Xiao Tengyun looked at Yang Feilong, a cruel sneer in his eyes.
"Now that the others are dealt with, it's time to send you on your way!" At the same time, Xiao Tengyun, holding his long sword, charged at Yang Feilong.
The top-grade spirit artifact long sword gleamed with a cold, eerie light.
A mocking smile played on Yang Feilong's lips. "Send me on my way? Then let's see if you have the capability!"
Whoosh!
The next moment, his figure vanished from his original spot.
In his hand, he held only a low-grade spirit artifact he had refined earlier. The power amplification between a low-grade and a top-grade spirit artifact was, naturally, vastly different.
Boom!
In an instant, the two collided, and a figure stumbled backward.
"What?" Astonishment flickered in Xiao Tengyun's eyes.
In this exchange, he had actually fallen to the disadvantage? How was this possible? How had this brat's cultivation suddenly soared?
Although he hadn't used his full strength, his attack power still surpassed what it was before he refined the top-grade spirit artifact!
He was unaware that Yang Feilong had advanced three realms in these three days. This was not comparable to the breakthroughs of ordinary Foundation Establishment or Innate realm cultivators!
This was because Yang Feilong had perfectly fused the path of Qi Condensation, the path of ancient martial arts, and the path of extraordinary abilities, surpassing even the mere summation of the three.
How strong was he now? Yang Feilong himself didn't know. In short, he was very strong. He could even fight against Golden Core realm cultivators!
"Kill!" Xiao Tengyun's expression turned ferocious. The person he had been suppressing was now suppressing him. This filled him with rage. He intended to unleash his full power and kill him!
Boom!
Xiao Tengyun attacked with his full might, his sword intent surging. The divine power of the top-grade spirit artifact was pushed to its limit. He wanted to finish this quickly!
But Yang Feilong still casually unleashed a sword strike. The sword energy seemed to draw water from the heavens, descending from above, emitting an unparalleled, magnificent glow.
Bang!
Even with Xiao Tengyun's full power, he was still sent flying by Yang Feilong's terrifying sword strike, his body covered in bloody marks, already seriously injured!
"You, you... This is impossible!" Xiao Tengyun looked at Yang Feilong in disbelief, completely shaken this time. He had already exerted his full strength, yet he was once again suppressed by the opponent. The opponent's strength had reached the Golden Core realm, and not just an ordinary early Golden Core realm cultivator, but at least a second-level, or even third-level Golden Core realm cultivator!
Although both were early Golden Core realm cultivators, there was a significant gap between the first and third levels.
"Die!" Yang Feilong was now unleashing his full power as well. After a simple probing, he had a relatively clear understanding of his own strength.
That's right, the previous Yang Feilong had not used his full strength either, as he hadn't even used his sword intent. He wanted to see what level his attack power would reach without using sword intent!
The fact was, without using sword intent, his attack power had already reached the Golden Core realm. This was because Xiao Tengyun had heavily injured Huang Fei with a single sword strike, and Huang Fei's combat power was incredibly close to that of a Golden Core realm cultivator.
Now, without even using sword intent, he was crushing Xiao Tengyun. If he were to use it, could Xiao Tengyun withstand it?
The facts proved that Xiao Tengyun truly couldn't withstand it!
With a single sword strike, Xiao Tengyun was already severely injured!
"Ah!" The immense pain from his injuries caused Xiao Tengyun to let out a roar.
The next moment, Xiao Tengyun tried to activate the array for reinforcement, but it was useless!
This was because Yang Feilong could also control a portion of the array's power. With a single tremor, the reinforcement from Xiao Tengyun's array was neutralized.
Even better, the power Yang Feilong exerted with the array's reinforcement was slightly stronger. This was quite logical, as Yang Feilong was even more skilled in array formations than Xiao Tengyun.
Boom!
Xiao Tengyun was once again sent flying by Yang Feilong's sword.
Xiao Tengyun's face contorted in madness, terrifying and ferocious. He roared repeatedly. Driven by the threat of death, he forcefully unleashed a forbidden technique. It wasn't that he hadn't considered attempting to break through to the Golden Core realm; he could have succeeded even in his current state!
Because breaking through to the Golden Core realm was not difficult for him!
He could have attempted it much earlier, but many elders had said that the stronger the foundation accumulated below the Golden Core realm, the greater the benefits upon breaking through to the Golden Core realm!
Therefore, he had been tempering himself. Not only him, but cultivators ranked high on the Dragon-Phoenix Ranking also possessed the strength to attempt the Golden Core realm!
Below the Golden Core realm was the stage for laying the foundation. The firmer the foundation, the further one could go in the future!
However, condensing the Golden Core required time, and Yang Feilong would not give him that time. This was not like breaking through minor realms; minor breakthroughs were not so troublesome, happening naturally!
Thus, out of desperation, Xiao Tengyun had to resort to a forbidden technique. Many members of the Xiao family knew forbidden techniques, and Xiao Tengyun was no exception. He had even mastered two forbidden techniques because he was a direct descendant of the Xiao family!
He was a key disciple being nurtured, the third young master, and ranked third in line for the succession of the family head.
He directly employed a forbidden technique that caused less harm but slightly reduced its power.
There were no forbidden techniques without harm; there were only those with greater or lesser harm.
It wasn't that he didn't want to use the more powerful one, but the backlash would be greater, affecting his future more significantly. He not only hoped to survive but also to minimize losses and continue advancing in the future!
However, Yang Feilong had been guarding against this very point.
Boom!
As he was about to unleash his forbidden technique, Yang Feilong made his move!
His speed was pushed to the extreme, and his power erupted to its peak!
It was like an arc of light streaking across the sky!
As fast as lightning, but with incomprehensible power.
"Pfft!"
The next moment, Xiao Tengyun's body was cleaved in two.
Yang Feilong's devastating sword strike directly killed Xiao Tengyun on the spot, even annihilating more than half of his soul!
"Yang Feilong, if you kill me, my family will not let you go! I'll be waiting for you in hell!" Xiao Tengyun roared with venomous hatred. The next moment, a mark flew out, heading towards Yang Feilong.
"What is this thing?" Yang Feilong's expression changed. He quickly activated the Azure Lotus Earth Fire to suppress it.
But he couldn't suppress it!
This was because the scorching of the Azure Lotus Earth Fire was merely a physical attack, while this mark was akin to a soul.
"A curse!" Yang Feilong's face darkened. This curse was not highly offensive, but it was like a brand, marking him.
Then, the Xiao family could completely lock onto him using this mark!