It was a golden glow s.h.i.+mmering in the darkness; glorious, full of warmth as if dusk has turned to dawn.

But Tian Xing wouldn"t care for such a thing.

Of course, he had heard Mu Qingfeng, but he couldn"t be sure of its truth. And furthermore, he had already done it - how could he possibly stop?

"You have less than four months to live? Who cares? You"ll die now even if you only had one day left!" Tian Xing"s glare grew colder by the second, reaching peak intensity in no time.

"The Holy Region… is so cool indeed!" Fang Zhengzhi"s gaze inched towards Tian Xing before he suddenly revealed a smirk.

What have we learned from centuries of bloodshed?

The world had no shortage of crafty, wicked people. But in times of chaos, that wasn"t so important; what truly mattered was if one was strong or weak.

It was survival of the fittest.

In the chaotic Holy Region, the five sects reigned in each of their parts.

He knew the cruelty of the situation in the Holy Region, and that they obeyed the strong and powerful. But he still felt he had underestimated the Holy Region.

Tian Xing went against his word.

It was even without any hesitation, although he commanded the respect of the five sects and his words held enormous power.

But when his survival was threatened and he saw impending disaster, his decisiveness was terrifying.

This was the hallmark of a formidable hero.

One that ruled his own piece of the Holy Region.

Of course, Fang Zhengzhi did not feel that Tian Xing"s actions were wrong, because it was part of survival in a chaotic world, like the Holy Region.

A mighty punch was delivered to his right chest.

A normal person wouldn"t have been able to withstand this blow. However, not only did Fang Zhengzhi tolerate it, he charged toward Tian Xing.

Blood was gus.h.i.+ng out of his body.

The Rebirth Plate was spinning on his fist as blue and green rays interweaved. It s.h.i.+mmered and transformed into a giant, all-encompa.s.sing circle.

"Charge!" Fang Zhengzhi bellowed before immediately das.h.i.+ng toward Tian Xing. He didn"t bother faking an attack, for he no longer had the energy to.

This punch was simple and direct, neither fancy nor elegant. But it was packed with all the strength Fang Zhengzhi could muster.

"Boom!" It was a deafening blast. Then came the sounds of bones cracking. Faint, but crisp as ever.

Fang Zhengzhi was stunned.

And so were all the disciples of the Heaven Dao Pavilion and the Nine Pinnacles Mountain.

Everyone"s attention was focused on Fang Zhengzhi"s fists.

The very fists that…

Once again landed on Tian Xing"s face.

This felt very real… At least Fang Zhengzhi could feel the force of his fist shattering Tian Xing"s cheekbones. Yet, he didn"t understand…

How could he successfully deliver this blow on Tian Xing?

Was it luck? But how would luck be any factor against an opponent of absolute superiority in power? Could it be that his own powers had suddenly increased? That"s impossible. He was seriously injured. How would he have any boost in power?

Fang Zhengzhi was baffled. And so were the disciples of the Heaven Dao Pavilion and the Nine Pinnacles Mountain.

But all of them came to a realization very quickly. Tian Xing had not retaliated.

Not only that, his hands were tucked behind him as if he was tied up.

What a strange sight.

What was even more peculiar was that Tian Xing didn"t reveal any painful or surprised expression.

He slowly turned behind and looked at his hands.

"Have you completely awakened finally?" Tian Xing was bleeding at the edge of his lips and his glare was grave as ever. It was apparent that he wasn"t surprised, but extremely enraged.

And yet, these words had taken aback the disciples of the Heaven Dao Pavilion and the Nine Pinnacles Mountain. Well, not merely taken aback, but deeply astounded.

They finally saw a faint glow circling Tian Xing"s hands. It was thin but very long.

From his arms down to his palms, it grew substantially thicker.

Most importantly, the faint glow had armored scales. Pink armored scales, good as new, it wasn"t too obvious but definitely visible.

"Completely awakened? What the h.e.l.l are you talking about?" Fang Zhengzhi, too, was shocked as he saw the glow of armored scales enveloping Chi Guyan. Or rather, more specifically, it was around the body of the lady with long, black hair behind Chi Guyan.

