"I have always honored my agreement with the 'Senior of the Ancient Stone' and never revealed my true strength in public. But I am not truly a congenital warrior, and Shentu Yong is one of the top ten strongest warriors of the Shentu tribe," Jiang Xuan muttered under his breath, staring at Shentu Yong. "Fortunately, his injuries are severe, and his reactions are much slower than usual. If I can aggravate his injuries further, I might have a chance to kill him. I must strike unexpectedly."

"Let the battle begin," the voice of the inspector, Lei Hong, rang out indifferently.

Boom.

Jiang Xuan charged forward, dragging his sword behind him.

The first move of the Chasing Wind Blade is the "Dragging Blade" style.

"Too slow! Too slow! With your skills, you dare come out and play the hero?" Shentu Yong’s feet shook, his movements growing even faster. He didn’t bother with any intricate steps or footwork. Like a tiger or leopard, he lunged forward, raising his sword to strike Jiang Xuan’s head.

The power behind the sword was overwhelming and ruthless!

Despite his grave injuries, Shentu Yong was still a congenital warrior. Every movement of his unleashed immense power, shaking the air like a thunderstorm.

In the blink of an eye, the sword light seemed to swallow Jiang Xuan whole.

At this moment...

"Hm?"

Shentu Yong was suddenly startled, his eyes widening as he hurriedly withdrew his sword and stepped back. However, given his injuries, his movements were not smooth. In his panic, his steps became unsteady.

"Be careful!" Shentu Yan and Shentu Maoshi both noticed the change.

"This aura!"

"Congenital? No, wait! He doesn’t have a congenital body! But the aura is unmistakably congenital! Half-step congenital?"

"Oh?" The inspector Lei Hong’s eyes gleamed with interest. He had been watching disinterestedly until now. To him, tribal conflicts were barbaric and backward. The bloodshed, the tragic fates of the women, the endless cycle of life and death—none of it moved him. For three years, the death battles between the two tribes had seemed dull and unworthy of attention.

Now, however, things appeared to be getting interesting.

"A half-step congenital at fifteen? Even I didn’t notice it. How could a small tribe have such a brilliant method of concealing their aura?" Lei Hong thought, his focus sharpening as he observed Jiang Xuan.

A half-step congenital is a "special realm."

A true congenital warrior possesses both a "congenital body" and "congenital spiritual power."

A half-step congenital refers to a practitioner whose spiritual energy has completely transformed into congenital spiritual power, but their body remains in the post-congenital realm, not yet a congenital body.

This phenomenon only occurs when one practices a special technique.

Jiang Xuan’s swordsmanship had suddenly grown explosively!

The sword light, savage and fierce, struck toward Shentu Yong repeatedly, advancing with every step!

Unexpectedly!

Shentu Yong was startled by the sudden eruption of congenital energy from Jiang Xuan’s body. With each step he took in retreat, his footing grew more unstable. He couldn’t find a moment to adjust himself and had to rely on brute force to counter Jiang Xuan’s furious blows. Jiang Xuan was too fast, too aggressive, leaving him no time to defend or adjust. The congenital spiritual energy surged through his body like a raging wave, causing his meridians to begin to tear under the strain.

"This kid’s sword attacks are so ferocious. Even a half-step congenital shouldn’t be this strong. He’s recklessly using his congenital energy!" Shentu Maoshi realized.

"Not good! This kid wants to kill him while Shentu Yong’s injuries are still severe!" Shentu Yan’s face changed dramatically.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Each blow clashed with a spark flying in every direction! Jiang Xuan swung his sword again, not using any specific sword techniques, but pushing for maximum speed, drawing on as much congenital spiritual energy as possible with each strike!

Clang!

Clang!

Shentu Yong retreated six steps, each one forced by Jiang Xuan’s six consecutive blows. His level, body movement, and sword skills all surpassed Jiang Xuan’s, but the sudden onslaught left him struggling to adjust. With every blow he received, his already severe injuries worsened.

The seventh strike!

Clang—hum.

Shentu Yong’s sword flew from his grasp, the blade slicing through his body!

Splat.

His head, wide-eyed in disbelief, flew into the air. Jiang Xuan jumped, grabbed the hair of the head, and landed facing the north.

Thud!

Shentu Yong’s headless body fell to the arena floor.

On the day of the final death battle between the Jiang and Shentu tribes on July 9th, the fifteen-year-old Jiang Xuan of the Jiang tribe killed Shentu Yong, one of the top ten strongest warriors of the Shentu tribe!

"Lord, I won!" Jiang Xuan held up the head in front of the northern platform where Lei Hong, the inspector, sat.

