An Understated Dominance

 The atmosphere in the canyon, which had just surged from despair to wild relief, plunged once more into a deeper abyss of hopelessness. Once, twice, three times… Each time,  Dustin’s  sword-light precisely shredded the re-forming crimson energy, scattering it to dust finer than ash. Within his strikes surged a will of annihilation so profound that it could obliterate body, spirit, and even soul imprints. Yet the strange energy born from the humanoid beast clung like bone maggots, cursed with an unending existence. No matter how thoroughly Dustin destroyed it, from the smallest mote of dust it would begin to gather again—each time quicker than the last. The crimson vortex at the center seemed like a mocking pupil, coldly watching every futile effort to erase it. Each resurrection carried a deeper stench of death and hatred. “How… how can this be? It won’t die… it simply can’t be killed!” “Even Mister Dustin… even he can’t destroy it?” Faces blanched as despair clawed at t...

 The atmosphere within the canyon was suffocating. The humanoid beast in crimson armor moved like death incarnate, every thrust of its spear precise, lethal, imbued with corrosive darkness that sought to devour all. Dustin  unleashed his movement technique to the extreme, sword-light weaving like a dragon through the storm of spear-shadows, parrying and searching for a weakness. This can’t go on,  Dustin thought sharply. This third form of the beast not only surpassed the previous in strength and speed, but its combat skills were near flawless. Worse yet, its energy seemed inexhaustible. To defend endlessly was certain defeat. He had to find the key to end it in one strike. Feigning weakness, Dustin let a subtle flaw show in his footwork. While dodging a vicious side-thrust, he faltered ever so slightly. The beast’s scarlet flames flared. It would not let such a chance slip. The dark spear lunged like a venomous dragon, its speed spiking as it aimed straight for Dustin’s ...

 “We can’t let it finish!” Dustin’s  eyes turned cold. He would test it no longer. The Xuanqing true qi within his body surged like a raging river, flooding into his sword. The blade hummed, shining with dazzling azure light. Above him, a colossal phantom blade of pure sword-qi—over thirty feet long—took form, as solid as reality itself. “Cut!” Dustin gestured with his fingers, and the immense sword descended with peerless sharpness, like a heavenly judgment, slashing straight at the beast just as it tried to complete its energy sphere. The killing intent of the strike locked the very space around it, leaving the flying beast no room to escape. Sensing mortal danger, the monster’s single eye flashed with fear. Its unstable energy sphere detonated prematurely, surging forth to meet the descending azure sword. BOOOOM—!! The explosion shook the canyon more violently than ever before, as if the cliffs themselves were about to collapse. For a brief instant, the black sphere and azu...

 The roars of the three-headed beast echoed through the narrow canyon, shaking loose chunks of rock from the cliffs. Its six scarlet eyes locked onto  Dustin . The central head suddenly reared back, spewing a torrent of blazing, sulfur-reeking dark-red flames. Like a flood of molten lava, the inferno surged toward the group. Even before the fire arrived, the searing heat warped the air. Shallow puddles on the ground evaporated instantly. The guards felt their hair singe and their skin sting. “Fall back!” Dustin barked the order, yet instead of retreating, he stepped forward, placing himself at the front. He did not draw his sword. Instead, he pressed two fingers together like a blade and slashed through the air. Shhh! A crescent-shaped arc of azure sword-qi appeared from nothingness, sharp and condensed to the extreme. With a piercing whistle, it cleaved straight into the torrent of flames. There was no thunderous explosion—only the effortless slice of sharpness cutting throug...

 After leaving that eerie bamboo forest,  Margaret  led the group southeast, following the direction pointed out by the old Taoist in the robe. The deeper they went, the thicker the mist became. The rustling sound of bamboo leaves had ceased, replaced instead with a suffocating silence. Even the faint fragrance of bamboo in the air was now tainted by a subtle, almost imperceptible metallic sweetness. “Miss, do you really think that old Taoist’s words can be trusted?” Qingzhu whispered, her eyes darting warily around. Margaret’s expression was grave. She shook her head slightly. “It’s hard to tell… but this is the only clue we have for now.” If not for  Dustin , a cultivator in the Land-Immortal Realm, being by her side, she would not have dared to take such a risk. After nearly an hour of walking, a deep canyon appeared ahead, just as the old Taoist had described. The canyon’s entrance was narrow, flanked by sheer black cliffs that looked as though they had been carv...

 After leaving the ruined lakeside, Dustin, Margaret, and the others moved even more cautiously, struggling through the dense and perilous jungle. The strangeness of Penglai Island exceeded all imagination. Shrubs that appeared tranquil could suddenly lash out with thorny vines, bright flowers sprayed numbing pollen, and even the ground underfoot could turn in an instant into quicksand that devoured everything. Fortunately, with Dustin—the unfathomably powerful one—leading them, he always sensed danger in advance or casually dispelled threats, allowing the group to continue unscathed. After traveling like this for about a day and a night, the scenery opened up. Before them appeared a lush bamboo forest, green and vibrant. The stalks stood tall, the leaves swayed, faint mists curled among them, and the air carried a refreshing fragrance. Compared to the perilous jungle behind them, this place felt quiet and harmonious, almost like a hidden paradise. “This place… is so peaceful,” Qin...

  The man in the Daoist robe sneered, “Look at him—probably even his source of Qi is damaged. How strange. On Penglai Island, apart from us, who else could wound Bai Chan like this?” The peerless beauty only covered her mouth and laughed softly, her gaze flicking over Bai Chan but she said nothing. Only the hulking, burly man remained expressionless. He slowly sat up, pushed the woman aside, and fixed Bai Chan with a pair of cold, tangible stares. His voice was low and full of pressure: “Explain.” Under those eyes—especially the hulking man’s—Bai Chan trembled ever so slightly. Swallowing his humiliation, he stepped forward, dropped to one knee, bowed his head, and recited, in full, everything that had occurred: from being roused by Li Wenxing and the others, to slaying mortals on a whim, being stopped by Dustin, losing the spiritual contest, and finally being counter-killed by the thunder strike—forcing him to use a life-saving secret art to reconstruct his body. As he spoke, the ...