Faced with Ding Sanlei’s threats and enticements, Elder Liu remained silent, focused solely on defending.

Gradually, it was Ding Sanlei who grew impatient, constantly varying his Sword Techniques as he relentlessly attacked.

However, Elder Liu was dead set on defending, using the power of the Heaven-Reaching Profound Fire Pillar to continuously nullify the onslaught.

Meanwhile, a jade belt at his waist emitted a faint glow, constantly helping him replenish his Magical Power.

Xiao Chen saw this but didn’t rush to intervene. Instead, he observed carefully for a Quarter Hour.

He eventually realized that Ding Sanlei seemed to have a very limited repertoire, relying on a single, unimpressive set of Sword Techniques that he used repeatedly.

’Since his opponent is this weak, it’s time for me to make my heroic entrance.’

Of course, this was all based on a simple misunderstanding.

For a long time now, Xiao Chen had been in the habit of using himself as the standard by which he measured other Cultivators.

In reality, however, he had long since, without even realizing it, become one of the most outstanding Cultivators of his generation.

At least in the vicinity of Li State, he already stood at the pinnacle, whether in terms of Magic or Magical Artifacts.

"Liu Zhishui, if you still refuse to..."

Just as Ding Sanlei was about to spit out another threat, he suddenly saw a new figure leap out from the nearby woods.

Then came a sharp cry: "Dubhe!"

He hastily slapped his Storage Bag, summoning a Small Round Shield to block in front of him.

At the same time, his Divine Sense swept over to probe the other person’s Cultivation.

Elder Liu breathed a sigh of relief at the sight and quickly looked toward the newcomer.

"Ha! And here I was wondering who it could be. Turns out it’s just some junior at the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment."

After his Divine Sense swept over and identified Xiao Chen’s Cultivation, Ding Sanlei immediately relaxed.

He had initially thought reinforcements from the Li Huo Sect had arrived, but it was just a false alarm.

Elder Liu recognized Xiao Chen as well. Pushing aside his disappointment, he quickly shouted a warning, "Junior Brother Xiao, you must leave! Go back to the Sect and report this! There’s a Demon Cultivator here trying to perform a blood sacrifice!"

Xiao Chen had only thrown out a probing attack, but seeing his opponent’s Upper Grade Magic Shield actually made him feel more at ease.

’I was actually a bit wary,’ he thought. ’After all, he’s a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.’

’But from the looks of it now, he’s not all that.’

So, as he brought out the Brocade Handkerchief, he reassured Elder Liu, "Don’t worry, Senior Brother. Leave this Demon Cultivator to me."

Elder Liu’s impression of Xiao Chen was still from six months ago, when he had just reached Foundation Establishment.

Hearing this, he hurriedly tried to persuade him, "Junior Brother Xiao, you absolutely can’t fight him head-on!"

"This Demon Cultivator has a bizarre Demon Technique that can drain Magical Power!"

Before he could finish his sentence, another small, disheveled ghost leaped from Ding Sanlei’s body.

"So, you two are having a nice little chat? Acting like I’m not even here, are you?"

With a cold smirk, Ding Sanlei formed a hand seal. "Yellow Springs Hungry Ghosts, go!"

At his command, the ghost flickered, appeared behind Xiao Chen, and latched onto his back, trying to drain his Magical Power.

The move was truly bizarre.

Neither the Fringed Tassel Brocade Handkerchief, the defensive magic robe, nor the Protective Golden Light had any effect.

Like a phantom, the Yellow Springs Hungry Ghost passed through layer after layer of Defense, lunging for Xiao Chen’s Dantian and opening its mouth for a huge bite.

But then, something even stranger happened. It bit down on nothing!

Its bite didn’t touch a single shred of Magical Power.

The smile on Ding Sanlei’s face instantly froze. "What’s going on? What did you do?"

He hadn’t received any feedback, which meant his Secret Technique had somehow failed!

Xiao Chen, however, simply smiled faintly.

’It’s just as I expected,’ he thought. ’Magical Power drain counts as a negative effect, so the Divine Protection Veil nullified it.’

’Honestly, I really picked the right Augment.’

’Against these Demon Cultivators who use such bizarre methods and rely on underhanded tricks to win, the Divine Protection Veil is just perfect.’