"Mm." Lei Hong nodded, rising to announce, "The ten matches of today’s death battle are over. The two tribes will fight again next month."

The martial arts field fell into silence.

Then, a flurry of discussion erupted. The women of the Jiang tribe were ecstatic, overwhelmed with joy and crying tears of happiness, some even hugging each other.

Wei Baiyun stared at her son in disbelief, then smiled widely as she wiped away her tears.

"Brother won! Brother won!" Jiang Yao clapped her hands, her palms red from the force.

"He killed Shentu Yong!" A beautiful and strong middle-aged female warrior in leather armor exclaimed with surprise. Her son, barely eight or nine years old, gazed at the arena, looking at Jiang Xuan with admiration.

"Fifteen years old! No wonder he’s Hanfeng’s son!" An elder woman, over seventy, wept tears of joy, tapping her cane on the ground with excitement.

"Oh my heavens."

"He won!"

"A half-step congenital at fifteen."

The women of the Jiang tribe were all excitedly discussing it. They understood the significance of a half-step congenital at fifteen. This special realm indicated that it was only a matter of time before Jiang Xuan fully became a congenital warrior. His father, Jiang Hanfeng, had broken through at eighteen without ever experiencing the "half-step congenital" phase.

And according to legend, a half-step congenital cultivator would naturally nourish their body with spiritual energy, and within two years, their body would "transform into congenital," fully becoming a congenital being!

Jiang Xuan might become truly congenital by seventeen, or even sixteen.

He would break his father Jiang Hanfeng’s record! The Jiang tribe’s once-in-a-century genius, without a doubt!

On the other side...

Over fifty Shentu tribe warriors were stunned.

"A half-step congenital."

"This child must not be allowed to live!"

"He really killed Shentu Yong." Shentu Yan looked up at the platform in shock, unable to process what had just happened. "Shentu Yong was only thirty-four! He was one of our tribe’s top ten warriors, the youngest brother of the tribe leader. The leader wanted to make him the next patriarch, which is why he fought all nine matches today, becoming the key figure in winning these three years of death battles! But he was killed!"

The Fifth Elder, Jiang Jingsheng, had been bought off half a month ago.

The tenth match today shouldn’t have been fought.

"We should have replaced him! We should have replaced him!" Shentu Yan suddenly yelled out in anger!

Shentu Yan, forty-four years old, was the one in charge of the Shentu tribe’s affairs in this arena, his strength surpassing even Shentu Yong, ranking among the top three in the tribe.

"Shameless kid! Hiding your true strength! Taking advantage of our warrior’s injuries, sneaking in and landing a hit!" Shentu Maoshi shouted. "Just wait until next month, our warriors will tear you to pieces! You’re only a half-step congenital. Our tribe still has dozens of congenital warriors! Any of them could kill you with ease! Let’s see what you can use to defend yourself then!"

"Yes! We’ll tear you apart!"

"Prepare to die!"

"Next month, our tribe leader will personally kill you!"

The Shentu warriors shouted in fury.

Shentu Yong had been killed, and his older brother, Shentu Lie, the patriarch of the Shentu tribe, would most likely step in next month. Shentu Lie was one of the rare spear masters in Heitan Mountain. When he was young, his spear technique was unparalleled, and he challenged his peers from other tribes without encountering a match, until Jiang Hanfeng returned from his travels and defeated him after a half-move.

Since Jiang Hanfeng’s disappearance, Shentu Lie, now in his prime, had begun to be hailed as the strongest warrior in Heitan Mountain, known as the "Spear Overlord."

Jiang Xuan turned his gaze toward the Shentu tribe warriors, giving them a cold sneer.

Then, he raised his hand and kicked!

"Here’s the dog’s head, back to you."

Bang!

Jiang Xuan kicked Shentu Yong’s head toward the Shentu warriors. Shentu Yan caught it in his hands, the blood splattering all over his face. He stared at Jiang Xuan with rage, his forehead veins bulging.

Though furious, Shentu Yan could do nothing.

During the tribal death battles, personal fighting was forbidden. Even though Shentu Yong had insulted Wei Baiyun with his words earlier, and Wei Baiyun was stronger than Shentu Yong, she couldn’t act against him. Now Jiang Xuan had humiliated the Shentu tribe with this action, but they could only glare at him in fury without being able to retaliate.

Shentu Yan understood that this wasn’t the time for further verbal sparring.

There was something more important to do.

"You need to go find the patriarch immediately, ride my beast and hurry! Tell him the situation here has changed, and delay the attack. It’s urgent! You must reach him before sundown, or we will bring your head to him!" Shentu Yan spoke quickly to one of his subordinates.

