The Heavens: Man Covers the Heavens, Refines Treasures to Become an Emperor

Immediately afterwards, the falling "stars" mercilessly crashed into the surrounding crowd!

"No!"

"What's this?!"

"Run away!"

Terrified screams and desperate wails instantly replaced the shouts of killing!
Before those "stars," the black-clad cultivators' fragile protective aura was like paper, and their bodies exploded one after another!

Blood and flesh flew everywhere, and bone fragments splattered!

Just one knife!

Hundreds of cultivators who charged at the forefront, regardless of their cultivation level, were all reduced to dust!
The previously crowded encirclement was instantly cleared out!

A terrifying crack, hundreds of feet long and bottomless, was left on the ground, as if the earth itself had been cleaved open by this single strike!

When Jiang Xuan first fired a crossbow bolt at the leader with the keen sense of smell.

Xiao Mu, who had cultivated the "Six Senses Perception Technique," narrowly avoided the arrows thanks to his extraordinary intuition and agile movements.

They quickly retreated to the edge of the battlefield and met up with the man in the straw hat who had also sensed something was wrong and retreated in advance.

The two stood at a relatively safe distance, observing the battlefield from afar.

At first, they saw Jiang Xuan surrounded by hundreds of his colleagues, with all sorts of spiritual attacks pouring down upon him.

They were all convinced that Jiang Xuan was doomed to die this time, with no chance of survival.

"Hmph, even if he had three heads and six arms, he wouldn't be able to escape once he's surrounded like this!"

The man in the straw hat sneered.

Xiao Mu nodded, quite confident in his judgment.

The next second, their expressions changed.

They clearly sensed that the aura emanating from the young man in the blue robe who was surrounded in the center suddenly surged!
That was a vastness and weight that no cultivator at the Human Gang Realm could possess, and it even faintly exceeded the scope of ordinary Earth Gang Realm cultivators, carrying a sense of oppression that made people's hearts tremble!
"No! His aura... how can it be so strong?"

Xiao Mu gasped in surprise.

The man in the straw hat also had his pupils shrink, a strong sense of unease rising in his heart.

Just as they were filled with doubt and uncertainty, Jiang Xuan made his move!

That move, "Star Gathering Style - Eternal Night Galaxy," was unleashed.

Even though they were far apart, Xiao Mu and the man in the bamboo hat only felt a sudden darkness before their eyes.

Their minds seemed to be dragged into a cold, starry illusion, and a sense of fear and insignificance from the depths of their souls made them momentarily disoriented.

When they suddenly came to their senses, what they saw was a scene that resembled purgatory.

Hundreds of elite cultivators were torn to pieces, and a terrifying trench a hundred feet long was left on the ground!
Like the other remaining enemies, the two men stood frozen, staring dumbfounded at the boy standing with a knife, their minds blank, filled only with boundless fear and shock!
They simply couldn't understand how a cultivator at the Gang Realm could unleash such devastating power.

Jiang Xuan wanted exactly this kind of preemptive strike!
Taking advantage of the brief moment when all the enemies were stunned, he unleashed his azure-colored spiritual energy around him, which burned like flames. With a swift movement, he charged into the terrified enemy ranks like a ghost!

"Shh! Shh! Shh!"

The Flowing Light Battle Blade transformed into streaks of deadly cold light, each flash precisely taking away a life!

The power of the Earthly Realm caused his speed, strength, and spiritual energy quality to increase dramatically.

Dealing with these enemies, most of whom are at the Human Realm and a few at the Earth Realm, is like a tiger entering a flock of sheep!

In just a few breaths, more than a dozen black-clad cultivators fell to the ground with screams of agony!

Jiang Xuan not only possesses formidable swordsmanship, but also exceptional combat awareness.

He sometimes engages in close combat, each strike deadly; at other times, he suddenly hurls out several poisoned crossbow bolts, which are cleverly aimed at distant enemies, making them impossible to defend against.

In contrast, the black-clad cultivators still outnumbered the others.

However, because Jiang Xuan rushed into the crowd, they were hesitant to use ranged weapons such as crossbows for cover attacks.

Fearing that he might accidentally hurt his companions, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and fight Jiang Xuan in close combat, which resulted in him using his life to make up for the huge gap in strength.

"A monster! He's a monster!"

"Run!"

The remaining enemies finally collapsed completely, their fighting spirit utterly crushed, and they began to scatter and flee.

In the distance, Xiao Mu looked at the unstoppable Jiang Xuan and spoke to the man in the bamboo hat in a trembling voice.

"Chief...Chief! He's too strong! Our men can't hold him off at all! Quickly...quickly gather more men!"

The man in the straw hat had a livid face, his eyes filled with frustration and despair. He shook his head and said in a hoarse voice.

