Fixed.

This word was a marvel.

As far as Wu Yu understood, the efficacy of the Fixed Body Art was dependent on three factors: the level of comprehension of the user, the level of spiritual power the opponent possessed, and the distance between the two.

As the distance closed, the effect of the Fixed Body Art would naturally become stronger!

Therefore, Wu Yu still chose to fight Jiang Junlin even though he knew that Jiang Junlin was two tiers of spiritual power above himself.

This was his first time using the Fixed Body Art. Wu Yu reproduced the Great Sage's actions from his memory, blowing over the top of his outstretched palm. 

On the surface, it seemed that Wu Yu's action had not produced any outcome!

However, Wu Yu knew that he had succeeded!

This was just a test!

As Ming Long had said, Wu Yu was still far off from mastering the true Fixed Body Art. He could only mimic what he had seen, and relying on the seed of the Fixed Body Art meant that he could only display a mere skeleton of the skill. The form was right, but the spirit of the skill was missing.

Even then, although his opponent was also in the fourth tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, the overwhelming ability of the Fixed Body Art still proved effective despite being a mere caricature of the original.

Never in his wildest dreams would Jiang Junlin have imagined that he would be immobilized from head to toe, unable to summon even an ounce of spiritual power. Although it was just for a moment, it clearly had a great effect on his mental state!

"Impossible!"

As a matter of fact, he could not have ever believed that this was Wu Yu's doing.

After all, such a notion defied common logic.

Fortunately, the sensation of paralysis lasted only a brief second. WIth the Fixed Body Art wearing off, he was free to move again!

Yet, a brief second was all it took for Wu Yu to disappear from beside him!

It was as if Wu Yu had burst forth from beneath Jiang Junlin's armpit!

Whoosh!

The Fixed Body Art was a success!

Wu Yu's blood was racing.

In the second where the Fixed Body Art was in effect, Wu Yu managed to pass by Jiang Junlin. He hurled the Demon Subduing Staff without a second thought! 

The Demon Subduing Staff flew true like an arrow. Imbued with the full force of Wu Yu's throw, the staff transformed into a beam of golden light, surging forward with terrifying speed!

"Good bye, Wu You," cackled Yuan Chen as he began severing the final vine holding Wu You in place.

Ting!

All of a sudden, a beam of golden light flashed brilliantly and the Demon Subduing Staff punctured straight through his chest, lodging itself firmly halfway into the wall behind him.

"Keh..."

Yuan Chen lowered his head to look at the brutish rod emerging from the hole in his chest. For a moment, he was too stunned to react, but the pain that followed was both immediate and intense. The power of the staff had ruptured his internal organs and his bones had fractured from the shockwave, sending him into the throes of death!

"Jiang, Senior Brother Jiang… save me...."

A fresh stream of blood spurted from Yuan Chen's mouth as he spoke, the color draining from his face. He extended his hands towards his senior in desperation as Jiang Junlin spun around. However, Wu Yu had already reached the wall and swiftly caught Wu You with one arm while the other wrenched the Demon Subduing Staff free from the stones. Yuan Chen's limp body accelerated towards the ground, landing with a bone-shattering thud. 

"Keh..."

Brains askew, Yuan Chen's final breath escaped his corpse.

The last thing he saw was the image of Wu Yu landing on the ground with Wu You wrapped between his arms. Wu You steadied herself against Wu Yu's shoulder. She was exhausted and on the brink of dehydration, but at least she was alive.

"Yuan Chen."

Wu Yu glanced at the lifeless body. He had not meant to kill Yuan Chen, but Yuan Chen had been adamant on ending Wu You's life. If Wu Yu had not been decisive and spared Yuan Chen half a breath longer to live, the one lying dead on the floor would have been Wu You. 

In that instant, there was no margin for second guesses.

"Run!"

Saving Wu You was considered a great success, and Wu Yu's use of the Fixed Body Art in this instance had been exemplary. Without a moment’s pause, he swept Wu You into his arms, hastily departing the scene. Before he could take even a few steps, Jiang Junlin was already hot on his heels.

"Yu, you cannot escape while carrying me," whispered Wu You into Wu Yu's ears in a withered voice.

In truth, Jiang Junlin's speed outstripped Wu Yu's whether or not he was carrying Wu You. However, the fact that he was carrying her all but confirmed that there was no hope of escape.

Faced with this reality, Wu Yu had no choice but to change his strategy.

"I've already come to save you, how could I leave you now!?"

Changing directions towards the city, he saw the martial artists that had gathered earlier. Amongst them was a pugilist at the fourth tier of the martial way whom had also been close to Wu You. Wu Yu had known him in the past as a trustworthy man. Without a second thought, he thrust Wu You at the man, saying, "Bring her somewhere far away, let her recover!"

"Yes!" 

At first, the martial artists had given up hope, but upon seeing that Wu You still had a chance to live, warm tears flowed from their eyes. Even the commoners of Wu wanted to help. In an instant, a path was cleared and a horse carriage full of supplies was readied for Wu You to leave the battlefield.

"There is no need to take me out of the capital, just leave me some food and bedding, that will suffice," Wu You announced weakly.

"But Prince Yu told us to go farther..."

"It's no use. If he loses this fight, there will be no safe place for me to run to." If Wu Yu fell in battle, it went without saying that she would have no interest in continuing to live alone.

The crowd helped move her back to Carefree Palace as it was generally possible to keep up to speed with the situation of the battle from its vantage point. More importantly, Wu You could get some rest there, which she was in dire need of. The past four days had been hellish torture for her!

Upon Wu You's departure, Wu Yu stood ready to stop Jiang Junlin from giving chase. However, Jiang Junlin had already halted his pursuit and was instead kneeling beside Yuan Chen's corpse. His broad palm moved, resting upon the bloodstreaked face of Yuan Chen. 

