Da Xuan Martial Saint

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Tuguhou at this point just wanted to withdraw his force and retreat, but he was already caught in a quagmire. The two opposing forces clashing would likely blast him to oblivion the moment he pulled back.

Yet not retreating would lead to the same fate. Chen Mu had his power condensed but not unleashed, as if holding him in the palm of his hand, ready to be crushed at any moment, yet he held back, thoroughly analyzing his opponent's techniques and skills inside and out.

Eventually.

As if to confirm what was already known, a trace of light flickered in Chen Mu's eyes.

In the void, the two clashing auras and pressures finally exploded with a buzz. Tuguhou's surrounding Yuan Gang energy collapsed in an instant, the Earth-Shaking Seal shattered successively, his face turned deathly pale abruptly, blood spurted from his mouth from the violent shock, his body flew backward like a torn sack, crashing onto the frozen ground. The speed of his retreat almost matched the swiftness of his approach; he crashed into the earth a hundred paces away like a black cannonball, forming a deep pit on impact, the ground fissured and broken.

"Indeed, you have some degree of skill, but it's still not enough," Chen Mu commented, not looking at the tumbling Tuguhou but instead at his own fist, peering through it, as if gaining insight while talking to himself. The power observed coursing through him, above all, the flow of Yuan Gang True Essence.

To cultivate a domain and have a perfected Martial Body, a Martial Arts Grandmaster is indeed extraordinary, being able to wield his martial body to control the domain, though rudimentary compared to the genuine Blood Exchange Realm's 'Commanding the Power of Heaven and Earth,' it is still an intensely solidified force. If he hadn't cultivated his Qiankun Martial Body, it would indeed be difficult to contend with it.

Even if the potential power he could mobilize wasn't much different, the Power of Heaven and Earth, solidified within the flesh and combined with Yuan Gang, represented forcefulness unheard of. Like the same great force, condensed and dispersed, the power is just different.

This was also his first time truly experiencing a Grandmaster's methods.

The opponents he had faced before, such as the Seventh Rank Venerable from the Sky Demon Sect—although at the same realm and their Demon Body comparable to a Martial Body—they lacked the truly powerful techniques of a Grandmaster.

As for Fu Jingyuan, the Elder he met in Yu County from the Mysterious Mechanism Pavilion, the latter hadn't shown his true hand at that time or used his trump card technique as Tuguhou did.

And when it came to sparring with Qin Mengjun, that goes without saying.

That was merely Qin Mengjun's one-sided guidance and instruction of him.

Just handling Qin Mengjun's domain had pushed him to his limits. With Qin Mengjun exerting a bit more Martial Body power, he would have been unable to resist at that time. If the domain and Martial Body were used together, there would be no need to solidify the domain's power into the Martial Body to unite them; she could crush him in an instant, not even on the same level.

Therefore, Qin Mengjun hadn't used this technique either.

Of course.

For him now, though the might was strong and the solidity level exceptional, with his Qiankun Martial Body achieved, he was truly invincible in the world of martial arts, able to crush Tuguhou's ultimate technique with just the power of his Martial Body!

The disparity in strength was so immense that he could verify his martial prowess with ease and composure.

Step, step, step,

Chen Mu lowered his right hand and gazed in the direction of Tuguhou. With hands behind his back, he stepped forward, moving closer step by step.

"Cough..."

From within the dust thrown up by the frozen ground, an agonized cough echoed.

Then Tuguhou's figure flashed out from the dust, coughing up blood while desperately trying to flee far away, not daring to look back, his scattered Yuan Gang nearly boiling over at this moment.

However,

Watching this unfold, Chen Mu merely shook his head slightly.

He hadn't killed Tuguhou with one strike because he wanted to interrogate him for information on the Foreign Race and the details about the Sky Demon Sect and Heavenly Corpse Sect. The idea that Tuguhou thought he could escape from his grasp was wishful thinking.

"At this point, do you really think you can escape with your life?" Chen Mu asked in an even tone. As his voice faded, he vanished from his spot and in the blink of an eye caught up with the desperately fleeing Tuguhou, appearing above him.

Tuguhou coughed up blood, his eyes flashing with terror, but he didn't hesitate in his movements. He drew a Crescent Moon Saber from within his robes, its edge bursting with a fierce glow, slashing towards Chen Mu.

The might of the Spirit Weapon surged, trying to force Chen Mu back.

But,

Chen Mu simply stepped down with an indifferent expression, crushing the intense saber light with one stomp. He then stepped onto the Crescent Moon Saber itself. The massive force from his sole felt like a mountain crumbling, unstoppable.

After a moment of trembling resistance, the saber flew from Tuguhou's grip. A jolt of pain followed, and Chen Mu had kicked him from the sky, sending him crashing back into the frozen ground once more, forming yet another deep pit with a thud.

"Cough... cough, cough..."

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Dust filled the air, and as Tuguhou lay in a deep pit, Chen Mu stepped on him, the Yuan Gang around him completely dissipated. Violent coughing of blood came from his mouth while his eyes, which looked at Chen Mu, bore shock, unwillingness, and also a hint of resentment.

"Qiankun Martial Body…"

Only at this moment did he finally see through Chen Mu's realm, but he couldn't understand, and found it even more unbelievable, how Chen Mu, at just over thirty years of age, could become a Grandmaster, and even refine his Martial Body to such an extent?!