"It's useless... No matter how many people there are, they're just throwing their lives away in the face of such an absolute difference in strength... Earthly Realm... He has definitely broken through to the Earthly Realm! And he's definitely not an ordinary Earthly Realm cultivator!"

Just as Jiang Xuan was about to break through the encirclement and leave triumphantly, the man in the bamboo hat had a fierce and resolute look in his eyes.

He suddenly pulled a whistle made of some kind of pale animal bone from his pocket, put it in his mouth, and blew it loudly!
"Woo——!!"

A strange, sharp whistle, seemingly capable of piercing the soul, instantly spread throughout the entire battlefield and rapidly expanded into the distance!

After blowing the bone whistle, the man in the straw hat looked at the bewildered Xiao Mu and explained through gritted teeth.

"This child has already shown great potential; only a powerful being at the Spirit Sea Realm can escape by flying."

However, given the combat power it has shown so far, any ordinary Spirit Realm cultivator would be doomed if they went up against it!
"The only option left is to use our last trump card!"

He looked up at the sky, his eyes filled with a mad light.

"Only the Ziying Battleship! Only a devastating attack from the air can completely annihilate this monster! Hopefully... it's not too late!"

Jiang Xuan swiftly traversed the dense forest river, each swing of his [Flowing Light Battle Blade] inevitably sending up a spray of blood.

He did not charge blindly, but consciously advanced towards the distant, rolling mountain range.

He knew in his heart that the enemy was numerous, and it would be difficult to fight them head-on in this open river area.

Even if he has advanced to the Earthly Fiend Realm, he will eventually be worn down and die.

Only by venturing into mountainous terrain with more complex features can one maximize their personal strengths, conserve energy, and maneuver effectively against the enemy.

Just as he was about to rush out of the edge of this forest river—

“Rumble——!!!”

A muffled, thunderous yet sharp and piercing roar suddenly came from the high sky!
The sound grew louder as it approached, becoming deafening in an instant!
Jiang Xuan suddenly looked up, his pupils contracting sharply!
Five enormous Purple Ying warships appeared, their bodies gleaming with a cold metallic sheen and their hulls engraved with intricate spiritual runes.

It was tearing through the clouds with the force of a mountain crashing down, hurtling towards the area where he was!

The enormous shadow almost blocked out the sky, bringing a suffocating sense of oppression!
"Five Ziying warships!"

Jiang Xuan's expression instantly turned extremely grim. He knew all too well the terrifying power of such a flagship warship of the empire!

Its main cannon, the "City-Breaking Spirit Pattern Cannon," is powerful enough to kill even a Spirit Sea Realm expert with a single full-force strike!
Even if he has now advanced to the Earthly Fiend Realm, if he were hit head-on, he would definitely die!

"We must rush out!"

A sense of crisis instantly tightened Jiang Xuan's nerves to the extreme!
He held nothing back, and the spiritual energy of the Earthly Fiend Realm within his body circulated wildly at an unprecedented speed.

Its entire body shone with a brilliant sky-blue luster, and its aura surged once more!
He no longer cared about the cost, and his swordsmanship became even more ferocious and ruthless. Wherever he went, severed limbs flew everywhere, tearing a bloody path through the enemy ranks!
Almost at the same time, the enemy's desolate and urgent bugle call rang out from the Senjiang River!

"W-W-W-!"

The bugle call delivered a clear order: Retreat! Withdraw!

The black-clad cultivators who had been desperately trying to stop Jiang Xuan were relieved upon hearing the horn.

They retreated hastily, as if afraid of being too slow.

Just as Jiang Xuan was filled with doubt, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

"Are they afraid of being accidentally hit by the Ziying warship's attack? Are they trying to use me as a shield? Or can I take advantage of their chaos during their retreat..."

The thought had barely formed in his mind when it was completely shattered by what he saw before him!
High in the sky, the five Ziying warships did not even wait for their ground comrades to completely evacuate.

The menacing muzzles of the ship's bow had already begun to glow with a terrifyingly brilliant light! The next moment—

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Five incredibly thick beams of spiritual light, each containing destructive energy, tore through the sky and slammed into the area where Jiang Xuan had just been and the surrounding area within a hundred feet!

"No!"

"Why?!"

"Run!"

Those fleeing soldiers who hadn't yet escaped the attack range let out desperate and incredulous screams!

They simply couldn't understand why their own warships would fire on them!
The beam of light fell, and the earth trembled violently! A terrifying explosion and shockwave instantly engulfed everything!
Trees, rocks, and those unfortunate defeated soldiers were instantly vaporized and annihilated in the face of destructive energy!
All that remained were five huge, charred craters, and the pervasive smoke and acrid smell of burning.
Although Jiang Xuan managed to escape the core blast zone at the last second before the shelling, thanks to his extraordinary perception and speed.

