Chapter 145: The Master of the Red Bean Pavilion

The leader of the group of young men in black shouted, "Brothers! Attack! Damn it, they are bullying us right to our faces!" Several of them immediately unleashed various magic treasures, launching a fierce assault on the burly man!

The burly man waved his hand, and a fierce gust of wind swept past, stalling the oncoming treasures. In a flash, he leaped right in front of them, throwing a pair of empty-handed punches with devastating force. With a loud *boom*, the half-foot space right in front of his fists seemed to be brutally torn apart by the blow, and a jagged black fissure slithered open like lightning!

The group of young men in black were startled and shouted, "Watch out!" They hastily leaped backward to dodge, but a few youths were still too slow. The black lightning swiftly coiled around them. Before they could even utter a cry of alarm, their bodies went numb, and then they were sent flying through the air as if riding the clouds! They slammed heavily onto the ground with loud thuds, their lives or deaths completely unknown.

The remaining youths in black let out a collective roar, their figures flashing as they swarmed forward. Dozens of rays of light shot toward the burly man with lightning speed! Meanwhile, the young master of the Duan family thought to himself with secret delight, *Since you've offended me today, I will make sure you suffer dearly!*

The other burly man, who was locked in fierce combat with Yuan Hanyun in the distance, glanced sideways at the scene. Suddenly executing three successive moves to force his opponent back, he swept aside and flew over, shouting, "Second brother, you can't handle this alone! Let's join forces!"

The burly man besieged by the youths in black laughed heartily and said, "Haha! A bunch of demonic clowns, where is the need for that!" Even as he spoke, he leaped up to meet his approaching companion. Mid-air, he gently pushed his hand forward, sending forth a soft radiance!

A sudden flash of white light dazzled everyone's eyes, making it hard to see. When they looked closely again, a strange entity with two heads and four arms had appeared in mid-air. Each of the two heads grew a curved horn, and the four arms were covered in layers of armor plates resembling fish scales!

The crowd broke into a chorus of murmurs, utterly shocked. Although they had heard of such fusion transformation arts, most of them were witnessing it for the first time, and such a bizarre spectacle was truly unprecedented!

Many knowledgeable individuals exclaimed, "This looks like... looks like the True Spirit Goat physique! Could those two burly men be descendants of the ancient Divine Spirit Sheep clan from the True Spirit realm?! No wonder their physical bodies are so formidable! I was wondering just now!"

"Indeed, that is the True Spirit Spirit-Sheep physique, but judging by their shallow cultivation, they shouldn't be able to manifest it independently, which is why they resorted to a fusion technique. Heh, it borders on taking a shortcut!"

"Taking a shortcut?! Why don't you go up and test this 'shortcut' technique to see if you can withstand the opponent? Forget a hundred moves, if you can last ten, I would be full of admiration!"

"Heh... heh! Naturally... naturally, I am far inferior! The power of this True Spirit physique is boundless and terrifying, rumored to be the foundational essence of the True Spirit lineages! How could I possibly withstand it?! Brother, you certainly know how to joke!"

Seeing this, the young master of the Duan family felt his heart sink, his expression turning as gloomy as water. *Since these two fellows managed to force out the True Spirit physique despite their limits, if this keeps up, they won't be able to do anything to each other!*

Sure enough, the double-headed, four-armed monster let out a wild roar, its four arms flailing to conjure thousands of arm-shadows. It lunged fiercely toward the dozen incoming magic treasures. Amidst a chorus of mournful cries and the monster's hearty laughter, as the arm-shadows dissipated slightly, the crowd clearly saw that the monster had actually grabbed all dozen magic treasures—along with Yuan Hanyun's folding fan—within its four large hands! No matter how the divine radiance twisted and transformed, the items simply could not break free!

Everyone gasped involuntarily, their hearts pounding with shock. The expressions of the dozens of youths in black and Yuan Hanyun shifted drastically as they hurriedly recalled their weapons! However, the monster let out a thunderous roar, its hands exerting force as two balls of golden light suddenly erupted from its palms. It flung them upward into the air, scattering hundreds of golden and silver rays in all directions!

The group of youths in black wore anxious expressions and hurriedly recalled their weapons. The dozens of rays of light in mid-air trembled slightly before sluggishly flying back down into their hands. Upon closer inspection, those spiritual treasures, which originally possessed immense spiritual resonance, were now mostly battered, incomplete, and severely damaged in essence! Yuan Hanyun also lowered his gaze to inspect his folding fan; aside from a minor loss of spiritual essence, it was completely unharmed! He could not help but inwardly call himself fortunate.

While the youths in black felt a deep sense of heartache, the double-headed, four-armed monster had already flashed over to Jian Lei's front. Pushing out with all four palms, an overwhelming and peerless force surged forward violently!

Just moments earlier, Jian Lei had watched in utter dismay as the monster destroyed over a dozen magic treasures with mere gestures. Seeing the beast pounce directly at him, his heart trembled. Knowing full well that he was no match for this monster on his own, he waved his Heavenly Canopy wooden ruler forward. A flash of black light released twenty-eight stars that spun merrily, instantly arraying themselves according to the numbers of the Twenty-Eight Mansions formation!

He retreated a step, arriving beside Yuan Hanyun, and whispered, "My Heavenly Canopy ruler won't be able to trap him for long! Neither of us can defeat this person alone!"

The monster only felt a sudden flash before his eyes, filled with brilliant starlight and the faint, revolving power of a vast nebula. The ferocious force unleashed by his four palms struck the countless stars and vanished slowly like mud sinking into the sea. He paused slightly, cast a glance around, and muttered, "This is rather interesting! It's actually the Twenty-Eight Mansions Tianji formation!"

