Chapter 531: The Uncrowned King

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

In the midst of the dark mist, even after succumbing to the demonic influence, Jian Jinsheng still retained vivid memories of what transpired.

Attacking others in such a manner and drawing attention to oneself was entirely normal. However, the crucial point was that Jian Jinsheng realized he couldn’t possibly defeat Chen Fei.

Growing into a martial artist of the second stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm within just a few years was nothing short of astonishing.

Initially, Jian Jinsheng had acquired a hidden cave and the resources within it, leading to a meteoric rise in his cultivation and soaring confidence. Subsequently, he even eliminated the Combined Aperture Tempering realm disciples of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect and supported the nearly collapsing Divine Flame Sect.

He had turned the tide!

In the following period, he engaged in continuous conflicts with the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, gradually encroaching upon their territory. Simultaneously, Jian Jinsheng’s own cultivation continued to advance, with his mental strength surpassing the level expected for his cultivation.

According to Jian Jinsheng’s own estimation, he would break through to the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm within a few years. At that point, he believed he would truly become the uncrowned king of this realm.

As for the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, even with the protection of their mountain gate formation, it would be absolutely incapable of withstanding the power of the mid-stage Combined Aperture Tempering realm. The downfall of the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect was merely a matter of time.

However, before Jian Jinsheng could break through to the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect unexpectedly departed, which somewhat disrupted Jian Jinsheng’s plans.

Subsequently, Jian Jinsheng discovered that he had a problem with his mental state, as the insidious nature of greed had finally revealed its drawbacks.

His cultivation growth had involuntarily started to slow down. A martial artist’s mental state was fundamental, and when problems arose in one’s mental state, if not addressed promptly, it amounted to sowing the seeds of future troubles.

This was something Jian Jinsheng was well aware of.

However, the contamination from the insidious nature of greed was too severe. Initially concealed, by the time it was truly discovered, it was already deeply entrenched.

Jian Jinsheng’s visit to the imperial city this time was to obtain a spiritual resonance and cleanse his mental state once. While it might not completely eliminate the contamination, it would at least reduce it, allowing him to spend more time slowly purifying it afterward.

Unfortunately, with the outbreak of the dark mist, the contamination within Jian Jinsheng’s mental state was directly triggered. He realized the danger and tried to escape, but no matter which way he went, he couldn’t find a way out, until his spiritual insight was completely shrouded.

Jian Jinsheng was undoubtedly a genius of remarkable talent, coupled with his own luck, enabling him to discover a hidden Combined Aperture Tempering realm cave through self-study.

By relying on self-guidance, he ultimately succeeded in breaking through to the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, delivering a powerful blow to his arch-enemy, the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, leaving them almost helpless in the face of his prowess.

In the first half of his life, Jian Jinsheng could be described as sailing smoothly. The past oppression from the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect seemed more like a tempering process that ultimately forged Jian Jinsheng into who he was.

However, who could have anticipated that now, having succumbed to the demonic influence and barely regaining clarity, there was a formidable Combined Aperture Tempering realm figure standing beside him? Moreover, their relationship was far from amicable, if not outright hostile.

According to Jian Jinsheng’s own disposition, if someone dared to attack him in such a manner, regardless of the reason, they would have to pay a heavy price for their actions.

“Whoosh!”

A breaking sound echoed as two individuals, Qin Haishan and Tong Zhongqiu, appeared next to Chen Fei.

Their luck was remarkable, as each of them had obtained a spiritual resonance. Within their QJankun Bags, a faint spiritual radiance was still lingering.

The Qiankun Bag was a magical treasure that couldn’t even suppress the aura of a spiritual resonance, let alone a spiritual treasure. Because of this, those Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts had a clear understanding of the situation as they scanned everyone.

Upon seeing Tong Zhongqiu, Jian Jinsheng subconsciously tightened the hilt of his sword. For Tong Zhongqiu, the situation between them was truly a matter of life and death.

Tong Zhongqiu gazed at Jian Jinsheng, his expression somewhat complex. This was the person who had nearly suffocated the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect not long ago, and now he had fallen into the grip of demonic influence.

Jian Jinsheng’s current aura was excessively tainted, far from the pristine aura of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm. Judging by his appearance, the depth of his demonic influence was profound, with little hope of recovery.

This meant that the best outcome for Jian Jinsheng was to maintain his current state. Because he had to constantly resist mental contamination, he couldn’t fully exert his strength, as there was a constant risk of falling back into the demonic influence.

If he were to fall completely into the demonic influence again, there would be no possibility of him ever regaining his sanity. He would become a madman driven solely by the urge to kill, until his body ultimately disintegrated.

Tong Zhongqiu had been worried that Jian Jinsheng might secretly break through to the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm. However, the current situation was quite different from his expectations.

“What do you want?” Jian Jinsheng turned his gaze towards Chen Fei and spoke in a deep voice.

“Techniques, treasures, and the Qiankun Bag, I want it all!” Chen Fei responded after a brief pause.

For Chen Fei, it wasn’t necessary to kill Jian Jinsheng. Keeping him alive would at least allow for the acquisition of techniques.

“Very well!”

Jian Jinsheng didn’t hesitate at all. He produced a jade scroll and engraved all the techniques he had cultivated onto it.

The Divine Flame Sect’s own legacy had long been scattered and was not worth mentioning. Most of what Jian Jinsheng had learned came from the Combined Aperture Tempering realm cave he had discovered.

Since these were originally someone else’s belongings, Jian Jinsheng felt no burden in giving them away and had no intention of hiding any crucial information.

