They were both equally matched in speed, and engaged in a cat and mouse pursuit around a remote valley. Since Jiang Chen wanted to test his opponent’s limits, he coolly refrained from using his other techniques. It was purely a contest of agility.   

What exactly is his background?

 Suspicion and shock struck Jiang Chen. He couldn’t recall there being such a person in the thousand-plus candidates entering the Blackwraith Mountains.

His foe was firmly enshrouded by a black cloak which added to his mysteriousness. One could only be certain that he wasn’t one of the candidates.

Are there other factions in the Blackwraith Mountains?

 A chill travelled down Jiang Chen’s spine. 

Who can he possibly be?

He could sense that his foe had yet to step into empyrean realm, which made him even more suspicious. He should’ve been able to dominate all foes beneath empyrean realm, yet this mysterious cloaked person was able to go toe-to-toe against him with raw talent alone.

Judging by the opponent’s speed, this was definitely no ordinary foe. Speed was an indication of one’s skill after all.

The cloaked man didn’t fare any better than Jiang Chen. He was also extremely taken aback He was a young genius from one of the eight aristocratic houses and top five among the thirty or so young aristocratic geniuses.

He wouldn’t have been surprised if his opponent had been one of his peers, but the person in front of him was clearly a candidate from Winterdraw Island!

This was simply stunning. Him and his peers were some of the most talented youths in Myriad Abyss Island.

They’d come to Winterdraw purely to mess around. It was a game; the Winterdraw candidates were merely prey waiting to be slaughtered. They'd hadn’t taken this seriously from the start. However, Jiang Chen's performance completely flipped the cloaked man's prejudices around.

To think that there’s a genius of this caliber in a backwater like the Rejuvenation Isles!

He’d found the Goldensable Fleeceflower earlier than Jiang Chen, but because of the various hazards surrounding it, he stepped aside to come up with a plan.

Unfortunately for him, Jiang Chen suddenly appeared out of nowhere and reached the Fleeceflower first. He was completely taken aback and wanted to intercept, but had failed. This led to a chase, whereupon he finally realized that he was facing an extremely strong foe.

Time passed quickly while the pursuit was on. Night went by in the blink of an eye.

Night time in the Blackwraith Mountains was extremely frightening. But visually speaking, it was no different from day to Jiang Chen because he cultivated the God’s Eye. The cloaked man didn’t seem to fear the darkness either and wasn’t affected by it.

The chase had been going on from dusk until dawn, yet Jiang Chen was wholly unaffected by fatigue. However, after an entire night of cat and mouse, he realized that speed might not be enough to shake off his pursuer.

Thus, he slowed his footsteps and gradually decreased his speed. The two had entered a dense and overgrown rainforest. The cloaked men followed suit and slowed down as well.

Jiang Chen came to a screeching halt, turned, and glared at the cloaked man with wrathful eyes. They were a few hundred meters apart, but he could clearly see the frightening power concealed behind the cloaked figure’s dark and sinister eyes.

“I assume you’re not one from Winterdraw Island?” Jiang Chen asked blandly. 

“Have you decided to stop running?” the cloaked man replied coldly.

Jiang Chen shrugged. “Do you really think that I was running away?”

“Enough of your nonsense. Hand over the Goldensable Fleeceflower!” There was no emotion in the cloaked man’s tones. He was as cold as a sharp blade.

“You recognize the spirit herb?” Jiang Chen was a little taken aback.

“You have two choices. Hand it over willingly, or I’ll take it from your dead body.” The cloaked man answered in a sinister tone. 

Jiang Chen burst into laughter. “I’ll give you two choices as well! Take off your cloak, or I’ll tear it off myself after I kill you!” 

The cloaked man had shown a lot of potential, but that alone wasn’t enough to scare Jiang Chen.

The man threw a sharp and malicious glare at Jiang Chen. “Idiot trash! Do you know who you're talking to?”

