Chapter 1170: Killing Intent, Rising Sand

The eighth-ranked Heavenly Dao expert was tall and muscular, clad in blue armor with a flowing cape. Coupled with his intimidating fang mask, he exuded an astonishing sense of pride and dominance while maintaining mystery, resembling a demon god descended to the mortal world—naturally drawing everyone’s attention!
Osaaya, Martial Lord Bi Xuan, and other Heavenly Dao experts also scrutinized this seemingly unapproachable intruder, their brows furrowed in concern.
What surprised and alarmed them was…
On the ruins, when the black storm arrived, no one had approached the site. How had this person entered?
“…”
The man, like a demon god, had a cold and defiant gaze. Anyone whose eyes met his felt as if they were scorching. Aside from the few top Heavenly Dao experts, everyone else immediately lowered their heads or averted their gaze, filled with terror.
Of course, there were exceptions.
Kai Xin, with his extraordinary spiritual perception, didn’t even need to use his eyes to sense the intense coldness and brutal aura emanating from the man—it seemed as though he wasn’t a human but rather a fierce beast hidden beneath the blue armor, a beast a hundred times more dangerous than the black sand scorpion!
Seizing someone’s gaze from the crowd, the mysterious expert glanced coldly and spotted Kai Xin among them.
Startled, Kai Xin trembled inwardly:
What sharp insight!
Even among the many Heavenly Dao experts present, none had ever shocked or intimidated Kai Xin like this mysterious expert’s icy gaze, which made him feel as if he were in an ice cellar.
“Hmph.”
Before he could withdraw his spiritual perception, a white breath escaped from beneath the fang mask, along with a cold snort. A tangible mental pressure took shape in the air, forming a monstrous entity with a gaping maw, roaring like thunder with a wild and violent aura as it charged forward!
“Master, be careful!”
The Faceless Fox, being closest to Kai Xin, was the first to sense the mysterious expert’s targeting. Before he could react, a faster figure appeared between Kai Xin and the mysterious expert. With a wave of his hand, the space-constricting mental pressure beast instantly disintegrated and vanished before Osaaya.
Boom!!!
In the clash between the Heavenly Dao experts, the mysterious expert merely unleashed an ordinary mental pressure, but the sudden tension between the two top experts still caught everyone’s attention.
“…”

The mysterious powerhouse seemed to examine Happy once again, casting a brief glance at Osaaya, who was also at the realm of Unity with Heaven. Without saying anything, he simply withdrew his gaze and closed his eyes, as if what had just happened wasn’t done by him at all. Standing behind Osaaya, Happy’s eyes never left those of the mysterious powerhouse. At that moment, he clearly saw a hint of surprise and disdain in the latter’s eyes. Surprise! Naturally, it was because Osaaya, a master of the Heavenly Dao, had personally stepped in to block his attack. As for the disdain, it was directed at Happy. Happy could guess it—this opponent was an unparalleled powerhouse who dared not be defiled, arrogant and unrestrained, unhesitating in killing, which had cultivated such a tyrannical and domineering temperament! After his probing was detected, the opponent immediately sent a mental pressure wave at him, casually, as if annoyed by a fly buzzing nearby and wanting to swat it away. It was this kind of contempt for human life as insignificant insects. “…” Although Happy had previously defeated a master of the Heavenly Dao, the pressure exerted by the mysterious powerhouse far exceeded that of the Sword Sect’s sect master! It even surpassed Bi Xuan, the most senior martial lord with Heavenly Dao qualifications present! This was also why Bi Xuan hadn’t said a word to this unknown mysterious powerhouse to this day… Out of fear! Even a high-ranking martial lord felt a sense of threat and pressure from this mysterious powerhouse. Even though Happy harbored anger waiting to erupt, at this moment, before understanding the identity and strength of the mysterious powerhouse, he had to suppress his fury. Engaging with this mysterious powerhouse now would not only expose all his cards but might also harm Osaaya… His purpose in coming to the Desert Palace was to sit back and watch the others fight, reaping benefits as a bystander, not to create opportunities for others to do the same. “Don’t pay him any attention. Let’s go.” With slightly moving lips, Happy pulled Osaaya, who had her brows tightly furrowed and stood in front of him, and whispered to her. Unexpectedly, she replied quickly, her tone bitter: “With so many people here, why would he target you specifically? This guy seems even more difficult to deal with than Martial Lord Bi Xuan. I’m no match for him.” “It might be because of you.” Of course, Happy wouldn’t tell Osaaya that it was because he had taken a second glance. He changed his tone and said, “Right now, in this hall, only I am accompanied by a loved one. He might have had an unhappy marriage, which is why he dislikes me…” “Do you think I’ll believe you?”