Now, the most important thing was to stay alive in Chen Fei’s hands. As for whether Tong Zhongqiu would seek retribution later, that was a matter for the future.

In less than a moment, Jian Jinsheng had recorded the techniques, all the while making a solemn vow in front of Chen Fei.

Chen Fei took a look at the jade scroll and, using his Heavenly Eye, found no hidden agenda. He reached out to receive it and simultaneously probed it with his spiritual insight.

It took Chen Fei half an hour to thoroughly examine all the techniques contained within the jade scroll. Given Chen Fei’s current level of expertise, he didn’t detect any issues with the techniques.

The Three Lives Slicing Shadow Sword had integrated various techniques, and Chen Fei had even perfected it to the highest level. Typically, if there were any problems with the techniques, Chen Fei would easily spot them.

Moreover, Chen Fei also had his status panel, which showed no anomalies at the moment.

Technique: Withering Prosperity Scripture

Technique: Heart Intent Sword

These were the two Combined Aperture Tempering realm techniques that Jian Jinsheng primarily practiced. The Withering Prosperity Scripture focused on cultivating elemental energy and was known for its ability to switch between life and death.

Chen Fei, after reading through the techniques, found that some of the claims were exaggerated. At most, the Withering Prosperity Scripture allowed for entering a feigned death state when severely injured, which could be used to facilitate rapid recovery.

It also had excellent effects for concealing one’s presence, effectively making the practitioner seem like an inanimate object.

It was likely that Jian Jinsheng had used this technique when he ambushed the Combined Aperture Tempering realm expert from the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect, successfully deceiving others.

Within the Withering Prosperity Scripture, there was also a forbidden technique called “Life and Death Reversal,” which could directly reverse elemental energy and flesh, granting immense power. However, this forbidden technique, once unleashed, could result in the practitioner dying before their enemies if not controlled properly.

It was quite extreme.

Aside from these aspects, the Withering Prosperity Scripture didn’t seem to surpass the original Primordial Profound Art by much, and its explanations for the later stages of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm were even less detailed than the Primordial Profound Art.

As for the Heart Intent Sword technique, it was a mental technique focused on cultivating the heart and the sword, capable of soul-cutting attacks.

In terms of raw power, it might not surpass the Profound Slaying Sword, but the Heart Intent Sword excelled in speed, with the principle of “where the mind reaches, the sword arrives.” When integrated with the Profound Slaying Sword, it could enhance Chen Fei’s mental attacks’ speed.

Overall, it was a decent haul that could raise the upper limit of Chen Fei’s techniques.

Seeing that Chen Fei had no further intentions, Jian Jinsheng left the Qiankun Bag and the sword, then darted towards the distance.

Tong Zhongqiu glanced at Qin Haishan, who hesitated for a moment before nodding. Tong Zhongqiu’s eyes showed gratitude, and the two of them quickly followed in Jian Jinsheng’s wake.

With severe injuries and a lack of magical treasures, if Tong Zhongqiu and the others couldn’t kill Jian Jinsheng in this state, Chen Fei would have nothing to say.

Chen Fei watched the three of them depart and casually found a hilltop to settle down on.

Many Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts had already left since the matter concerning the spiritual resonance had concluded. Continuing to stay here served no purpose.

However, there were still some Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts moving around the area, hoping to find any overlooked treasures.

Especially the ten-mile-radius area that had been restricted earlier was the focus of their exploration.

Chen Fei sat cross-legged on the ground, casting a casual glance at the sky before closing his eyes.

Some peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts remained hidden in mid-air, observing the lower Combined Aperture Tempering realm practitioners. Nobody noticed them, but Chen Fei’s Heavenly Eye was highly sensitive to even the faintest signs.

Chen Fei chose not to leave at this moment, not out of concern for being suspected, but purely to study the dark mist.

As Chen Fei continued to practice the Three Lives Slicing Shadow Sword, he increased the proficiency of the technique while observing the state of the spiritual treasure within the spatial grid.

Due to the time stagnation within the spatial grid, Chen Fei could meticulously observe the current condition of the spiritual treasure.

The complete appearance of this spiritual treasure should have been a short ruler, but now only a small portion remained, covered in gaps and cracks.

Injured to this extent, it might not even be able to accumulate elemental energy, let alone retain much power for refining elemental energy. It would be difficult to gauge how much energy it could muster in combat.

Nevertheless, even in this state, this spiritual treasure remained highly sought after by peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm experts.

That was because it represented a hope, a hope for reaching the Mountain Sea Realm. However, the size of this hope was uncertain, often more of an obsession.

For those truly aiming to break into the Mountain Sea Realm, even if you gave them a damaged spiritual treasure like this, or even a pristine one, it might not necessarily lead to significant changes.

Would giving a spiritual weapon to an Visceral Tempering realm martial artist instantly propel them to the Combined Aperture Tempering realm? Would giving a magical treasure to a peak Combined Aperture Tempering realm practitioner immediately grant them entry into the Combined Aperture Tempering realm? Such questions remained unanswered.

Breaking through isn’t as simple as that; otherwise, many sects’ legacies wouldn’t have been severed. Even intact spiritual weapons or magical treasures couldn’t achieve such a feat, let alone damaged ones.

Different levels of cultivation lead to different perspectives on the matter.

To those in the Mountain Sea Realm, this broken spiritual treasure might seem like scrap metal, just as Chen Fei viewed damaged and unusable magical treasures as scrap metal. Chen Fei would never hear of someone crossing thousands of miles just to retrieve a low-grade magical treasure that was broken beyond repair.

However, at Chen Fei’s current level, this broken spiritual treasure was considered a treasure!