"Since I've slain Yuan Chen, I fear that man is going to be furious." 

Wu Yu could tangibly feel Jiang Junlin's rage boiling over as his murderous intent grew. He had awoken a sleeping tiger, placing the entirety of Capital Wu in incomparable danger!

"Yuan Chen..." Jiang Junlin hesitated for a moment before closing Yuan Chen's eyelids. " Rest easy, I will make sure you depart without regrets."

From the looks of it, Jiang Junlin would never let Wu Yu escape scot-free. A duel to the death was imminent.

Jiang Junlin had only been toying with Wu Yu before and never took things personally, but the events that had just transpired implanted within him a burning desire to end Wu Yu with extreme prejudice. 

Huo!

At this instant, Jiang Junlin stood up.

"Everyone, return to your homes, the spectacle has ended."

Wu Yu knew that Jiang Junlin's temper would naturally cause collateral damage, thus he spoke to protect the citizens from harm. Everybody understood this and left the scene in a flash, leaving only the bravest watching from a distance.

"Where could this heavenly immortal have come from? Even Prince Yu seems to be afraid of him!"

"I don't know, but I heard that Prince Yuan Chen brought him back, and his position is ‘many times higher than Heavenly Immortal Hao Tian!’ Immortal heaven is full of great characters!"

"Then, since Prince Yu has killed Yuan Chen, he is definitely in trouble...."

For a brief moment, Capital Wu seemed to have burst into flames which enveloped the entire city!

"Wu Yu!" 

Jiang Junlin stood, eyes blazing as he threw his fox skin coat aside, revealing his battle-hardened, muscular physique.

Although he was a dao practitioner, the sinewy muscles coiled around his body imbued him with a threatening aura. Heavenly Immortal Hao Tian could not hold a candle to the raw power of Jiang Junlin! 

"To tell you the truth, Jiang Junlin, I do not wish to make an enemy out of you. I am Feng Xueya's disciple, so a clash between us is a clash between our sects. There is no need for that."

Although Jiang Junlin was responsible for the danger that Wu You had barely managed to escape from, Wu Yu was responsible for the death of the Spectral Concubine, which would definitely be a problem for Heavenly Sword Sect. His intuition was telling him to resolve the situation as peacefully as possible.

"In my eyes, Feng Xueya's disciple is but a fart in the wind. You've killed Yuan Chen. Besides accompanying him in death, there is no other choice for you!" Jiang Junlin's voice was sharp and icy. His killing intent was aimed straight at Wu Yu!

It seemed that he was already aware of Wu Yu's true identity before Wu Yu had a chance to explain himself.

"You are well aware of my feud with their family, but this has nothing to do with you. However, if you insist on sparring, I will gladly oblige." Although Wu Yu felt that this was a fight that could be avoided, he did not fear Jiang Junlin.

"Who wants to spar with you? I want a duel to the death!"

Jiang Junlin let out a callous chuckle. He had been a cruel person since he was young and was a dominant presence within the Zhongyuan Dao Sect. Nobody had dared to cross him throughout his entire lifetime!

Even a great number of sect elders endeavoured to get in his good books.

He had the final say in more than 70% of the matters within the sect. 

Before slaying Yuan Chen, Wu Yu amounted to nothing in the eyes of Jiang Junlin. Now, however, Wu Yu had truly entered Jiang Junlin's crosshairs as a target to be eliminated.

"Then I'll accompany you to the end!"

Since it had come to this, there was nothing more to say.

After reaching the second tier of the Qi Condensation Realm, Wu Yu had not been able to test the extent of his newfound powers, so he did not know what his current strength was! 

"Although the Fixed Body Art consumed a great amount of spiritual power, the Great Way of Immortality Art's yin and yang vortex of spiritual power has immensely increased my recuperation speed, allowing my spiritual power to fully replenish within the period of this stalemate." 

This sentence spoken by Wu Yu was also a plan to stall for time.

Weng!

The Demon Subduing Staff in Wu Yu's hand began to gyrate and an overbearing energy burst forth, clashing against the frigid murderous intent of Jiang Junlin.

Night had fallen and the streets of Capital Wu appeared desolate amidst the darkness. However, all the citizens had hidden themselves, wide awake and ears cocked towards the battlefield where the two immortals were about to duel!

"Hmph!"

It was certain that Jiang Junlin carried a large number of powerful treasures with him.

At this time, he reached his right hand into his Sumeru Pouch, drawing upon an immortal treasure. Wu Yu could make out that the item was a golden ruler about two thumbs wide and two feet long. He could also see what seemed like a palace amongst the many engravings adorning the ruler, with a golden array of floating characters clearly embellishing the immortal treasure. 

"What a fearsome immortal treasure!"

The moment the golden ruler appeared, a suffocating, golden aura shot out towards the surroundings. With a wave of his hand, Jiang Junlin had engulfed the battlefield in his aura! 

This immortal treasure carried the gold element and was called the Gilded Ruler. Although they were both immortal treasures, the material quality of Wu Yu's Demon Subduing Staff could not compare to the Gilded Ruler. The array had a boundless air of domination, with a murderous aura that frightened all in its range.

It was then that Wu Yu mused that he and Jiang Junlin were rather similar as they both possessed a natural affinity for the gold and fire elements. There was no immortal treasure that paired better with Jiang Junlin than the Gilded Ruler. 

Unfortunately, this was not the only thing that Jiang Junlin had up his sleeve. While Wu Yu was still taken aback by the Gilded Ruler, Jiang Junlin produced a blazing ruby gem in his other hand.

......

End of the first volume.

Next volume

Officially entering the war of the immortals!