Chapter 69: Weapon Washing Pool

His speed was extremely fast, and everywhere he passed, the black marble on the arena was actually corroded by the poisonous mist, emitting "chi chi" sounds and venting bursts of white smoke.

"What terrifying poison!" The Disciples under the stage retreated in shock.

Chu Chang's eyes narrowed.

He thought of Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue's warning; this Great Elder Zhao Wuji had indeed been transformed by the Demonic Poison within his body.

"Golden Geng Sword Art, Army Breaker!"

Chu Chang slashed out with his sword, and a brilliant golden sword radiance attempted to tear the green mist apart.

However, the green mist strangely fused back together the moment it was split.

Great Elder Zhao Wuji's figure abruptly appeared behind Chu Chang, his two dark green ghost claws carrying bone-chilling Death Qi, stabbing straight at Chu Chang's heart.

"Great Ming King Death Seal!"

This strike not only contained massive True Essence but also poisonous Demonic Death Qi. Once hit, even a Qi Refining Realm Cultivator would instantly turn into blood and water.

"I was waiting for you!"

Chu Chang did not dodge; the Golden Geng True Essence in his body operated crazily at this moment.

"Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist! Suppress Demon!"

He suddenly turned around, and an indescribable, awe-inspiring aura erupted from his fist.

That was a tyrannical Fist Intent born specifically to restrain demons and evil spirits.

"Boom!"

The golden and green powers collided fiercely in the air.

"Ah!!!"

A shrill scream rang out.

Seeing that, the green poisonous mist on Great Elder Zhao Wuji's hands, upon contacting Chu Chang's golden Golden Geng True Essence—which was full of awe-inspiring Pure Yang Qi—and his tyrannical Fist Intent, was like snow meeting boiling oil, instantly dissolved into nothingness.

"No! This is impossible! How could my Sacred Poison Demonic Technique…"

Great Elder Zhao Wuji's face was filled with terror. Under this punch, the bones in his hands were shattered, and his whole body was blasted to his knees on the ground. The Demonic Poison in his body began to backlash crazily, and his skin began to rot inch by inch.

Chu Chang stood before him, looking down at him.

"Evil deeds will eventually lead to self-destruction."

Chu Chang said softly, then kicked out, kicking Great Elder Zhao Wuji directly off the arena.

Under the stage, several Tianxing Peak deacons stepped forward quickly to carry away Great Elder Zhao Wuji, who was completely crippled and resembled a puddle of mud.

Although the Grand Competition forbade killing, Chu Chang's punch had completely crippled his cultivation, causing the Demonic Poison within him to backlash, leaving no possibility of recovery in this life.

On the other side, Immovable Wisdom King also cleanly defeated Lie Shan.

The final battle would unfold between these two great Body Refining Prodigies of the Outer Sect.

Sunset at dusk.

The summit of Tianxuan Peak was dyed a blood-red color.

The final battle of the Outer Sect Grand Competition, also the most anticipated one, had finally arrived.

"Tianxuan Peak's Chu Chang, versus Tianxing Peak's Immovable Wisdom King!"

On the arena, the two stood facing each other.

Immovable Wisdom King was nearly two meters tall, resembling an iron-cast Arhat, his whole body exuding an aura as heavy as a mountain and unbreakable.

"Chu Chang, you are very strong, worthy of being my opponent." Immovable Wisdom King's voice was deep as thunder. "However, my 'Ming King Indestructible Body' has been cultivated to the fourth level, Diamond Indestructible. Although your strength is great, you cannot break my defense."

"Is that so?" Chu Chang slowly clenched his right fist, and a dark golden light flowed across his knuckles. "Then let's test whether your Indestructible Body is harder, or my Demon-Suppressing Fist is more tyrannical!"

"Haha, refreshing! Take my punch!"

Immovable Wisdom King laughed loudly and took a step forward, causing the entire arena to tremble violently.

His iron-like fist, wrapped in monstrous power, charged straight at Chu Chang. This punch had no extra techniques, only extreme physical defense and pure physical strength.

"Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist! Mountain and River Shattering!"

Chu Chang did not dodge, throwing out a punch of his own.

The two strongest Body Refining monsters of the Outer Sect launched the most primitive and shocking hand-to-hand combat in the center of the arena.

"Dong!"

"Dong!"

"Dong!"

The dull sounds of flesh colliding were endless.

Each collision stirred up a violent storm of True Essence. The incredibly hard obsidian arena began to crack inch by inch under their feet.

The Disciples under the stage watched with boiling blood, while simultaneously feeling their hearts race. This level of physical confrontation, even if an ordinary Middle Stage Qi Refining Cultivator were grazed by it, would likely suffer instant bone fractures.

After dozens of rounds of exchanging blows, the two retreated from each other.

A trace of blood spilled from the corner of Immovable Wisdom King's mouth, but the Battle Intent in his eyes had reached its peak: "Satisfying! Come again! Ming King Manifestation, Unmoving as a Mountain!"

Boom!

Immovable Wisdom King pressed his hands together, and a black Ming King phantom several zhang high rose from the ground behind him. His body turned pure gold in an instant, and his defensive power surged several times over.

