Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

The three defenses couldn't even hold for a moment.

Most of the twenty-seven magic-breaking needles consumed their power during the breakthrough process and dissipated into black smoke—but a full eleven of them still managed to penetrate the Blood Phoenix Princess's body!

"ah--!!!"

A heart-wrenching scream echoed through the sky!

The moment those eleven magic-breaking needles pierced through, half of Princess Blood Phoenix's body began to wither at a visible speed!

Her skin was withered and her flesh was melting away, revealing the stark white bones beneath—the power of the Void was frantically eroding her life force!

She desperately tried to dispel the power by circulating her magic, but the power seemed to be alive, drilling into her meridians and causing them to break and her spiritual energy to dissipate wherever it passed!

Under normal circumstances, a Foundation Establishment cultivator would surely die if hit by so many Dharma-Breaking Needles.

But Princess Blood Phoenix was no ordinary cultivator.

The Blood Phoenix Bow in her hand trembled violently, and the crimson energy on the bow surged and flowed into her body!

That crimson energy, carrying the power of a third-tier magic weapon, forcefully pushed back the invading power of the Void Realm inch by inch!

At the same time, she suddenly bit her tongue, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

A beam of azure light shot out from her essence blood—it was her last trump card, a life-saving technique for forming her core. Once activated, it could allow her to instantly escape a hundred miles away.

However, precisely because she activated two methods in succession, her escape light inevitably slowed down for a moment.

That moment of slowing down is enough.

Lin Zhao raised his right hand, his five fingers making a grasping motion.

Deep within his dantian, the Nine Luminaries Thunder Pool trembled violently!

Countless bolts of lightning surged forth from the pool, converging along Lin Zhao's dantian into his hand!

A sky full of lightning gathered before him—

A giant dragon claw slowly took shape.

It has five claws, is ten feet long, and is entirely purple-white, with each scale clearly visible.

The supernatural power "Nine Luminaries Thunder Claw"

Lin Zhao suddenly swung his hand.

That claw strike seemed to disregard spatial distance.

One moment he was in front of Lin Zhao, the next he was in front of Princess Blood Phoenix!

Five enormous claw marks tore through the air, carrying devastating power, and slashed down!

Princess Blood Phoenix's pupils suddenly contracted.

Without a second thought, she instinctively held the Blood Phoenix Bow horizontally in front of her—the only way she could think of to defend herself.

Nine Luminaries Thunder Claws slash down!

Boom! ...

Lightning exploded!

"ah--!!!"

Another scream rang out, even more agonizing than the last!

The Nine Luminaries Thunder Claw, along with the Blood Phoenix Bow, forcefully snatched away one of her arms!

The arm was burned to a charred state by lightning the moment it detached from the body.

The Blood Phoenix Bow, however, was swept up by the magic domain and steadily flew into Lin Zhao's hands.

The claw marks, still powerful, slammed into the ground below.

Rumble—!!!

Five deep trenches, each tens of feet long, were plowed into the ground!

The soil at the edge of the ravine was burned into a glassy state by the lightning, and smoke was still rising from the bottom of the ravine, sizzling and crackling!

Princess Blood Phoenix was in so much pain that her whole body convulsed. She dared not continue the fight and immediately activated the cyan escape talisman with all her might.

A blue light enveloped her body, transforming into a streak of blood-red light that vanished into the horizon in the blink of an eye.

Lin Zhao stood still and did not give chase.

Can't catch up.

The speed of that cyan light was too fast; it was clearly a life-saving technique used by those at the Core Formation level.

Even if he used the Five Mountains Shifting Technique, he might not be able to catch up. Besides, he doesn't have much spiritual energy left in his body right now, so he should stop while he's ahead.

He glanced down at the Blood Phoenix Bow in his hand.

The bow was still trembling slightly, as if the owner's resentment still lingered.

The crimson patterns on the bow arm had faded considerably, but it still exuded the unique pressure of a third-tier magic weapon.

He glanced at the object in his other hand—after the severed arm had turned to charcoal, a silver-white ring lay intact on the ground, which he picked up with his spiritual power.

The ring was entirely silver-white, engraved with intricate runes, and emitted a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy.

Storage ring.

This is something only cultivators at the Core Formation stage or above can use.

Lin Zhao's lips curved into a smile.

If the information from the market is correct, most of the Blood Phoenix Princess's cultivation resources should be in here.

If she really has a third-tier spiritual item, it must be in the ring.

"We won," he said softly.

---

Yan Chiheng's spiritual light shot out from afar and landed beside Lin Zhao.

He glanced at the Blood Phoenix Bow in Lin Zhao's hand, then at the five still-smoking trenches on the ground, and then at the bloodstains at the corner of Lin Zhao's mouth and his pale face. He remained silent for a long while.

"That crazy woman," he finally spoke, his voice a little dry, "is fucking terrifyingly strong."

He paused, then added, "If I were to face her, I probably wouldn't be able to escape."

Lin Zhao shook her head.

"Ultimately, we haven't cultivated for long enough and our foundation is too shallow," he said. "Compared to those Foundation Establishment Peak cultivators who have cultivated for hundreds of years, we are still somewhat lacking."

He raised his hand and rubbed his temples, his tone as calm as if he were talking about someone else: "My spiritual sense hasn't broken through to the Core Formation stage."

If we break through that barrier, the range of our Dharma Domain can expand by another 50%, reaching fifteen miles, and our suppressive power can double. We wouldn't have had such a difficult time fighting today.

Yan Chiheng didn't speak, he just looked at him.

Lin Zhao continued, "And magical artifacts. How many top-grade second-tier magical artifacts do you and I possess?"

Most of the magical artifacts he possessed were obtained during the early stages of Foundation Establishment, with the highest grade being only second-tier superior, which was already somewhat outdated for his strength.

"If we had a few good second-tier top-grade magic artifacts," Lin Zhao said, "we would have it much easier today."

He put away the Blood Phoenix Bow and the storage ring, then turned to look in the direction of Cangyun Mountain.

"Let's go back."

Yan Chiheng was taken aback: "Not pursue her, and going back now? That crazy woman has escaped; what if she brings people back to kill us—"

"She won't," Lin Zhao interrupted him. "She lost an arm and was hit by eleven magic-breaking needles."

Even with the help of a Core Formation cultivator, it would take decades to fully heal her injuries. Even if she wanted revenge, that would be a long time from now.

He paused, his eyes becoming somewhat deep.

"Besides, do you really think the Zheng family patriarch couldn't find out about us?"

Yan Chiheng's expression changed.

"We should have known when we made our move," Lin Zhao said. "If a Core Formation cultivator who has ruled a dynasty for hundreds of years didn't even have this much skill, he would have been killed long ago."

Whether Princess Blood Phoenix is ​​dead or alive, he will definitely find his way back to us.

Yan Chiheng remained silent.

"Fortunately, I achieved my goal today."

Lin Zhao said, "We've got the third-tier magic weapon, and the resources in the storage ring—if we're lucky, there might even be a third-tier spiritual item inside. Now..."

He raised his head and looked into the distance.

That's the direction of the capital.

"It's time to prepare for the next battle."

Yan Chiheng took a deep breath: "What kind of battle?"

Lin Zhao did not answer immediately.

In the distance, the setting sun had completely sunk below the horizon, leaving only a last sliver of dark red on the horizon.

"With the help of the market's formation," Lin Zhao said, "we will confront the Core Formation Realm cultivators head-on."

His voice was very soft, as if he were talking about something very ordinary.