Above the Eighth Prince's head, a bronze gourd continuously rose and fell. It appeared ordinary and unremarkable, but as the Eighth Prince channeled streams of True Yuan power into it, an astonishing fluctuation immediately rippled forth.
A terrifying pressure slowly unfurled. The entire Savage Beast Valley rumbled and roared, causing everyone's expressions to change drastically. It was as if a Martial God had descended at this very moment, his might peerless.
"A Martial God artifact!?"
The crowd's faces paled as they recognized the true nature of the bronze gourd. Ordinary weapons simply did not possess such power. In this world, only artifacts forged by Martial God experts could emanate such a terrifying pressure.
For such artifacts were cultivated in tandem with a Martial God's very life essence. When a Martial God comprehended the Dao of Heaven and Earth, the artifact also bore his Dao power, transcending the category of mortal weapons and possessing faint traces of Martial God authority.
Once such an artifact was revived to its utmost limit, it would unleash astonishing power, no less than a Martial God making a move, capable of sweeping away all enemies.
However, only a Martial God expert could fully revive such an artifact to its peak. Yet, even reviving a small portion of its power far surpassed that of a Xiantian expert.
Now, as the Eighth Prince's True Yuan power continuously poured into the bronze gourd, faint threads of Martial God pressure rippled out, shaking heaven and earth.
Everyone's expressions changed dramatically. Rumors had it that the Eighth Prince had brought a truly heavy weapon this time. So it was a Martial God artifact.
The trialists from the Xia Feng Kingdom side were the most horrified. No wonder he had the confidence not to fear them awakening the mysterious water demon in the cold pool. With such a heavy weapon, he could probably even fight the water demon in the cold pool!
With the Martial God artifact now revealed, the Eighth Prince's confidence swelled considerably. Facing Ye Chen now, he felt no fear. He sneered coldly, "Brat, although this prince must admit you are indeed quite capable, do you truly believe you are a Martial God? Ridiculous. If you had let this prince leave earlier, I might have spared your life. But today, with the Martial God artifact revealed, it must claim a life. Even a spirit talisman may not protect you. Prepare to die."
With a thunderous roar, the mouth of the bronze gourd opened, unleashing a beam of azure light that shot towards Ye Chen.
This azure light seemed unremarkable, only half a zhang long. Yet, the moment it appeared, the very heavens and earth seemed to tremble. It could be described as terrifying beyond measure.
Everyone's faces changed. If this azure light struck, even those super experts with the qualification to delay claiming kingship would likely be severely injured. It gave everyone an intense sense of lethal crisis.
"Ye Chen, be careful!"
Vivian cried out in alarm. The appearance of this azure light made her heart tremble, deeply sensing the terrifying power contained within it.
The other trialists from Xia Feng Kingdom were also shocked.
Yet, at this moment, facing the azure light unleashed by the Martial God artifact, Ye Chen smiled. It was a smile of utter contempt and disdain. He neither dodged nor evaded, causing astonishment among the onlookers. Many shook their heads. What an arrogant and conceited brat. Did he truly think he was a Martial God or a super expert like Xia Yang? He actually wanted to block it head-on. He probably just wanted to show off in front of beauties like Vivian and Princess Hong Rong.
Unfortunately, showing off without real strength often only invites trouble upon oneself.
Yang Jun sneered even more coldly, already anticipating the scene of Ye Chen being pierced through by the azure light.
As the azure light approached, Ye Chen suddenly extended his right hand, actively reaching out to grab the beam. This once again made many secretly shake their heads. Undoubtedly, this was an extremely foolish move.
Even Vivian, Princess Hong Rong, and others felt worried in their hearts.
But was Ye Chen foolish?
The answer was undoubtedly no. His palm suddenly solidified into a crystalline golden color. Every inch of flesh became transparent like crystal, blood vessels and tendons clearly visible. His entire hand seemed cast from solid gold. He grasped the azure light in his palm without the slightest concern, then gave it a gentle squeeze. Under countless dumbfounded gazes, it simply dissipated.
Stunned!
Utterly and completely stunned!
Everyone's eyes widened, staring blankly at this scene, unable to believe it.
It was all too shocking. The ultimate strike unleashed by a Martial God artifact had been annihilated just like that, so utterly fragile. Was this truly an attack from a Martial God artifact?
"You—" The Eighth Prince, Yang Jun, almost doubted everything. If he didn't know deeply that this was a genuine Martial God artifact, he might have suspected it all, for it was extremely subversive.
"A Martial God artifact? Ridiculous. How much of its power can a mere Xiantian like you unleash? If it were fully revived, I might still be somewhat wary. But with your revival, less than one-tenth of its power remains!"