Standing his ground, the monster took a deep breath. His four palms each formed delicate incantations, and faint white and red radiances flickered across his entire body as an aura of auspiciousness slowly rose. In the distance, Jian Lei's expression changed drastically as he shouted urgently, "Oh no!"

Yuan Hanyun seemed to realize the danger as well, shouting to the youths in black, "Attack together!" He suddenly snapped open his folding fan, and multicolored clouds of mist flashed brilliantly, obscuring whatever was painted on the fan's surface. With a slight spin of the fan, clear light burst forth and transformed into a streak of radiance that whirled away!

The group of youths in black also let out a collective shout as a dozen rays of light shot forth directly toward the monster!

Yet the monster acted as though he hadn't noticed their combined assault. He continued to chant incantations under his breath while forming seals. The three people could not help shouting, "Watch out!"

No sooner had the cry left their lips than a plume of smoky purple mist suddenly billowed out from the folding fan deployed by Yuan Hanyun. Amidst the swirling mist, a low roar abruptly echoed! The purple mist shifted and flowed, gradually forming the shape of a giant tiger-like beast made of clouds, its body stretching with two claws and a coiling hooked tail, lingering as if waiting to strike!

The crowd could not help but exclaim in shock, "This is... the Chaos Divine Beast!"

The Chaos Divine Beast let out a high-pitched roar, its two cloud-like claws suddenly shaking as it lunged forward with a piercing howl!

Seeing the claws descending upon him, the monster suddenly thrust all four hands upward. White light raged across his body, and the horns atop his head flashed with colorful radiance as two more pairs of curved horns grew out! These three pairs of curved horns simultaneously shot forth six pillars of light that rippled through the air, revealing three ancient spirit-sheep standing majestically on separate sides. The monster roared sternly:

"Three Rams Herald Prosperity!"

The three ancient spirit-sheep in mid-air suddenly flickered and vanished toward the four cardinal directions. The twenty-eight stars in the void abruptly trembled, flashed with blinding spiritual light, and then shattered one after another, turning into fine powder within moments and scattering across the sky!

In the distance, the spiritual patterns carved upon Jian Lei's Heavenly Canopy wooden ruler flickered wildly before a series of cracking sounds rang out. The ruler snapped into several broken pieces! Jian Lei felt his spirit churn violently, his internal core plunging into immediate chaos. Blood surged in his chest, making him feel intensely wretched. His own magical treasure had been brutally destroyed by the opponent! Overwhelmed by a mix of fury and terror, his chest heaved as a flush crept up his face, and he could no longer hold back a mouthful of fresh blood!

Yuan Hanyun saw the spirit-sheep's phantom in mid-air charging straight toward the Chaos Divine Beast. When the two claws lunged to strike, they collided with the phantom and were forcefully shattered apart. The cloud of Chaos mist in mid-air let out a frightened cry before flashing with colorful light and dissolving into nothingness! Seeing this, Yuan Hanyun's expression shifted drastically. Realizing that the spirit-sheep's phantom was still charging forward with undiminished momentum, he knew he was utterly incapable of blocking it! The general trend was lost, leaving him with no choice but to retreat and flee!

Resolute in his decision, his figure blasted backward dozens of丈 to avoid the sharp edge of the attack. The dozen youths in black saw a spirit-sheep hurtling toward them with terrifying speed, leaving them with nowhere to hide! Driven to desperation, just as they prepared to pool their strength to resist, they suddenly heard someone shout:

"Overestimating yourselves! How could you possibly withstand this 'Three Rams Herald Prosperity'!"

The youths in black rejoiced: "Young Master! You've arrived?!"

"Ha! If I hadn't come, you lot would have lost your lives here today!" The voice had barely faded when a man in white appeared in mid-air. In their haste, the crowd could not quite make out his features. The white-robed man merely gave a low shout, and a jade flute suddenly appeared in his hand. With a slight twist, he blew breath into the mouthpiece, and a low, mournful tune began to play! A fierce and sharp gust of wind swept out from the end of the flute, striking directly at the spirit-sheep phantom in mid-air!

Recognizing that this new opponent was extraordinary, the monster frowned slightly and exerted his internal force to drive the spirit-sheep in mid-air. Its momentum grew even more ferocious as it lowered its head, its horns sweeping horizontally upward to fling two cold flashes of light that met the gale-force wind unleashed by the jade flute head-on!

Seeing his attack fail to yield results, the white-robed man grew even more cautious. Holding the flute to his lips, he played softly. The notes sounded like birds chirping in the blooming reeds, spring water gurgling over rocks, cranes crying in the vast sky, or pearls falling onto a jade plate!

As a verse in praise goes:

*"Flute music vaguely in the reed-flower marsh,*
*White birds in rows are suddenly startled aloft.*
*Parting away, idly tending the fishing rod,*
*Thoughts drift into the cold water and clouds!"*

The crowd was left somewhat entranced. To hear such exquisite and ethereal music amidst such a vicious and perilous battle was simply unimaginable! Swift as thought, along with the flute melody, white light rippled slightly in mid-air, revealing five more figures! The crowd gasped in shock, narrowing their eyes to look closer!

The white-robed man shouted softly: "Sheng, Dan, Jing, Mo, Chou—Five Ding Opens the Mountains!" The pure notes of the jade flute at his lips suddenly rose into the soaring clouds! The five figures instantly moved in unison, pushing their palms forward simultaneously! Ten pillars of light shot swiftly toward the spirit-sheep phantom!

Aside from the group of youths in black, the onlookers were completely dumbfounded. Many muttered in disbelief:

"Are these... are these puppets?!"

"Indeed, indeed! They are puppets! 'Five Ding Opens the Mountains'?! Five Puppets Opens the Mountains is more like it...!"