My Cold and Elegant CEO Wife - Chapter 1232

Chapter 1232: The Gathering of Huaxia’s Superpowers

 

Qingfeng never knew that there would be this many self-cultivators from Huaxia.

If strange things didn’t happen in the Kunlun Mountain district, these people wouldn’t have come.

Qingfeng felt great strength amongst these self-cultivators, especially the ones in the front. Every one of them was extremely powerful.

Underneath the Kunlun Mountains, countless self-cultivators gathered. These self-cultivators were all from Huaxia, and included ones representing the orthodox, unorthodox, devilish, and demonic factions. Basically, all of Huaxia’s elite self-cultivators were there.

These self-cultivators were split into several sects and stood in different directions.

The orthodox stood at the east, the unorthodox in the west, the devils in the north, and the demons in the south.

Aside from that, there were Daoists, and Buddhists, and miscellaneous practitioners, who had all gathered together.

The Daoists and Buddhists stood at the very front, representing the Daoist and Buddhist forces. The Daoist practitioners breathed out green air, and the Buddhist practitioners emitted the golden halo of Buddha.

The chattering of the people rattled the Kunlun Mountains, and vital essence poured through the sky. Plants, trees, and grass were all shattered by the energy the self-cultivators breathed out due to their power.

Not only did plants and trees shatter, even demonic beasts ran away, some that stood too close directly spat out blood and died.

When Qingfeng and the others arrived, he had to stand in the very back, because the spots in the front were already taken by other self-cultivators.

Qingfeng didn’t move forward, because he knew these self-cultivators were too powerful, stronger than him by a long shot.

Qingfeng’s gut response was exceptionally sharp. He felt self-cultivators in the front were half-step Spirit Emperor Realm, because they had already past the Spirit King Realm.

Qingfeng looked forward and felt pain in his eyes.

There was a myth in the self-cultivation realm, and that is that the Spirit Emperor’s prestige cannot be disrespected. This meant that people cannot directly look at those in the Spirit Emperor’s realm.

Only Qingfeng could take a look at them. He might have been powerful, but as someone in the Spirit King Realm, he couldn’t withstand the energy the Spirit Emperor Realm powerhouse emitted.

Qingfeng only took one look and immediately turned away in fear.

He noticed that one of the half-step Spirit Emperor Realm powerhouses had looked at him as a warning.

Qingfeng clearly understood not to attract any attention and knew that he wasn’t undefeatable.

Perhaps Qingfeng was the strongest amongst the younger generation and was clearly a genius, but this world was massive, and there were plenty of hidden powers in Huaxia. There were plenty that were more powerful than him, and some had trained for several dozen years or even several hundred years.

These old monsters would normally hide in the corners of the world, but would appear as soon as something happened, like the recent surfacing of treasures and spirit herbs. Especially the surfacing of treasures in the Kunlun Mountains, the home of ten thousand Gods. They would naturally jump out to fight for the treasures.

In terms of Huaxia’s self-cultivators, Qingfeng only knew a bit. His knowledge was limited, and there were plenty that he didn’t know.

Qingfeng hadn’t set foot in the self-cultivator world very long, wasn’t more than a year to be exact.

Qingfeng was very talented with great learning ability. Before he stepped into the self-cultivator realm, he was the Wolf King, a ruthless overlord amongst normal people, and one of the seven rulers of the underworld.

Therefore, when Qingfeng stepped into the self-cultivator realm, his talent paid off greatly, and his physical traits were fully utilized. He could travel a thousand miles in one day and accomplish much more than others.

When learning the same techniques, others had to go at it for a month, while QIngfeng would only need one to three days. That was the difference and was why he surpassed others.

Certainly, other than talent, there was also luck and opportunities that came his way.

He met Dark Night Emperor when he stepped into the self-cultivation world, and then met Fire Dragon. The two were a saint and an ancient godly beast from the ancient era and so naturally could help him.

