Zhang Fan pushed his speed to the extreme, even burning his blood essence to transform into a bloody light, before finally flashing ahead of the blade light.
Because the blade light was too fast, by the time Zhang Fan blocked in front of it, he didn't have time to employ any sword techniques for defense. He was directly struck on the chest by the blade light, his body sent flying like a cannonball and crashing into the lake.
Those gathered on the shore of Bibo Lake to witness the battle held their breath, marveling inwardly. The one-armed swordsman was truly powerful, to be able to cleave even Grand Master Zhang flying with a single saber strike. What was his origin?
With such strength, he shouldn't have remained obscure until now.
None of them knew that this one-armed swordsman was not from Earth, but from the vast Wushan Starfield.
Qin Luoshui, Zhang Xingan, and the others, seeing Zhang Fan blasted away for the first time, were filled with worry. Their hearts hung in their throats, and they felt a pang of self-blame.
If not for them, why would Zhang Fan have endured such a blow?
"Boom!"
The lake suddenly exploded, sending spray flying everywhere. Zhang Fan burst from the water, a faint bloodstain on his chest. The burly one-armed man's saber strike had only inflicted minor injuries on Zhang Fan.
With his divine body reaching near-perfection, Zhang Fan, whose strength rivaled peak Golden Core cultivators of the first-rate Golden Core realm, was unkillable by anyone below the Nascent Soul stage.
The burly one-armed man, who had been filled with anticipation, saw that his full-power attack hadn't even heavily injured Zhang Fan, and cursed him as a monster.
Although these body-refining powerhouses had limited techniques, their life-saving abilities were truly beyond compare.
Xue Jing and Lin Yun, seeing Zhang Fan unharmed, breathed a sigh of relief and then moved to attack the burly one-armed man. However, their strength was still a notch below his, and they couldn't harm him at all.
"Haha, since I can't kill you, I won't linger. I'll take my leave. We'll meet again!" Seeing Zhang Fan charging again, the one-armed man realized further entanglement was pointless. With Zhang Fan tying him down, it was difficult for him to kill anyone.
Therefore, after repelling Xue Jing and Lin Yun, his body transformed into blade light and he fled from the lake island.
His speed was so great that Zhang Fan could probably only catch up by using his Blood Shield technique, but Zhang Fan made no move, watching the burly one-armed man disappear from sight.
"He still got away!"
Watching the one-armed man vanish, Zhang Fan sighed softly.
Although he still had some trump cards he hadn't used, he knew that even if he employed them, it would be difficult to keep the man.
After all, the opponent had condensed a second-rate, top-grade Golden Core and cultivated it to its peak. Only peerless geniuses who had condensed a first-rate Golden Core and cultivated it to its peak would have the confidence to kill such an individual.
Unless Zhang Fan's divine body was completely perfected, it would be difficult to deal with him.
Although this battle had resulted in the deaths of thirteen Condensing Core realm cultivators and one Golden Core realm cultivator, Zhang Fan did not feel any joy.
The one-armed man's escape would undoubtedly lead him to seek help from other powerhouses in the Wushan Starfield. Once Earth's coordinates were exposed on a large scale, that would be a true catastrophe.
If even one Saber Sovereign was so difficult to deal with, how could they resist if three or five more Saber Sovereigns of that caliber appeared?
...
In this great battle, more than half of the lake island had sunk to the bottom of the lake. The remaining smaller half of the island, affected by the shockwaves of the battle, had become a ruin, with no buildings left standing.
However, what brought Zhang Fan some comfort was that he had plundered the treasures of the thirteen Condensing Core and Golden Core realm cultivators. Among them were quite a few precious items useful for cultivation.
With the investment of a large amount of manpower, within just a week, the lake island was completely cleared. The sunken half of the island was refilled, and the island's environment was restored to its former state. The only difference was that the villa was gone.
During this week, Zhang Fan had also sorted through the spoils of war, refining a large number of spirit pills and formulating a short-term cultivation plan for everyone.
...
After fleeing the lake island, the burly one-armed man soared into the sky, breaking through the atmosphere, and returned to the starship parked in Earth's outer space.
The Saint Domain and Divine Realm servants aboard the starship were filled with confusion when they saw the Saber Sovereign return alone, but they dared not ask.
After all, they were merely servants. A single misstep that angered the Saber Sovereign would lead to a tragic fate.
The Saber Sovereign paid no mind to the servants' thoughts. His face was grim as he pondered. His encounter this time had sounded an alarm bell for him.
Although he was powerful and had few rivals in the Golden Core realm, with his lone strength, he was still insufficient to seize the fortuitous encounter.
Normally, cultivators who came to seek treasures would invite three to five friends of comparable strength. However, Saber Sovereign was too arrogant, coming alone with a group of subordinates. Although he had found the place of fortuitous encounter, he lacked the strength to claim it alone.
Regarding that body-refining powerhouse alone, with all his means, Saber Sovereign was confident he could defeat him, but utterly incapable of killing him.
"It seems I still need to find a team of helpers!"
After deep contemplation, Saber Sovereign finally made up his mind. Although he was unwilling to share the present fortuitous encounter with others, if he hesitated further and the fortuitous encounter was seized by that body-refining powerhouse, he wouldn't even have a chance to regret it.
"Old Man Wen Xin!"
Saber Sovereign took out a black crystal from his spatial treasure. He channeled his magic power into the crystal, activating a trace of divine sense within it, and spoke.
This black crystal was a universally used Mirror Stone in the universe. As long as one detached a trace of their divine sense and injected it into the other's Mirror Stone, the recipient could communicate within a starfield using this trace of divine sense.
Although it was universally used, typically only those with considerable strength possessed Mirror Stones. After all, a single Mirror Stone cost a hundred thousand spirit crystals to purchase, a price that even ordinary Golden Core cultivators would be reluctant to pay.
In just a few breaths, a phantom image of an old man in a white robe emerged from the Mirror Stone, floating in the air.
Despite being a phantom, his eyes were incredibly lively, as if he were a real person.
"Haha, Saber Sovereign, it's rare for you to contact me actively."
"I recall the last time Saber Sovereign contacted me was because you had drifted in the Milky Way for over three hundred years and encountered a Golden Core cultivator from the Milky Way for the first time."
The old man in the white robe spoke with a gentle smile, unhurriedly, "May I ask what brings Saber Sovereign to contact me this time?"
"Where are Li Yangzi and Bai Zhen? Hurry and let them out. I have something to discuss with you," Saber Sovereign seemed displeased by the white-robed old man's hypocritical smile and said impatiently.
The old man in the white robe was unfazed by Saber Sovereign's attitude. He still wore a smiling face and said, "Those two are much more diligent than me; they are still in closed-door cultivation. May I ask what Saber Sovereign wishes to discuss with us?"
"It's about a place of fortuitous encounter," Saber Sovereign glanced at the old man in the white robe and said lightly.
"A place of fortuitous encounter?"
...
ps: Second update!