The youngest Grandmaster in the history of the Da Xuan Calendar seemed to be thirty-four when he broke through the Mysterious Pass, and according to the intelligence, Chen Mu was only thirty-one or two this year, and he practiced the most difficult Qiankun Martial Arts.

Moreover.

Even the legendary Qiankun Martial Body, known as the strongest in the world, could not possibly have such terrifying strength upon an initial breakthrough. It seemed as though Chen Mu's Qiankun Martial Body had undergone some tempering and reached a certain level!

Only in this way could it be possible for him, Tuguhou, who had been cultivating Martial Arts all his life, to be so easily defeated before him.

"Monster…"

Tuguhou coughed up blood and looked at Chen Mu with eyes full of unwillingness.

He too was a proud Grandmaster and was acutely aware how terrifying it was for Chen Mu to become a Grandmaster at such an age. Even if the Da Xuan Dynasty Court had not seen a second Qiankun Martial Saint for a thousand years, Chen Mu must be the most hopeful one in a millennium!

He had thought that with the decline of the Da Xuan Dynasty Court and chaos reigning throughout the world, it was a time for their Foreign Race to rise. Yet, here was Chen Mu, an existence almost like a demon, emerging. If another figure like the founding Martial Emperor were to appear in the future, would they not be suppressed for another thousand years?

He could not reconcile with this!

He felt unwillingness not just for himself, but also for the Wumeng tribe… and for the thirteen tribes beyond the border.

"Monster?"

Chen Mu looked down at Tuguhou, shook his head slightly, and spoke in a flat tone, "I am just an ordinary Martial Man."

Without the system panel, with his talent, he indeed wouldn't have been extraordinary. Perhaps he might have managed to master the Blade Momentum, reached the Body Refinement Realm, and muddled through his days in Yu County, praying for a life of peace.

"Alright, I know you are a Grandmaster, and you wouldn't want to divulge your tribe's intelligence before death. However, both the Sky Demon Sect and Heavenly Corpse Sect have their own hidden agendas with your race. Since you are dying, there's no need to cover up their intelligence."

"If you know about the Sky Demon Sect and the Heavenly Corpse Sect, just share a bit. After all, if it leads us to deal with them first, perhaps more of your tribe could escape. Besides, if you speak out, I'll grant you a quick death."

Chen Mu looked down upon Tuguhou, speaking with an indifferent tone.

After all, Tuguhou was a Grandmaster, even if a Grandmaster of a Foreign Race; his demeanor differed from that of the Demon Men of the Sky Demon Sect. He had the tolerance of a Grandmaster, and torturing him for answers would be meaningless; he would not betray his tribe. Therefore, Chen Mu's question was very simple, asking only about the intelligence on the Sky Demon Sect and Heavenly Corpse Sect, while making the benefits and disadvantages clear.

Tuguhou's eyes were fixed on Chen Mu, his mouth oozing blood. Yet, in the end, they seemed to lose strength and droop down as he closed his eyes and slowly said, "Secluded Silent Valley, Snow Maiden Mountain…"

Though he was unwilling in his heart and hated Chen Mu and the Da Xuan Dynasty, at this juncture, he had no intention of begging for mercy. It was death either way, but what Chen Mu said was indeed something he could not ignore. Indeed, the Wumeng and the other Four Departments were only temporarily cooperating with the Sky Demon Sect and the Heavenly Corpse Sect, each harboring their own schemes. The Sky Demon Sect even intentionally tried to drag them into trouble, so he had no reason to resist on their behalf. Revealing intelligence on these two factions could indeed make it easier for his Wumeng tribe to escape.

What Chen Mu said was a stratagem out in the open. Even as a dying man, he could only comply.

At the same time.

He couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

Qiankun Martial Body, Qiankun Grandmaster... In that case, the information he previously received about Chen Mu, such as being eroded by Demonic Qi, was probably all fake. This man could endure and be prudent, had an exceptional talent, and could touch upon the crucial point with just one sentence, making even him, a man about to die, have to respond. He was indeed terrifying, and would undoubtedly become another nightmare for their tribes outside the pass in the future.

Why couldn't their Wumeng tribe produce such a person?

"Secluded Silent Valley, Snow Maiden Mountain, huh."
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Chen Mu murmured these two names to himself.

It was meaningless for Tuguhou to give him false intelligence at the brink of death, and it was impossible to set up any traps at such a time. These two places must with high probability be key strongholds of the Sky Demon Sect and the Heavenly Corpse Sect, perhaps even the locations of their Main Altar.

Secluded Silent Valley was located in Han Prefecture and situated to the west of it, near the Border Pass, the most desolate area in the prefecture, scarcely populated even before the turmoil in Ice State.

Snow Maiden Mountain, on the other hand, was not in Han Prefecture but further north in Snow County.

Chen Mu had the map of Ice State etched in his memory down to the smallest detail and could immediately pinpoint these two locations.

"Good, time to go."

Having briefly pondered, Chen Mu no longer said much. He glanced at Tuguhou, raised and waved his right hand, and a beam of blood light suddenly appeared, flew past Tuguhou's neck, and beheaded him with one swift slash.

Tuguhou's head rolled a distance as his eyes quickly dimmed. Even in his final moments, they still showed a bleakness, reflecting a lack of hope for the future.