

A gaze sharp enough to sever one’s very spirit seemed to cross space in an instant, locking onto Viperfang.

Immediately after, a cold voice boomed like rolling thunder above the canyon:

”A mere entry-level Marquis dares to act so presumptuously? You’re courting death!”

Before the voice had even faded, a brilliant blade of light, as dazzling as the blazing sun, tore through the sky. It carried a majestic Blade Intent capable of severing all creation and annihilating the void. Arriving first despite being unleashed later, it appeared above Viperfang’s head faster than the speed of sound.

The blade’s edge was incomparably sharp, and it contained a terrifying will from a Primordial Spirit far beyond that of any ordinary Great Sun Realm cultivator.

The sudden attack interrupted Viperfang as he was gathering his power.

He whipped his head around in horror, only to see a figure in a standard-issue human combat suit diving down at an unbelievable speed. The person had yet to arrive, but the ferocious Blade Intent alone was already causing his Primordial Spirit to sting with pain.

’Li Wen?!’ Zhao Zheng’s heart pounded, the name almost escaping his lips. The ”terror” on his face was instantly replaced by genuine astonishment.

The core of the distress signal he had sent was on a special, encrypted channel for the Mountain Rain King. How could Li Wen be the first to arrive? This was completely outside of his plan.

In the split second that Zhao Zheng was stunned, Li Wen, now at full power, had already descended.

He entered a state of absolute focus, pouring the power of his fourth-layer Day Travel Realm Primordial Spirit into the blade without reservation.

With a single-handed swing, he sent the terrifying blade of light carving a profound arc through the air. It carried a mountain-crushing force of annihilation as it viciously chopped down toward the hastily defending Viperfang.

The ghastly green energy shield that Viperfang had hastily summoned collided head-on with the descending blade.

BOOM—!!

A piercing energy explosion swept through the entire valley.

Viperfang felt an irresistible, tremendous force slam into his body through his arms, and his Primordial Spirit suffered a violent shock.

He let out a muffled grunt. The sheer force of the blow actually knocked him off his feet, sending him flying backward uncontrollably. He crashed heavily against the mountain wall, kicking up a cloud of dust and smoke.