"Energy Arrow? Hah, that thing isn't even as potent as the Thunder Roar Arrow. Do you think that can handle me?" Kante scoffed, pointing a finger forward and tapping the arrowhead with his fingertip.

Instantly, an enormous energy shield materialized on his fingertip, charging toward the incoming crimson-purple flame arrow!

The very moment the energy shield and the crimson-purple flame arrow were about to collide, the arrow abruptly vanished from the air!

"BOOM!"

A deafening explosion followed, and Kante screamed as half his body was blown into shreds of flesh! Even as he died, he couldn't fathom how the arrow bypassed his divine shield to strike him!

"Who said an Energy Arrow can't kill?" Chen Feng's figure slowly materialized from the air.

"Boss! Our Boss..."

Everyone on the ground shouted with excitement upon seeing Chen Feng's silhouette.

White recovered from his shock and rushed forward, his eyes full of pleasant surprise.

"Boss, you're alright..."

Chen Feng patted his shoulder and smiled faintly, "Prepare for battle. Our team needs a good workout!"

"A workout?" White's expression was odd, but realization dawned quickly, followed by a laugh. "Then I shall issue the commands!"

Initially worried about the Boss's safety, the strategic plans were largely defensive formations. Now that the objective was set as 'training,' all pressure vanished. What better plan for a workout than a surprise attack?

He quickly summoned all the Battalion Commanders and issued new deployments.

The people in the camp were immensely excited to see the Boss return safely, and their fighting spirit soared higher. After all, a team without its leader was like a body without its backbone; now that the Boss commanded a fight, how could they refuse?

White's orders were relayed within moments, and the entire force coalesced like a massive net, waiting for the enemy's advance.

...

Someone asked: How did Chen Feng emerge from underground? Answer: Naturally, by drilling out. How else would he get out? After comprehending the "Eight Wine Cups" move beneath the mountain cave, Chen Feng began searching for an exit. He followed the underground current for half a day, and feeling he was outside the mountain's influence, he started burrowing. Even though the soil quality was relatively loose here, it still took him a full ten days to break through! As soon as he surfaced, he rushed toward this location and witnessed Kante's arrogance. Without hesitation, he drew his bow and unleashed an arrow with his maximum power! After firing the arrow, he immediately cast an "Eight Wine Cups"! "Eight Wine Cups" has the effect of freezing time. Chen Feng mixed the power of "Eight Wine Cups" into his Purple Flame Arrow. Thus, just as the arrow was about to intersect with Kante's energy shield, time was momentarily frozen, allowing the arrow to strike and kill him directly! "Eight Wine Cups" is an ultimate move, but aside from freezing time, it doesn't have many significant offensive effects. It only unleashes tremendous power when combined with other techniques. It's like using "Eight Wine Cups" first to freeze the opponent, and then following up with an "Orochi." Since "Eight Wine Cups" doesn't reject other KOF skills, Chen Feng conceived of integrating it into the Purple Flame Arrow, and to his surprise, he succeeded instantly! If Kante hadn't been so careless and arrogant, even if he couldn't block the Purple Flame Arrow, he could still have dodged it. After all, Chen Feng was only beginning to cultivate "Eight Wine Cups," and his own cultivation level was low, meaning the attack couldn't cover a wide area. A little more caution would have saved him. However, having just been barraged by a volley of Thunder Roar Arrows, he dismissed the incoming energy arrow as nothing significant—and this slight oversight cost him his life.