Ye Chen sneered. Then, his figure moved. With a whoosh, he instantly traversed the sky, arriving right in front of the Eighth Prince before the latter could even react.
It was all because he was too fast.
Yang Jun hurriedly raised the bronze gourd, but Ye Chen had already made his move. That hand, as if cast from crystalline gold, every inch of flesh so crystal clear, yet emanating an unparalleled pressure. It struck the bronze gourd directly and head-on.
Boom—
The bronze artifact forged by a Martial God, which, once revived, could equal a Martial God's strike—even a small portion of its power surpassed that of a Xiantian expert—was now sent flying by this single slap. It transformed into a streak of bronze ghostly light and landed on a mountain peak not far away. With a thunderous explosion, it blasted right through the mountain.
Utterly fragile!
The youth perfectly illustrated this term with his true combat power.
Because he had been channeling power into the bronze gourd, the Eighth Prince Yang Jun now suffered a backlash. He spat out three mouthfuls of blood in succession, was sent flying back over a hundred meters, and was thoroughly injured.
Yet, within the scene, a series of sharp intakes of cold breath echoed.
To send the bronze gourd flying with just one palm—what terrifying level of strength was required to achieve that?
Especially the trialists from the Xia Feng Kingdom side. Their eyes widened. How long had it been since they last met? Just five months, and he had already grown powerful to this extent?
Instinct told them that the current Ye Chen might be even stronger and more terrifying than Crown Prince Xia Yang.
The Eighth Prince looked at Ye Chen in horror. This was absolutely an extremely terrifying figure, possibly not weaker than monstrous individuals like his own elder brother or Xia Yang. But at this moment, it could not change the situation.
Yang Jun summoned the bronze gourd back, condensing bronze light. He opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of essence blood, burning it in an attempt to revive the bronze gourd to a greater extent.
Rumble—
Between heaven and earth, streams of vivid, seven-colored Heaven and Earth energy gathered, containing various elemental energies of the world, summoned forth with the aid of the Martial God artifact.
From the mouth of the bronze gourd, beams of azure light surged forth. Each beam was sufficient to slay a Hundred Strong Trialist. This was the true power of a Martial God artifact. Even the small portion revived by Yang Jun was not to be underestimated.
But Ye Chen gave Yang Jun no chance. He instantly charged forward. Each beam of azure light was effortlessly flicked away by his fingers. Azure light scattered in all directions, thoroughly shaking the Savage Beast Valley with rumbling explosions. The azure light blasted out one massive crater or hole after another. Trialists from all sides fled at the first moment.
Yet, many were still caught in the crossfire, especially the trialists brought by the Eighth Prince, who were Ye Chen's primary targets. Most of the bronze ghostly light beams landed on the Tianmen members. Many were forced to crush their spirit talismans and self-destruct.
Simultaneously, a vast seven-colored radiant light shimmered between Ye Chen's brows. He let out a light shout, "Disperse!"
Visible to the naked eye, the Heaven and Earth energy gathered by the Martial God artifact was thus dispersed by his shout.
Immediately after, Ye Chen reached out and grabbed the bronze gourd. His crystalline golden palm flipped over, and with a forceful wipe across the gourd, the imprint on the bronze gourd was forcibly erased. It was no longer a bound possession. The Eighth Prince Yang Jun cried out in pain, rolling on the ground, his face extremely pale.
This bronze gourd had his spiritual imprint on it for control. Now that Ye Chen had erased it, he was also affected and suffered damage.
"Ye Chen, how dare you! This is a heavy weapon of my Tianqi Empire! Do you dare to claim it for yourself? Are you truly rebelling against my Tianqi Empire?"
Even now, Yang Jun did not forget to threaten Ye Chen.
Everyone couldn't help but shake their heads. At this point, did he really think the other party feared the Tianqi Empire?
Ye Chen stepped closer, one step at a time. "Do you truly believe I fear your Tianqi Empire?"
Yang Jun was taken aback. Watching Ye Chen's step-by-step advance, feeling the increasingly vast and terrifying pressure overflowing from the other's body, he gritted his teeth fiercely. "Everyone, attack! Attack the cold pool! Awaken the water demon within the cold pool!"
Although terrified of Ye Chen's superhuman strength, at this moment, everyone responded. Beams of True Yuan power shot like lightning towards the cold pool.
The Thirteenth Prince and the others' expressions changed, but it was too late to stop them. They could only manage to dodge.
Boom—
The stone platform shattered. The cold pool erupted with sky-high splashes. Chilling mist billowed and spread, fog filling the sky.
Roar—
But at this moment, the most terrifying roar suddenly erupted from within the cold pool, shaking the surrounding hundred li. A massive black shadow appeared, carrying a heart-palpitating, dreadful aura.
The cold pool water demon had appeared!