However, he was still hit by the shockwave from the edge, and his blood and qi surged.

He turned around and saw the horrific scene, and his heart turned ice-cold!
These enemies were so cold-blooded in order to kill him that they were willing to sacrifice the lives of their own people without hesitation!

At this moment, no enemy dared to approach Jiang Xuan anymore; everyone fled desperately away from the direction of the warship's artillery fire. Jiang Xuan also gained a brief respite.

But he dared not stop for a moment, pushing his speed to the limit, turning into a wisp of green smoke, and fleeing desperately towards the distant mountains!
"Target locked! Full speed ahead! Open fire!"

High in the sky, the cold commands were issued through a communication array.

The five Ziying warships adjusted their course, their massive hulls roaring loudly as they pursued the enemy at a speed far exceeding that of running on land!
The secondary guns on the sides of the ship kept lighting up, and small but still deadly beams of light poured down on the fleeing figure in the Senjiang River below!

"Boom boom boom...!"

Brilliant beams of light rained down, and large swathes of Morie were reduced to ashes in the explosion.

Huge rocks were blasted into dust, and scorched furrows were plowed into the ground, with billowing smoke and flames shooting into the sky!
The whole scene was like the end of the world!

Relying on his heightened senses and instinct for danger after advancing to the Earthly Rank, Jiang Xuan frantically dodged and weaved amidst the dense artillery fire.

He would suddenly stop and change direction, or use the terrain to roll and dodge, each time narrowly escaping death!

The scorching heat scorched his hair, and flying pebbles tore his clothes and skin.

But his eyes remained cold and focused, and only one word occupied his mind: Escape!
Suddenly, a salvo from secondary guns came from the empty space at the diagonal rear, the firepower suddenly increased, and the coverage area was extremely large!
Jiang Xuan tried his best to dodge.

But he was still hit hard in the back by a shockwave from the edge of the explosion!

"puff!"

He spat out a mouthful of blood and was thrown forward, feeling as if his internal organs had shifted, and he was in excruciating pain!

Jiang Xuan's chest heaved violently, and his lungs burned with every breath.

Behind them were five towering purple warships, their spirit-patterned cannons roaring deafeningly.

Destructive beams of light rained down, blasting the surrounding earth into countless craters and scorched wastelands. The shadow of death loomed relentlessly upon him, as if it were a tangible reality.

"We can't stop! We absolutely can't stop!"

The instinct for survival stimulated every nerve in Jiang Xuan's body.

He frantically squeezed out the newly stabilized Earth Qi power within his dantian.

The flow of spiritual energy within his meridians emitted a deep rumble, and its speed increased even in this desperate situation.

He transformed into a blurry blue shadow, struggling to navigate the deadly web of gunfire.

The Ziying warship is incredibly powerful.

However, its combat methods are relatively simple, mainly relying on long-range artillery coverage.

This gave Jiang Xuan room to dodge in the complex terrain.

He could never find an opportunity to completely break free from the lock or launch an effective counterattack.

They could only passively and desperately run forward, their physical strength and spiritual energy being rapidly depleted.

In the distance behind, the man in the bamboo hat and Xiao Mu, along with the remaining hundreds of black-clad cultivators, were also desperately chasing after them.

Seeing Jiang Xuan's disheveled and perilous state, some cultivators revealed cruel and gleeful smiles.

"Haha! Look how pathetic that kid is running away!"

"Like a stray dog! Let's see how long you can last!"

Upon hearing these comments, Xiao Mu turned around abruptly, her eyes filled with anger and lingering fear, and rebuked them sharply.

"Shut up! What are you all so happy about?! Look at our 419 brothers who died! All of them were killed by him alone! A cultivator at the Earthly Rank Realm who could withstand the pursuit of five Purple Elite warships for so long is a monster in itself! If he escapes today, just think about how he will take revenge on us in the future?!"

These words instantly silenced those smug cultivators.

The color drained from his face, replaced by deep fear.

Yes, such a killing god, if he doesn't die today, what will become of him in the future...?

The man in the straw hat had a gloomy expression and said in a low voice.

"Everyone, stay alert! This kid is cunning and treacherous; he's more likely to retaliate when things are dire! Don't let your guard down!"

Just then, Jiang Xuan, who was fleeing for his life, keenly sensed an unusual sound – the sound of rushing water!

And the sound kept getting louder and louder!

He perked up and charged up a low slope ahead, where a bright and clear view suddenly appeared before him!
A wide river, tens of meters across, with a swift current, stretched out before them! (End of Chapter)