..................................................... The "Heretic" military camp. "What is Kante doing?" a stern-faced middle-aged man asked the heavily armored general before him. "Seventh Divine Envoy, the Eighth Divine Envoy heard that the opposing force ahead is merely a ragtag mob, so he went ahead to spread the glory of the Divine Being first!" the heavily armored general replied neither subserviently nor aggressively. "Is that guy out of his mind?" the one called the Seventh Divine Envoy roared in anger. The heavily armored general seemed to dislike the "Divine Envoy" before him very much, and seeing his anger, he offered no reply. "What are you standing around for? Can't you stop him? Hurry up and assign me a battalion to retrieve Kante!" the Seventh Divine Envoy commanded. Although the heavily armored general was annoyed, he finally couldn't resist bowing slightly and said, "Yes!" He turned and walked out. Once the Seventh Divine Envoy saw the heavily armored general depart, the corner of his mouth curled up, and the sternness vanished from his face, replaced by a smile. "A good-for-nothing who can never complete a task! I truly don't know why my Divine Being favored him!" More than ten days ago, a divine oracle descended, ordering them to quickly mobilize troops and head here to locate a specific place where powerful divine energy fluctuations had appeared, attracting the attention of the Divine Being. The eight Divine Envoys of the Divine Being immediately rushed into action. He and the Eighth Divine Envoy were currently engaged in encircling the Kage Church forces, so they quickly gathered their men and arrived. The oracle explicitly demanded the complete annihilation of this enemy force, yet Kante, the fool, couldn't wait for the main army and ran ahead himself! "You just want to claim credit and earn more divine power from the Divine Being, hoping to surpass me, don't you?" the Seventh Divine Envoy said coolly. "But for an army that can attract the attention of the Divine Being, what difference does a Divine Envoy make? What an idiot!" ... "The Eighth Divine Envoy has personally gone to the enemy camp to preach the doctrine. To ensure the Divine Envoy's safety, I require one battalion to go escort and support him. Which of your teams will go?" the heavily armored general asked all the Battalion Commanders calmly. "We will go!" "We will go!" "We will go!" ... All twelve Battalion Commanders vied for the task. "Legion Commander, perhaps I should go!" a rough voice rang out. The heavily armored general turned to see it was the Commander of the Assault Battalion. The Assault Battalion was the elite core of the entire force, composed entirely of Nether Saint experts. When the other generals heard him speak, they all fell silent. "Very well, since you insist on going, I'll give you a task: not only bring the Eighth Divine Envoy back safely, but annihilate the entire force ahead of him!" the heavily armored general commanded. "No problem. They are just a ragtag bunch in the wilderness; I will capture them with ease!" the Assault Battalion Commander saluted. "Good!" The heavily armored general waved his hand. "Make it quick. But be careful not to damage the area designated by the Divine Being!" "Yes! I will return within the hour, having annihilated them all!" the Assault Battalion Commander turned and left, his tone arrogant and boastful. In his eyes, this group hiding in a mountain ravine was nothing more than a bunch of cowards, easily captured or killed. If they could defeat the Kage Church, what chance did some unknown local power have? "Everyone else, rest here and await orders," the heavily armored general instructed after the commander left, looking around. Everyone responded and dispersed to gather their respective teams. "Legion Commander, I can't understand why the Divine Envoy ordered us to abandon the nearly conquered Kage City and come to this remote place," one of the heavily armored general's trusted subordinates couldn't help but ask. "This is the arrangement of the Divine Being; do not speculate needlessly!" the heavily armored general replied grimly. "Yes!" The subordinate took a step back and remained silent. Thinking about it, the heavily armored general was also fuming. They were on the verge of taking Kage City when the oracle arrived, ordering an immediate withdrawal to fight this force hiding in the ravines. It wouldn't have been so bad if he knew the reason, but these two Divine Envoys wouldn't tell him and instead exerted divine pressure—it was infuriating! Generals who lead troops are rarely devout believers; only victory matters to them, and he was no exception! "Hmph, once we wipe out this force, we'll go back to dealing with the Kage Church!" the heavily armored general muttered to himself. "Why did you stop?" the Seventh Divine Envoy approached, demanding to know. "I have already dispatched the Assault Battalion. If nothing goes wrong, they will bring back the Eighth Divine Envoy and eliminate all these mountain bandits!" the heavily armored general stated. "These soldiers have been marching for many days and are exhausted; resting them here is to conserve strength!" "Do not underestimate this force; my Divine Being places great importance on this battle!" the Seventh Divine Envoy cautioned. "They are merely a few jumpy clowns. The Assault Battalion is more than enough," the heavily armored general said flatly. "I am in charge of troop deployment. The oracle provided clear instructions; I trust the Divine Envoy will not interfere, correct?" "Fine, fine!" the Seventh Divine Envoy roared, turning and walking away. Although furious, he was helpless. The Legion Commander leads the entire army, and the oracle stipulated that even Divine Envoys could not interfere in combat matters! Everyone simultaneously rested in place and began setting up tents. About an hour later, a soldier from the Assault Battalion fled back in a panic, his clothes shredded, his body smeared with blood, and wisps of white smoke