"Yes," the young man, Shentu Min, replied and left in haste.

Jiang Xuan calmed the surging spiritual energy within him as he jumped down from the arena.

He walked directly toward the Shentu warriors.

His gaze, however, was not on them. Instead, he fixed his eyes on Jiang Jingsheng, who was standing among them.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Several figures rushed out from the sides of the arena, all women from the Jiang tribe, and all of them were congenital warriors. They were the last of the Jiang tribe’s congenital strength, though they weren’t allowed to participate in the death battle. The strongest of them, Wei Baiyun, joined Jiang Xuan at his side, sword in hand, staring at Jiang Jingsheng.

Jiang Jingsheng’s face showed panic. He looked pleadingly at several Shentu congenital warriors.

Shentu Yan took a step forward and blocked Jiang Jingsheng.

The other Shentu warriors gathered around, protecting Jiang Jingsheng in the middle.

To the Jiang tribe, Jiang Jingsheng was a traitor, but to the Shentu tribe, he was someone who had seen the situation and acted wisely, and they couldn’t let someone who had defected feel discouraged.

"He has voluntarily surrendered; he’s now a part of the Shentu tribe. You won’t do anything to him, right?" Shentu Yan barked.

"What he did is his business, but he cannot take anything from the Jiang tribe, especially not the black jade ring that represents the position of the tribe leader. This item has been passed down in the Jiang tribe for a thousand years; it not only signifies the position of the tribe leader but is also a symbol of command over the forty-seven tribes in the Hundred Ridges!" Jiang Xuan stretched out his hand. "Have him hand over the black jade ring!"

More and more Jiang tribe members gathered around, weapons drawn.

The inspector Lei Hong, who had been about to leave, turned his head and furrowed his brows at the scene.

Shentu Yan, seeing things take a turn for the worse, quickly gave Jiang Jingsheng a look.

"Hand it over, I will. I didn’t say I wouldn’t." Jiang Jingsheng hurriedly took off the black jade ring and handed it over.

Shentu Min mounted his beast and rode out of the Jiang tribe’s earthen city.

He headed southwest.

The beast, with blood-red fur, was majestic in appearance, with six eyes and a single horn on its forehead. This steed, a descendant of the third-tier demon beast Red-maned Shadow Beast, could travel three thousand miles a day. Its value could easily buy a three-building mansion in Feixue City, the capital city, and even a tribe as powerful as the Shentu tribe didn’t have many of such beasts. Even Shentu Yong, the patriarch’s younger brother, wasn’t qualified to own one.

This was Shentu Yan’s mount.

"Giddy-up! Giddy-up!"

Shentu Min whipped the beast again, urging it on.

"Faster! Faster!"

"We must reach him before dark! Otherwise, things will go badly!" Shentu Min whipped the beast again, growing more anxious. He understood the weight of his message. Jiang Xuan’s victory in the final match of the day seemed to give the Jiang tribe another month to live, but it also had ramifications beyond that, disrupting the Shentu tribe’s grand plans.

Shentu Min was a core member of the Shentu tribe’s leadership.

He knew the true reason behind their sudden war with the Jiang tribe.

He had to stop the patriarch.

"Giddy-up!"

An hour passed.

Dusk.

At the "Old Ox Head Ridge," more than three hundred miles southwest of the Jiang tribe’s earthen city.

This place was still within the Jiang tribe’s territory, with the Gemu Tribe, loyal to the Jiang tribe, living in this area. Shentu Min entered Old Ox Head Ridge, bypassing the Gemu Tribe's patrols, and after a brief rest, approached a hidden valley.

The valley was desolate, with sparse vegetation, and no beast packs roamed here. The Gemu Tribe didn’t hunt here, making it a rarely visited place.

"Look! Someone’s coming!" A long-faced man guarding the cliffs on one side of the valley noticed Shentu Min’s arrival and quickly raised his bow, aiming it.

The tribe leader had ordered that any strangers approaching must be killed.

"It’s Min. He’s one of us." Another man, with a scarred face, reminded him.

"Huh? Isn’t he riding Uncle Yan’s mount? Why is he in such a hurry? Is something wrong?" The long-faced man lowered his bow, confused.

"What could be wrong? He must have come to report that we won." The scar-faced man chuckled lightly.

The valley, which should have been deserted, was now bustling. On the inside wall of the valley, which stood over twenty feet high, there was a cave entrance several yards wide. Crushed stones were being transported out of it. This group of Shentu tribe members appeared to be digging something.

The sound of hooves grew louder as Shentu Min entered the valley.

"Quick! Take me to see the patriarch!"

Shentu Min shouted urgently as soon as he saw the people.