“You can’t believe me, there’s nothing I can do. You saw it yourself… I didn’t provoke him.” He shrugged helplessly, looking utterly innocent and shifting the doubt back to Osaaya.
…
However, after the recent confrontation, everyone present gained a better understanding of this mysterious powerhouse, realizing that he was capricious and not easy to deal with. Many now dared not provoke him.
“This place is completely sealed off with no exit. How can we get out?”
The light from torches lining the surroundings illuminated every corner of the hall, revealing its smooth copper and iron walls without any signs of traps or exits.
“Now that we’re all in the same boat, what do you all say?”
The experts of the Heavenly Way also couldn’t help but gather together, aiming to pool their wisdom to overcome this predicament.
The mysterious Old Master Qin was the first to nod in agreement: “The Black Storm won’t last long. If we stay here too long, we’ll never be able to leave. I agree—let’s combine our efforts to escape from here!”
“This must be some part of the Desert Palace. Aside from the imperial forces, no one else has the resources to build such a massive palace in the heart of the desert.”
“There must be traps in the palace that can take us away from here.”
“It’s a pity the mage I brought died in the passage. Otherwise, he might have been able to help.”
Apart from Dongfang Bubai and the mysterious fanged mask wearer, everyone else shared their opinions and suggestions.
“Let’s split up and search around. Check if there are any traps on the walls… Leave some people with me to figure out what’s going on with these sand pits.” As the leader of the grasslands, Wu Zun Bi Xuan naturally put himself above the others and gave orders.
Under normal circumstances…
The experts of the Heavenly Way, being formidable figures in their own right, would ignore Wu Zun’s words. But with time running out and his proposal making sense, several of them sent their subordinates to search for traps on the walls. The remaining experts, along with Kai Xin, the Thousand-Faced Fox, Wan Wan, and Hou Xibai, stayed behind to examine the sand pits.
“Xibai.”
The Evil King silently called over the Affectionate Young Master, frowning: “Find out what secrets lie hidden in these sand pits.”
“Yes, master.”
Hou Xibai was the youngest man in the group besides Kai Xin, handsome and graceful. Hearing this, he closed his folding fan and bowed in obedience.
Kai Xin watched quietly from the side…

The diameter of this quicksand pit was over ten meters, and finding the secret within it was no small challenge.
“Wanwan, go help him.”
“Yes, master.”
Wanwan had always been obedient and clever in front of Yin Hou. She nodded and walked over to Hou Xibai, and the two arrived at the quicksand pit.
They exchanged a glance…
The Heavenly Demon Art!
Wanwan took action.
The aura of the Heavenly Demon Art unfolded, creating a swirling vortex that drew everything toward it; at the same time, the quicksand in the pit began to roll slowly under its influence!
As the aura fully expanded, the flow of quicksand inside the pit accelerated, becoming as threatening as a vortex in the deep sea.
“It’s time…”
Hou Xibai stared intently at the quicksand vortex, gathered his strength, and punched hard into it.
Boom!!!!
The high-speed quicksand vortex exploded like powerful explosives.
A massive force burst forth from within the vortex.
Amidst the loud noise, a yellow sand waterfall dozens of meters high shot into the air, attracting the attention of everyone in the hall.
However, the Heavenly Dao experts nearby were not surprised by the sand waterfall. Ignoring the swirling sand filling the air, they fixed their eyes on the pit from which most of the sand had been discharged.
With Hou Xibai and Wanwan’s combined attack, most of the quicksand in the pit was removed, leaving it much emptier and revealing its interior to everyone.
But to everyone’s surprise…
There was still sand everywhere.
The pit was once again empty, yet no more sand poured down from above. Moreover, there seemed to be no signs of traps inside.
Seeing this, the Heavenly Dao experts frowned, clearly dissatisfied.
As the sand began to settle after spreading widely, Yin Hou, who was standing near the pit, waved her hand…
A vortex formed!
The massive yellow sand waterfall quickly turned into a huge vortex under the effect of the Heavenly Demon Art, changing direction and rushing toward the flat ground nearby.
Everyone was saved from the danger of being buried by sand…
Yin Hou’s action didn’t draw much attention!
Everyone’s gaze shifted to the sand at the bottom of the pit.
Then, someone else took action!
“Rise!”
The mysterious powerhouse, seemingly unable to bear the atmosphere there, placed a hand on top of the pit and pressed down slightly:
The quicksand inside the pit seemed to be pressed down by a giant hand, creating a huge depression in mid-air…
Everyone watched in astonishment.

The mysterious warrior snatched at it with a cold gaze.
Boom!!!
A fierce wind swept through the pit, sending countless grains of sand flying out. The man in green armor had his cloak fluttering wildly, yet he stood firm as a peak, motionless.
Deep within the pit, a rusted long sword emerged, showing less than a foot of its blade. Over time, it had lost all luster, but the proud sword spirit emanating from it shocked everyone present!