Heaven-Surpassing Divine Emperor

”Jiang Chen, what happened?”

Gai Shi walked up, glanced at the letter that had turned to ash, and asked in a low voice.

Previously, Jiang Chen had shown no killing intent toward Duan Xu. But after seeing that letter, a chilling murderous aura had suddenly erupted from him.

He had struck out and killed Duan Xu.

This made Gai Shi instinctively feel that something major had occurred.

Wei Lihuang’s face was grim. He was the witness for this Pill Fighting match, yet Duan Xu had tried to escape right under his nose. This was a slap in the face to Wei Lihuang.

Standing beside Jiang Chen, Wei Lihuang said gravely, ”Jiang Chen, if you need any help, just say the word. You are a Venerable guest of my Celestial Secret Pavilion, and we will definitely provide our full support!”

”Me too!” Gai Shi said, his gaze burning with intensity.

Jiang Chen looked at the two and nodded. ”Thanks! But I should handle this matter myself. If I really can’t solve it, I’ll come find you.”

The two of them nodded in agreement.

Jiang Chen looked at Wei Lihuang. ”Master Wei, please arrange a quiet room for me first.”

”Of course!”

Following Wei Lihuang’s arrangements, Jiang Chen entered a quiet room inside the Celestial Secret Pavilion. Once inside, Jiang Chen took out the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron and Duan Xu’s Pill Cauldron.

THUD!

The two Pill Cauldrons landed before him. Jiang Chen struck out repeatedly with his palms.

Under Jiang Chen’s blows, cracks appeared on the semi-finished Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron. Finally, with a BOOM, it shattered.

It broke into chunks of metal. With a flicker of his Divine Thought, he had the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron absorb them.

BUZZ!

The Pill Fire surged, continuously refining the material.

Both Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldrons were forged from the same materials, so melting them together went very smoothly. They fully merged in just half a double-hour.

BUZZ!

The dragon patterns on the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron grew even brighter, and its aura became vaster and more stable. It had already advanced to a Fifth-grade Pill Cauldron!

’A Fifth-grade Pill Cauldron... Back then, even the Celestial Demon Emperor Venerable only possessed a Sixth-grade Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron. However, if I want to advance it to the sixth grade, I’m afraid I won’t be able to do so before reaching the Demigod level!’

Jiang Chen took a deep breath, summoned the Spirit-Slaying Sword, and tossed it into the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron.

Over ten thousand types of precious refining materials appeared before him. These were the very refining materials Jiang Chen had purchased from the Celestial Secret Pavilion for the purpose of upgrading the Spirit-Slaying Sword.

The Pill Fire raged, and with the aid of the newly-upgraded Fifth-grade Pill Cauldron, the refining process was exceptionally smooth and much faster than before.

The ten thousand-plus refining materials had to be integrated into the Spirit-Slaying Sword in a specific order.

The current Spirit-Slaying Sword was only a Saint Tier Low-level Profound Weapon, which was no longer quite enough for Jiang Chen.

’After all these refining materials are smelted into it, the Spirit-Slaying Sword should be restored to the Saint Tier Middle Level, or maybe even the Saint Tier Advanced Level. At that point, with the Spirit-Slaying Sword in hand, I’ll be able to slay even an expert at the Sixth Stage of Human Emperor Realm!’ Jiang Chen’s gaze was chillingly cold.

The contents of the letter surfaced in his mind.

When he had arrived at the Alchemy Conference venue earlier, he hadn’t seen Xiaoyou, the Black Emperor, or Little White, and he’d had a vague sense of unease.

He never expected they would fall into the hands of the Fenghuo Commerce Association.

The reason Duan Xu had been so hostile toward him from the very beginning was twofold: first, he was jealous of Jiang Chen’s reputation as the number one genius of the Eastern Continent; and second, the Fenghuo Commerce Association had tasked him with delivering that letter.

Now that Duan Xu was dead, the Fenghuo Commerce Association would surely know that he had received the letter.

It was bound to be a dragon’s den or a tiger’s lair!

Behind the Fenghuo Commerce Association was the Fengyang Ancient Country, and Jiang Chen and the Fengyang Ancient Country were like fire and water—their conflict would only end in death. This trip was certain to be fraught with danger; he had to be fully prepared.

The coiled dragon patterns on the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron continuously roamed across the cauldron’s body, blooming with a dazzling radiance.

One double-hour!

Two double-hours!

After a full two and a half double-hours of refining, the Spirit-Slaying Sword inside the Eight Trigrams Roaming Dragon Cauldron had finally absorbed all ten thousand-plus types of refining materials, and its entire body now radiated a bright black light.

The blood groove down its center had also become more defined.

BUZZ!

The cauldron lid opened, and the Spirit-Slaying Sword transformed into Flowing Light, shooting toward Jiang Chen.