Ding Sanlei was a veteran Foundation Establishment cultivator, after all. Seeing his Secret Technique fail, he immediately switched tactics.

Although he didn’t know why Xiao Chen could ignore the Hungry Ghost, Xiao Chen’s low Cultivation was an obvious weakness.

Ding Sanlei decisively raised his sword and unleashed his strongest attack. "Crossing the Yellow Springs!"

Seeing this, Elder Liu’s expression changed dramatically.

Ding Sanlei had used this move against him earlier in their fight.

Crossing the Yellow Springs was deceptively effortless; it looked like a light and airy sword strike, but it concealed immense power.

It was completely different from mainstream Sword Techniques, following a path similar to that of a Body Cultivator—the way of the Power Breaking Technique.

Anyone who failed to see through it would easily suffer a major blow.

Seeing this, Xiao Chen also raised his sword to meet the attack. "You’re the strongest Demon Cultivator I’ve met so far. So you can be the one to test my newest Sword Technique."

"Seven-Star Sword Technique—Jade Balance!"

The signature characteristic of Jade Balance was its perfect equilibrium between internal and external, a harmony of hardness and softness.

It feared neither an opponent who tried to overcome it with finesse, nor one who used a Power Breaking Technique.

The moment the two beams of Sword Light converged, Crossing the Yellow Springs was completely neutralized before it could even unleash its power.

Elder Liu was completely dumbfounded. ’That’s not right,’ he thought.

’When he used it on me just now, I could’ve sworn that "Crossing the Yellow Springs" move was incredibly powerful. But... that’s it?’

Ding Sanlei, the one on the receiving end, was even more astounded.

"How do you know the Seven-Star Sword Technique?"

He had already been surprised when he blocked Dubhe earlier.

But seeing Xiao Chen use Jade Balance confirmed it—isn’t this the same damn Sword Technique that the Black Wind Wanderer used?!

They were both members of the Divine Fire Sect and had sparred with their Sword Techniques before, a match that Ding Sanlei had won easily.

So when he saw Xiao Chen also use Jade Balance, he was already prepared to press his advantage and pursue his victory.

However, the bizarre situation unfolding before him completely upended his previous understanding.

’Is the Seven-Star Sword Technique actually this powerful?’

’If I remember correctly, it’s just a Yellow Level Sword Technique.’

’How could it possibly be on par with my Earth Level Sword Technique, one that I cultivated through blood, sweat, and tears?’

’In fact, if not for the difference in our Cultivation Realms, the Seven-Star Sword Technique might have even had the upper hand.’

’This makes no sense at all!’

Ding Sanlei couldn’t wrap his head around it, but he knew this wasn’t the time to be pondering such things.

His top priority was to first get rid of this fourth-layer Foundation Establishment upstart who had appeared out of nowhere, and then finish off Elder Liu.

"Surging Yellow Springs, form a thousand bodies!"

With a great shout, Ding Sanlei’s body suddenly shattered. The different parts of his body dissolved into Yellow Springs Water, which then reformed into new bodies.

In an instant, he had become a full eighteen individuals.

Each one brandished a Flying Sword as they all charged at Xiao Chen simultaneously.

What was even more uncanny was that a sweep with one’s Divine Sense would reveal, astonishingly, that every avatar seemed to be real.

In reality, of course, only one was real; the rest were merely illusions meant to deceive the eye.

"Want to play a guessing game with me?"

Looking at the indistinguishable avatars before him, Xiao Chen chuckled. "In that case, I’ll let you do some guessing, too."

With that, he waved his sleeve, scattering a full twenty-seven clouds of Flame Radiance in front of him, completely blocking off all avenues of attack.

Ding Sanlei couldn’t help but hesitate at the sight.

He was shocked to find that he couldn’t see through the Flame Radiance with his Divine Sense either, and there were even more of them.

He didn’t need to think twice to know that traps were surely hidden within them.

He had to find which cloud of Flame Radiance was the illusion he could safely pass through.

But Ding Sanlei wasn’t flustered in the slightest.

His opponent could never have guessed that every one of his Yellow Springs Avatars possessed a physical body condensed from Magical Power.

Moreover, he could swap places between his true self and any avatar at will.

The next moment, all eighteen Ding Sanleis converged on the left flank and charged into the clouds of Flame Radiance simultaneously.

"BOOM!"

Eighteen clouds of Flame Radiance exploded at once.