curling off his back. "Report to the Legion Commander..." The man rushed to the heavily armored general, tears streaming down his face. "The entire Assault Battalion of twenty thousand Nether Saint experts has been annihilated. The Commander died on the spot. I am the only survivor..." ..................................................... The Assault Battalion Commander was flying at the very front of his formation. As they flew through an area encircled by mountains, a sense of foreboding suddenly struck him. But before he could react, thunderous sounds of arrows rained down from the sky. "It's the Thunder Roar Arrow!" The Assault Battalion Commander's face was etched with terror. Although the Thunder Roar Arrow was considered mediocre, its destructive power was undeniable. Judging by the sheer volume, the entire sky was filled with arrows. "How is this possible? What an exorbitant cost for this many!" He couldn't believe it. "Quickly form an energy shield for protection!" he shouted, instantly casting an energy shield upon himself first. However, their reaction time was still slower than the incoming arrows. A series of intense explosions ripped through the air, the scorching airwaves scarring the ground beyond recognition, and a colossal mushroom cloud ascended. The Assault Battalion was stunned that someone could afford to produce such a vast quantity of arrows requiring such a massive expenditure. If it were just an explosion, that might be one thing, but mixed into the explosion was a powder that interfered with Nether-Meditation, effectively blinding even Nether Saint level experts in the area. As soon as the explosions subsided, sharp whistling sounds echoed through the air. Men from the Impact Battalion charged forward from a distance, each wielding a long spear! The greatest strength of a Nether Saint lies in utilizing Nether-Meditation to manipulate nature. With that sense impaired, facing the heavily armored Impact Battalion in close combat was suicide for them! The cold sound of flesh being pierced echoed repeatedly as the once arrogant Nether Saint experts began dropping to the ground like rain. "Get down first..." the Assault Battalion Commander yelled urgently. The Impact Battalion relied heavily on speed. Being airborne had given the enemy an advantage; descending to the ground might improve their situation! Before they could even land, plumes of fire erupted from the ground, followed by a group of burly men charging from nowhere. They allowed the Nether Saint experts no chance to resist, immediately launching close-quarters attacks! ... "What is this powder that interferes with Nether-Meditation? How is it so potent?" Chen Feng asked from a nearby peak, watching the slaughter unfolding below. Chen Feng immediately recognized that without this powder, even with a surprise attack, the enemy likely wouldn't have been thrown into such chaos. After all, they were facing a full twenty thousand Nether Saint experts! "That's something I just developed. Although it's highly effective, the... cost is too high!" White replied with a wry smile. "As of now, we only have 3,000 of these Thunder Roar Arrows in total, and the wave of attacks just used them all up!" "Ah?" Chen Feng was startled. "Boss, you know how troublesome Nether Saints are. Their Nether-Meditation is too powerful; even large-scale attacks from Thunder Roar Arrows wouldn't harm them much. So I came up with something brilliant! Perfect Crystals can absorb and store Nether-Meditation. If we turn them into powder, wouldn't they serve the same purpose? The experiment proved successful. After you gave me over thirty thousand Perfect Crystals, I had the people manufacturing Thunder Roar Arrows start preparing, grinding the Perfect Crystals into powder and mixing them into the arrowheads. Once they explode, the Perfect Crystal powder disperses, and Nether Saint experts find their Nether-Meditation absorbed, preventing them from expanding their senses—naturally turning them into blind men!" Chen Feng was ecstatic, realizing how ingenious White’s solution was. One thing conquers another. Perfect Crystals are prized by anyone cultivating Nether-Meditation, but they can also become a fatal weapon! Absorbing Nether-Meditation naturally impedes its expansion! "However... manufacturing one such arrow consumes one Perfect Crystal. I had intended to save these arrows for truly critical moments, but since they immediately sent so many Nether Saint experts, we had to use them all," White admitted with a bitter smile. One Perfect Crystal per arrow—the cost was indeed astronomical! Even the Eight Great Churches might balk at spending the equivalent of over ten million per arrow! But Chen Feng was different; he lacked nothing more than Perfect Crystals. With the Purple Fire Crystal Mother, he could produce as many as he wished! And with the Purple Fire Crystal Mother, he wouldn't have to worry about magma either! "This... we must mass-produce this in the future!" Chen Feng was overjoyed. "But... grinding Perfect Crystals is such a waste!" White couldn't help but object. "Perfect Crystals are not an issue. I will provide them continuously; you just focus on production!" Chen Feng assured him. White glanced at him, then finally nodded. With their Nether-Meditation impaired, how could the Nether Saint experts escape the assault formations composed of Gold Armor Warriors, such as the Impact Battalion, the Flame Battalion, and the Melee Battalion? In less than an hour, the entire twenty thousand Nether Saint experts were wiped out! The [Sweeping the Horizon] Legion also suffered heavy losses. Despite the overwhelming advantage, over 7,000 warriors died, and over 10,000 were wounded! After all, Nether Saint experts have many ways to fight back, such as self-detonation; even if their meditation was unusable, their desperate counterattack was ferocious. However, the feat of annihilating twenty thousand Nether Saint experts at the cost of only 7,000 Gold Armor Warriors would be unbelievable if it spread