Jiang Chen answered blandly. “The only trash here is you. Why do I need to know who you are? A coward hiding behind a cloak is unworthy.”

Killing intent flashed across the cloaked man's eyes as a sinister cackle burst out of him. “So be it. Time to surrender yourself to fate. Genius of Winterdraw Island, I’ll show you just how insignificant and weak you really are!”

Radiance suddenly exploded from an upraised arm. An enormous sword could vaguely be seen within the light. His right arm had turned into a razor-sharp sword!

Jiang Chen was mildly surprised. This was no ordinary divine art. The cloaked man had refined his arm with true sword intent, melding sword and arm into one.

“Choose. Do you wish to be shredded or cut into pieces?” The cloaked man cackled. He raised his arm, flaring the blinding light once more. Frighteningly lethal arcs of sword light criss-crossed through the air.

Turning one's arm into a sword made handling it infinitely easier. It was much better than a traditional sword in terms of speed and maneuverability.

Sword intent hurtled in like a tornado.

Jiang Chen didn't dare take the attack lightly. In terms of martial technique, the mysterious black-cloaked man was no weaker than the empyrean masters he'd faced before. He shifted, evading the incoming attack with his advantageous position in the sky.

At the same time, he summoned the golden magnetic mountain and tossed it into the air. The mountain spontaneously expanded and levitated above their heads. Powerful magnetic power came pouring out.

Jiang Chen quickly followed up with chained hand seals, summoning a violent magnetic storm into the air. It was so fierce that it seemed it could swallow the land whole.

The cloaked man was slightly taken aback as well. His sword technique was extremely powerful and agile. He’d slain many formidable foes with it. However, the technique he was so proud of had mostly been absorbed by the golden magnetic mountain and magnetic storm.

With a sharp inhale, he stared warily at the magnetic mountain. The treasure was releasing magnetic power and absorbing his sword light!

“Tsk tsk. I didn’t think that Winterdraw would have someone of your caliber. The treasures you possess and the techniques you cultivate don’t look like they’re from this backwater. Are you really from the island?” The cloaked man’s suspicion had been roused.

Jiang Chen smiled coldly. “How about you?”

The cloaked man smiled sinisterly without admitting or denying anything. “As expected. You’re not from this island are you? Do you really believe that a mere magnetic storm will be enough to stop me? You’re too naive!”

He sneered and raised his right arm once more. The enormous sword turned blurry and slowly disappeared from sight. He then clapped, slowly drawing his hands apart to reveal something in between his palms. 

It was a tongue of flame about the size of a bean. It didn’t seem like much, but the cloaked man was completely focused on it. He leered viciously, casting Jiang Chen a cold glare.

The flame expanded exponentially with a shake of his hands. It turned into a ball of raging fire with the blink of an eye, which then transmuted into blinding green runes.

“Despair! The Nether Flames will turn your very soul into ash!” He crossed his arms with fists tightly clenched. When he opened his arms once more, his hands were arrayed in a strange hand seal that looked like a lotus. 

As though plucking a flower, he extended one finger and sent his harvest, the ball of Nether Flames, hurling towards Jiang Chen. 

Jiang Chen sucked in a mouthful of air. The Nether Flames was definitely an extremely powerful heavenly flame! Moreover, his opponent had refined it to the point where it could be manipulated at will. A gentle touch was all it took to perfectly materialize it. The easy style marked the air of a grand master.

Jiang Chen held his breath. He knew that he’d encountered a truly powerful foe. His opponent didn’t just possess great talent and potential, but powerful equipment and killer trump cards as well. He had to take this seriously.

He made a gesture with his own hands and conjured dozens of fire and ice lotuses. They had been significantly upgraded as well.

The fire lotuses were voracious eaters. They had completely blossomed and pulled greedily on the ball of flame. The ice lotuses arrayed themselves in front of Jiang Chen. A transparent wall of ice loomed like an ice mountain, protecting him from all harm.

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