Like a well-behaved child, it rubbed against Jiang Chen’s cheek. The sentience of the Sword Spirit within it had grown even stronger.

A smile touched Jiang Chen’s lips. ”Saint Tier Middle Level? Although it didn’t advance to Saint Tier Advanced, its power has increased significantly.”

Straightening up, a cold light flickered in Jiang Chen’s eyes.

The Spirit-Slaying Sword in his hand seemed to sense the killing intent in its master’s heart. It vibrated slightly, a sharp Sword Aura flickering at its tip.

”Fenghuo Commerce Association, here I come!”

Jiang Chen stepped out of the quiet room and headed straight for the Fenghuo Commerce Association.

The moment he stepped out of the Celestial Secret Pavilion, pieces of information about him began to spread.

「Inside the Celestial Secret Pavilion.」

”Pavilion Master, Jiang Chen has left and is heading toward the Fenghuo Commerce Association!” an expert from the Celestial Secret Pavilion said respectfully.

Wei Lihuang nodded and muttered to himself, ”The Fenghuo Commerce Association? Li Ru, oh, Li Ru, you actually dared to provoke an Evil Star like Jiang Chen, heh heh...” He looked at the expert before him. ”Pass down the order. Everyone is to prepare in secret. Perhaps today is the day we annex the Fenghuo Commerce Association in one fell swoop!”

”Yes, sir!”

「Meanwhile.」

「The Royal Family, in the Imperial Palace.」

Gai Shi looked at the confidential letter in his hand, a sharp glint in his eyes. ”The Fenghuo Commerce Association? You dare to make a move against my, Gai Shi’s, brother? Then there’s no need for you to exist any longer!”

A golden Soldier Token appeared in Gai Shi’s hand.

A cold light flickered in his eyes as he tossed the Soldier Token toward a dark corner. ”Relay my command! Dispatch the Asura Guard to the Fenghuo Commerce Association. At the same time, place the entire city under martial law—no one is allowed in or out. Before the Celestial Secret Banquet begins, I want the Fenghuo Commerce Association uprooted from the lands of my Luotian Dynasty!”

”Yes, sir!”

From the Darkness, an expert took the golden Soldier Token and silently vanished.

......

「Fenghuo Commerce Association.」

As always, the place was packed with people. As a trading hub second only to the Celestial Secret Pavilion, it was extraordinarily bustling.

”Did you guys see the Alchemy Conference yesterday? It was absolutely brilliant! Especially Jiang Chen, that Void Condensation Technique of his was simply divine!”

”The most pitiful one was Duan Xu. He actually got himself killed by Jiang Chen.”

”Hmph, that Duan Xu was just asking for death. He dared to challenge Jiang Chen? You should know, word has gotten out from the Alchemist Guild that Jiang Chen is likely a Sixth Grade Pill Emperor!”

”A Pill Emperor? Isn’t Jiang Chen less than twenty years old? That’s too terrifying!”

A group of experts were in discussion.

Suddenly...

The man who spoke first froze, his pupils contracting violently. He stared toward the horizon, a look of terror on his face, as if he had just seen something horrifying.

”What’s wrong?” his companion asked curiously.

”Y-y-y-you guys, look...” The man raised a trembling hand and pointed toward the Celestial Vault.

Everyone looked, and they all shuddered, their faces filled with terror.

High above in the Celestial Vault...

A slender figure was striding through the air. His right hand was raised high, holding up a majestic mountain peak. The peak was a thousand zhang tall, a dark, oppressive mass that loomed like a thundercloud overhead!

SWOOSH!

The mountain peak was suddenly thrown, causing the void to tremble and the earth to rumble.

BOOM—

The thousand-zhang mountain peak crashed down heavily before the gates of the Fenghuo Commerce Association. Then, the figure who had arrived through the air brandished a sharp sword and began to move.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Streaks of Sword Aura cut through the air, landing on the mountain peak.

Stone and rock flew everywhere as the entire thousand-zhang mountain was carved into a massive stone monument. And on this monument were inscribed six large words—Site of the Fenghuo Commerce Association!

”Today, I, Jiang Chen, have come to settle old debts with the Fenghuo Commerce Association! All uninvolved parties must evacuate the premises within half an incense stick’s time. As for the people of the Fenghuo Commerce Association, you’d best stay put inside. Do not take a single step out!”

THUD!

Jiang Chen landed atop the stone monument. He swung the Spirit-Slaying Sword through the air, tracing a circular arc of sword light. The arc expanded, enveloping the entire Fenghuo Commerce Association, before suddenly dropping down.

RUMBLE...

A deep, bottomless trench more than a meter wide was carved into the ground, encircling the Fenghuo Commerce Association. And Jiang Chen’s voice echoed leisurely above the association’s grounds: ”This is the boundary. Anyone who crosses it—dies!”