"Chu Chang, take my strongest strike, Ming King Suppressing Demon Seal!"

Immovable Wisdom King slapped out with one palm, and the Ming King phantom in the void also slapped down with a palm, carrying endless pressure as it covered the sky.

Chu Chang looked up at the giant golden handprint, the Battle Intent in his eyes burning completely at this moment.

"In that case, let's decide the winner with one move."

He slowly closed his eyes, and the image in his mind of the golden giant crushing ten thousand devils with one punch was completely mastered.

"Using the Physical Body as a furnace, True Essence as fuel, merging the great aura of all directions…"

"Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist, Second Form! Heaven and Earth Breaking!"

Chu Chang opened his eyes abruptly.

In this instant, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi within a radius of several miles seemed to receive some kind of summons, crazily gathering towards his right fist. His entire right arm turned into a pure golden color at this moment, dazzling like a scorching sun.

He threw the punch.

"Roar!!!"

A faint roar of a god-demon resounded through the world.

A golden beam of light a hundred zhang thick rose against the sky and slammed fiercely into the Ming King phantom.

"Rumble!!!"

A terrifying explosion sounded in mid-air, and the blinding light forced everyone to close their eyes.

The violent aftermath tore countless cracks into the barrier surrounding the arena.

After a long time, the light dissipated.

On the arena.

The Ming King phantom behind Immovable Wisdom King had completely dissipated.

His golden skin faded away, and he knelt on one knee in exhaustion, gasping for air.

On his chest, a wisp of dark golden Fist Intent was restrained but not released; as long as Chu Chang had a thought, it could completely destroy his Indestructible Body.

And in front of him, Chu Chang stood with his hands behind his back; although his clothes were slightly damaged, his aura remained steady.

"I… lost."

Immovable Wisdom King smiled bitterly and looked at Chu Chang with some admiration: "Your strength… has surpassed the limits of humanity. You deserve to be the first in this competition."

The audience was silent for a moment.

Then.

"Oh!!!"

Mountain-toppling and sea-draining cheers resounded throughout Tianxuan Peak.

"First! Chu Chang is first!"

"A new Outer Sect number one has been born!"

On the high platform.

Grand Elder waved his long sleeves, and his grand voice spread in all directions:

"This Outer Sect Grand Competition is over! First place, Tianxuan Peak's Chu Chang! Granted the status of Inner Sect Disciple, rewarded with one entry into the Weapon Washing Pool, and three Qi Refining Pills!"

In the sky, countless colorful streams of light fell, illuminating the young man in black standing in the center of the arena.

Chu Chang looked up towards the direction of the main peak, a slight smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Senior Sister, Inner Sect, I am coming."

The noise of the Outer Sect Grand Competition gradually dissipated in the afterglow of the sunset.

But for the entire Divine Sword Sect, a rising star named "Chu Chang" had already forcibly torn open the solidified hierarchy in a near-savage manner, intruding into the sight of all the high-level figures.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

During these three days, Chu Chang moved out of his original noisy Outer Sect Disciple residence.

As the first place of the Outer Sect Grand Competition and a newly promoted Inner Sect elite, he was assigned an independent Immortal Cave on the mountainside of Tianxuan Peak, which was extremely quiet and had double the density of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

"Hoo…"

In the Immortal Cave, Chu Chang sat cross-legged and slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air.

The white arrow of air did not dissipate, shooting out more than three feet away and hitting the hard stone wall with a "pa-pa" sound.

"Although I took first place in the Outer Sect Grand Competition, through the exchanges with Immovable Wisdom King and Great Elder Zhao Wuji, it exposed my current shortcoming of insufficient True Essence foundation."

Chu Chang looked inward, watching the dark golden True Essence in his Dantian that was almost liquefying but still lacked a bit, and calculated secretly in his heart.

"The 'Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist' and 'Golden Geng Sword Art' place a huge burden on the body. My current cultivation level is already struggling to support me in unleashing these two divine techniques recklessly. I must break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm as soon as possible!!"

Knock, knock, knock.

A soft and rhythmic knocking sound rang out.

Chu Chang stood up and flicked his sleeves to open the stone door of the Immortal Cave. Sure enough, Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue, who was as cold as snow in her white clothes, was standing quietly under the moonlight.

"Senior Sister." Chu Chang stepped aside to welcome Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue in.

Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue walked into the Immortal Cave, her cold gaze sweeping over Chu Chang. Her originally tense pretty face relaxed slightly, and a faint arc appeared at the corner of her mouth:

"It seems that in these three days, you have not only not been lazy, but you have completely stabilized your Realm at the Qi Refining Realm Great Perfection. That punch from that guy, Immovable Wisdom King, was not easy to take."

"I must thank you for your previous reminder, Senior Sister. If I hadn't known that Immovable Wisdom King had cultivated the 'Ming King Indestructible Body', the outcome of me fully activating the Heaven and Earth Breaking at the last moment would have been uncertain." Chu Chang smiled and handed over a cup of clear tea.

Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue took the teacup but did not drink it, instead looking at Chu Chang with a serious expression: "I came today because there is an important matter to instruct you on. Tomorrow, you will head to the Weapon Washing Pool. That is one of the Sect's oldest Forbidden Lands, and it is also the Opportunity you deserve as the first place in the Grand Competition."

"Is there anything special about the Weapon Washing Pool?" Chu Chang asked curiously.

"The Weapon Washing Pool is superficially a Holy Land where past Inner Sect sages and Grand Elders threw their lifelong weapons before passing away, using their remaining Sword Intent and Saber Qi to temper the weapons of their juniors." Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue's voice was very low, even using True Essence transmission. "But my Master once secretly investigated it; the source of the Weapon Washing Pool connects to an ancient Spiritual Vein deep underground. And…"

She paused, a trace of wariness flashing in her beautiful eyes: "The high-level figure who is practicing the Demonic Technique behind the scenes, his meditation cave, the Withered Zen Cave, is located in a secret passage directly below the Weapon Washing Pool. The weapon resentment and pure Spiritual Qi accumulated in the Weapon Washing Pool year-round are very likely a natural barrier he uses to cover up the leakage of his own Devilish Qi."

"So, when you enter the pool to temper your weapon tomorrow, remember not to be greedy. Once you detect any unusual aura, withdraw immediately, do you understand?"

Listening to Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue's instructions, Chu Chang felt a warmth in his heart, then nodded heavily: "Don't worry, Senior Sister, Chu Chang understands."

After seeing Senior Sister Lin Ruoxue off, Chu Chang stood at the door of the Immortal Cave, looking at the massive outline of the main peak hidden in the clouds, his fists clenched slightly.

"High-level Demonic Technique user… Weapon Washing Pool… It seems this trip is destined not to be too peaceful."

The next morning.

As the dawn light appeared, Chu Chang, led by an Inner Sect deacon, arrived at a Forbidden Land behind the main peak.

This was a huge valley, surrounded by jagged rocks, and nothing grew.

The void was filled with a sharp Qi that made the skin ache, and the sounds of swords and halberds clashing faintly echoed in his ears, disturbing his mind.

"Junior Brother Chu, the Weapon Washing Pool is ahead."

The deacon stopped in front of a towering stone archway, his eyes filled with awe: "Sword Qi rampages within the Weapon Washing Pool, and the resentment is extremely heavy. With your current cultivation, you can only persist at the edge of the pool for at most three hours. Once three hours are up, if you do not come out, your Physical Body will be shredded by the millennia of resentment accumulated within. Go, throw your weapon into the pool, and whatever Opportunity you get depends on your fortune."

"Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother."

Chu Chang bowed slightly, took a deep breath, and stepped across the stone archway.

Hum!

The moment he crossed the stone gate, the scene before him changed instantly.

A dark red water pool as large as a hundred zhang appeared before his eyes.

The pool water was extremely viscous, resembling boiling blood, and bubbles kept rising.

In the pool water, countless broken weapons were inserted densely.

Some only had broken handles, some were covered in rust, but every weapon exuded an extremely terrifying aura of ferocity.

The resentment of thousands of weapons gathered above the pool water, faintly turning into phantoms of primordial giant beasts, emitting silent roars.

"What terrifying killing intent!"

The Golden Geng True Essence in Chu Chang's body operated crazily at this moment, supporting a layer of golden shield on the surface of his body. Those invisible Sword Qi struck the shield, emitting "ding-ding-dang-dang" crisp sounds.

He walked to the edge of the pool and untied the ordinary iron sword that had accompanied him for a long time from his waist.

This sword had accompanied him through countless life-and-death struggles and already had the beginnings of spirituality, but its material was ultimately just ordinary iron, and in the exchanges with Duan Hong and Immovable Wisdom King, the blade was already covered with fine cracks.

"Old friend, go. Whether you can transform depends on today."

Chu Chang stroked the blade, then raised his arm.

Whoosh!

The iron sword cut through the sky and landed precisely in the center of the Weapon Washing Pool.

Glug, glug!

The viscous red pool water instantly swallowed the iron sword.

Immediately after, the pool water within a radius of several zhang began to boil violently, and countless strands of pure weapon Qi and Sword Intent wandering in the pool, like sharks smelling blood, surged crazily towards Chu Chang's iron sword.

Watching the iron sword gradually sink to the bottom of the pool, Chu Chang sat down cross-legged.

While using his Divine Sense to guide the iron sword to temper at the bottom of the pool, he operated the breathing method of the "Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist".

Boom!

In an instant, the liquid Spiritual Qi in the Weapon Washing Pool, which was so rich it was almost substantial, surged crazily into his body through his pores.

The Spiritual Qi here was too pure!

Although mixed with violent resentment, for Chu Chang, who had an incomparably strong Physical Body and used Tai Xuan Sword Intent to temper his True Essence, these resentments could not pose any threat at all; instead, they became the best catalyst for honing his True Essence.

The operation speed of the "Eight Desolations Demon-Suppressing Fist" inside Chu Chang's body became faster and faster.

In his Dantian, the dark golden True Essence, which had originally reached saturation, began to undergo extreme compression under the pressure of the massive force.

The barrier of the Qi Refining Realm Great Perfection began to loosen at this moment.