across the continent. Gold Armor Warriors and Nether Saint experts were incomparable, much like Dou Zun and Dou Sheng. In a normal engagement, it would have been difficult for even one hundred thousand or two hundred thousand Gold Armor Warriors to kill twenty thousand Nether Saint experts, let alone annihilate them all! Winning the first battle was a massive morale boost for everyone. "We won the first battle, so let's withdraw too," Chen Feng said with a smile. "Withdraw? We should press the advantage!" White was perplexed. Chen Feng explained, "Although the enemy Nether Saints are all dead, they still have fifty thousand Nether Venerable experts and ten thousand Gold Armor Warriors remaining. We are out of Thunder Roar Arrows laced with Perfect Crystal powder. If we fight again, our losses will be severe. It's better to retreat; we've already mined all the ore here, so staying is meaningless!" Striking once and moving on was the ultimate strategy. Killing their Assault Battalion and then waiting in the same spot was no different from a siege! White understood instantly and agreed. ....................................................... "What?" The heavily armored general stood up, unable to believe his eyes. "The Assault Battalion, twenty thousand Nether Saint experts... all killed? Are you joking?" Twenty thousand Nether Saint experts—surely some could have escaped if besieged, but total annihilation... this level of power was terrifying! "Yes!" the surviving Assault Battalion soldier cried out while weeping. "Legion Commander, you must avenge us!" "Avenge?" The heavily armored general's heart sank. Twenty thousand Nether Saint experts wiped out in one hour—just how powerful was the enemy? It seemed a long-term plan was necessary. While they planned for the long term, Chen Feng seized the opportunity. A day later, when the heavily armored general sent scouts to probe again, they found that this terrifyingly strong force had vanished. There wasn't a single trace of movement on the ground. Did even the Gold Armor Warriors fly away? How was that possible? Gold Armor Warriors couldn't fly! The heavily armored general fell back into confusion. The Seventh Divine Envoy found the location indicated by the oracle and began large-scale excavation. However, less than a day into the digging, another divine oracle descended: pursue and hunt down the [Sweeping the Horizon] Legion! ...................................................... "Marshal Maderara, the Divine Being has just issued an oracle. The Seventh and Eighth Divine Envoys have failed; we must immediately go and assist! Continuing the siege on the Temple is meaningless!" the First Divine Envoy of the "Heretics" said in the central command tent to the pot-bellied man before him. This portly man was the supreme military strategist and Marshal of the Heretics, Maderara. "We are nearly at the Temple walls; why stop the attack?" Marshal Maderara asked, greatly confused. "The Temple is not the ultimate goal of my Divine Being; He seeks the Lost Divine Being. Now that the Lost Divine Being has appeared, we must all converge and link up with the Seventh Divine Envoy!" The First Divine Envoy's face emitted dark, swirling lights, projecting a tremendous pressure. "Very well!" Marshal Maderara responded, turning to leave. He immediately summoned all his forces to retreat! They had fought for two months to reach this point, only to abandon it due to a change in the oracle. ................................................... Little Tiger rubbed his belly, looked at the mountain of empty bowls and chopsticks piled on the table, and let out a satisfied burp. "Mmm, not bad, Old Man. You're pretty decent!" Hearing the praise, Woma Pope's eyebrows twitched, and he wiped away a bead of sweat. He quickly stated from a short distance away, "Divine Envoy, the Heretics have besieged the Temple's exterior. Should we perhaps..." Little Tiger glanced at Ling Feng. Seeing her stand up, he declared grandly, "Alright then. Since you fed us so well, we'll help you out!" Woma Pope wiped another bead of sweat. Was this youth truly a Divine Envoy? If not, how could he have emerged from the Divine Descent Pool? Ling Feng frowned at Little Tiger's reckless demeanor. After exiting the Divine Descent Pool, Ling Feng, referencing the memories left by Fire Phoenix, thought posing as a Divine Envoy would bring many benefits and ease their passage, as the [Gate of Nature] was exclusive to the Church members. But after hearing news of the Heretics during their meal, she had second thoughts. There were only two of them; how could they possibly defeat so many Heretics? She was hesitant and hadn't spoken when Little Tiger readily agreed, which made her quite displeased. Seeing Ling Feng remain silent, Little Tiger assumed she tacitly approved of his actions and puffed up with pride. He clapped the Woma Pope on the shoulder. "Old Man, don't worry. If I, Little Tiger, make a move, victory is guaranteed!" The Woma Pope’s eyebrows twitched again, and the cold sweat continued to flow. "Your Holiness... Your Holiness!" Just then, Phelps burst in from outside.

"Insolence! How dare you shout in the presence of the Divine Emissary?" the Woma Pope thundered, sharply reprimanding him.

"Yes..." Phelps responded, a look of sheer delight spreading across his face. "Your Holiness, the heretics outside have retreated!"

"Retreated?" The Woma Pope's eyes snapped wide open, disbelief etched onto his features. "You... are you speaking the absolute truth?"

"It is entirely true!" Phelps quickly affirmed.

The Woma Pope, suddenly galvanized by excitement, turned and immediately knelt before Xiaohu and Lingfeng. "Thank you, Divine Emissary, for intervening! The glory of my Lord is omnipresent, and justice shall endure in this world!"

"...I intervened?" Xiaohu stood frozen in place, utterly bewildered. (To be continued. For the rest of the story, please visit www**com for more chapters, support the author, and read the genuine version!) First Release