This was indeed a peculiar scene.

This lady… had a tail.

"Senior Chi Guyan"s pulse had completely awakened!"

"Indeed, is this the work of fate? Or was she baptized by the Divine Message?"

"No, the Divine Message hasn"t yet arrived. It must be the work of the Thousand Years Fire Herb that completely awakened her pulse!"

"Or maybe she had felt the aura of the Divine Message!"

Unlike Fang Zhengzhi, when the Heavenly Dao Pavilion disciples saw the glow linking with the apparition behind Chi Guyan, they were thrilled with joy.

But the Nine Pinnacles Mountain disciples were different.

They weren"t excited at all. On the contrary, they were filled with fear, their expressions awkward and strange.

"Indeed, it wasn"t an accident!" Cang Yue was initially surprised. Well, no one could remain calm upon seeing the Rebirth Plate on Fang Zhengzhi"s hand. But at this moment, she was composed as ever, with her eyes locked on Chi Guyan. "Chosen One, she is the Chosen One! With her pulse completely awakened at seventeen years old, so what if the Rebirth Plate was activated? Still, only four more months to live!"

Cang Yue then turned to Fang Zhengzhi. Upon seeing his bleeding chest, she smirked.

Then, a ray of light of s.h.i.+mmering stars emerged from Cang Yue"s body.

It shot up toward the sky.

It happened suddenly but didn"t last for long. In a moment, it had vanished.

Cang Yue had disappeared together with the glow.

"She left?" Fu Xi Valley Elder Gu Yuan felt a little weird. After all, Cang Yue had arrived together with him and Wan Lei of Ying Yang Hall.

But now, Wan Lei had died and Cang Yue had left.

This made him shake his head in disappointment: "The young are impulsive indeed!"

…

Cang Yue"s disappearance did not attract much attention; after all, everyone had their eyes locked on Chi Guyan.

Her long, pink skirt emitted a faint glow.

And then, Chi Guyan suddenly moved.

Without a saying a word, nor any effort in criticizing Tian Xing"s behavior, she charged from beneath, her bright eyes gleamed with vibrant colors.

In her glamorous glory and aura of arrogance lay a sense of unfettered, pristine elegance.

It was especially so for the giant apparition behind her. Long, silky hair cascaded like a waterfall; a commanding presence emanated from within.

"Guyan, be careful!" Mu Qingfeng"s voice seemed worried. He shot up and transformed into a ray of light in an attempt to stop her.

But it was too late.

Because Chi Guyan was equally as fast.

"Chi Guyan, so what if your pulse has been awakened? You can never stop me!" Tian Xing"s expression grew graver with Chi Guyan"s approach as he stretched his tied-up hands.

"Snap!" The glow of the armored scales which previously entangled Tian Xing"s arms were forcefully broken, then retracted behind Chi Guyan.

It was as if they were bitten by a snake.

Wait a second.

A snake?!

Fang Zhengzhi was astonished once again. He had always felt suspicious about the long, slender glow, but suddenly a name came to his mind.

"Snake"s tail?! A lady… or a lady"s body with a snake"s tail?" It was impossible for Fang Zhengzhi not to be shocked. "What"s that? Chi Guyan"s pulse? A snake demon?! No, she"s Medusa? Hmm, she seems different though. After all, Medusa had poison snakes as her hair, right? Then… what is this?"

When Fang Zhengzhi was still lost in his thoughts…

Tian Xing reached again.

Without turning to face Chi Guyan, who was charging toward him, Tian Xing focused on Fang Zhengzhi. Right from the start, his target had been Fang Zhengzhi. However, Chi Guyan stopped him from behind.

"Why do you hate me so much?" If Fang Zhengzhi could live past today, he would certainly treat Tian Xing to a feast if he had the chance to.

Fifty pounds of buns and drinking is not allowed, I"ll choke you to death!

There wasn"t much to think about.

Because he couldn"t escape anymore.

Tian Xing was too close. With a punch within reach, how far could he run?

Fang Zhengzhi didn"t need to think much. He knew that his only chance at survival was to accept Tian Xing"s blow, but he couldn"t take it anymore.

So…

When Tian Xing was hurling that punch...

Fang Zhengzhi activated all his remaining strength.

"Heavenly Descent!"

At this moment, six blue rays of light shone brightly in the sky, and Fang Zhengzhi, who was standing in front of Tian Xing, began to vanish.

"You can"t run!" Tian Xing"s eyes stared at him with cold intensity. Then an apparition appeared behind him and swiftly wrapped Fang Zhengzhi up.

A warrior with black armor and red hair.

It was the first technique Tian Xing used against Fang Zhengzhi, Wrath of the Heaven!

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

And after two deafening explosions…

The third didn"t come through. Because Tian Xing"s punch had already destroyed all rays of blue light, and it was coming for Fang Zhengzhi.

That"s the difference in both their powers.

And with Fang Zhengzhi"s injuries, he had no chance of ever dodging this.

He could only watch the giant fist reaching in front of him, then smas.h.i.+ng against his body. This time, it would be his left chest.

"Clang!" A dull metallic clash rang.

Fang Zhengzhi"s body was sent right up to the heavens as he spurted a mouthful of blood on the way which landed on Tian Xing"s face, dyeing his black gown in red.

It was almost like raining blood.

But Tian Xing"s expression changed slightly.

"Heart Protection Mirror?!" Tian Xing obviously didn"t care for the blood. On his mind was the metallic sensation when he punched Fang Zhengzhi"s left chest just now.

As a matter of fact, he had slapped against Fang Zhengzhi"s left chest once.

But...

He didn"t intend to kill Fang Zhengzhi with that blow; he just wanted to shake up Fang Zhengzhi.

So, there wasn"t any real contact.

But this time it was different. His tight, powerful punch smashed right on Fang Zhengzhi"s chest, so naturally, he could feel the hardness on Fang Zhengzhi"s chest.

He wanted to punch him once more.

But it was too late. Chi Guyan had arrived, wielding an icy, gleaming sword, which was headed right for his chest.

And quickly, Tian Xing"s face started to change.

"Chi Guyan, I"ve said this before. You can"t defeat me now, not even if your pulse is completely awakened!" Tian Xing didn"t show any mercy. He couldn"t show any mercy.

He hurled a punch toward the sword that was coming for him.

But at this instant, the sword changed its direction, and a dark shadow appeared in the sky.

An infinitely giant shadow.

It was a sudden change, as quickly as the golden flashes of lightning in the heavens. Yet, it happened so naturally, so smoothly.

But Tian Xing was still Tian Xing.

The Leader of the Nine Pinnacles Mountain. A powerhouse in the Holy Region.

There was no hesitation.

When the dark shadow appeared in the sky, Tian Xing"s other fist was headed for it, of course, without any mercy.

"You"ve been tricked!" Chi Guyan"s voice lit up.

Tian Xing felt a human figure reach his head where the dark shadow appeared. And the shadow was now beneath him.

"Origin Swap? Tian Xing froze. But his punch was already in motion, and it was smashed on Chi Guyan"s back.

He didn"t understand why Chi Guyan would use Origin Swap at this moment. He was even more confused as to what Chi Guyan meant when she said he had been tricked.

Until he saw Chi Guyan spurting a mouthful of blood and her body sent flying toward the sky.

At this moment…

He finally understood what Chi Guyan meant.

"Even after I injured you, you still choose to move across me to take the hit for Fang Zhengzhi?!" It was the first time Tian Xing felt envious of Fang Zhengzhi.

Shameless, short-lived, yet he had a Chosen One who would risk her life to save him. Even if he had died, what was there to regret?

And that was what Tian Xing felt.

But quickly, Tian Xing"s eyes widened.

Because when Chi Guyan raced even faster toward Fang Zhengzhi, a golden ray of light suddenly shone on Fang Zhengzhi"s body.

This was something different from the one previously which lit up in the darkness. This was the Divine Message, one that had countless esoteric symbols floating with it.