Aside from these, Qingfeng’s father was also very powerful as he was the holy son of the Celestial-Conqueror Sect. He passed the Conqueror’s Finger technique to Qingfeng, allowing him to shock the entire self-cultivation world.

Qingfeng’s ability now definitely could allow him to become one of the strongest amongst Huaxia’s self-cultivators.

Qingfeng said to Fengwu Cao beside him, “Introduce me to those in the front. What are their powers?”

Fengwu Cao nodded, and said, “The orthodox powers at the front are Jianhuang Zhao of the Sword-Emperor Sect, Binghuang Dao of the Blade-Emperor Sect, Yihuang Shou of the Beast-Emperor sect, and Huohuang of the Seal-Emperor sect. These four are the orthodox self-cultivation superpowers, they are all a half-step into the Spirit Emperor Realm.”

“Aside from the four half-step Spirit Emperor Realm masters, there are other powers, like the Old Monster of the North Sea, the South Pole Spirit King, the Black Wind Duo Demons, and so on.”

“The ones I said are all orthodox powers. The unorthodox powers are on the west. In the front, that is Li Xie, the leader of the Wicked-Emperor sect. As a half-step Spirit Emperor Realm powerhouse, he is said to be incredibly malicious. On the south stands the demonic forces, they are the Demon-Emperor sect, and Linger Yao is at the front, who is also very powerful and a half-step Spirit Emperor Realm master.”

“In the north are the Devil-Emperor sect, and their sect master is Zhentian Mo. His presence can startle the world, and he is also a half-step in the Spirit Emperor Realm.”

“Oh and, aside from these orthodox, unorthodox, devilish, and demonic superpowers, there are also the White Brow Daoist and Void Daoist. They are both incredibly powerful as well and were rumored to be a half-step into the Spirit Emperor Realm as well.”

Qingfeng felt heavy after he heard Fengwu’s introductions.

Qingfeng had already felt their strength, but it was out of his expectations. They really were the legendary half-step Spirit Emperor Realm masters. No wonder his eyes stung in pain when he looked at them.

These people were far too powerful. Qingfeng stood in the very back with no intention of moving forward, because he knew that even if he stood at the front, he still wouldn’t be the first to enter the forbidden Kunlun district.

Those half-step Spirit Emperor Realm powerhouses would never permit someone in the Spirit King Realm to enter first, as if they were provoking their status.

Qingfeng looked behind those half-step spirit emperor powers and saw many familiar faces. There were the prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace, the Southern Sea Dragon Palace Princess, the prince of the Northern Sea Dragon Palace, the Bamboo King sect, the Flying Beast sect, the Piano King sect, the Meteorite Saber sect and many other self-cultivation sects.

Aside from these self-cultivation sects, Qingfeng also saw other forces. These sects had those he knew, and those he didn’t, but everyone was exuding a powerful aura.

Qingfeng knew that all of Huaxia self-cultivation forces had all gathered at the forbidden Kunlun Mountains, and they were all here for the treasures.

Chapter 1233: Entering the Forbidden Kunlun District Again

 

Qingfeng Lifted his head and looked towards the upper corners of the Kunlun Mountains, noticing that the two gasses had grown stronger.

The left was filled with an immortal aura, glowing with a rainbow-colored light. Inside were various treasures and techniques, and one could even see several immortals’ shadows. It was very beautiful.

The right one was completely different. Devilish energy filled the air, conjuring images of corpses, torn body parts, and blood everywhere like it was hell on earth.

Within the devilish air, there were also shadows of devils.

Those were ancient devil gods from the ancient era. They were very powerful, being able to split the sky and demolish a massive mountain with one strike.

With one step, they could shatter the ground, causing a large river to form behind their steps. Some were more powerful, to the point that, with just one punch, they could destroy a small planet.

The images happening within the devilish air were all from the ancient era, and had never happened in the modern day.

Kaboom!

A massive sound rang through the heavens and earth as a new space was torn open. Strange things were happening in the Kunlun Mountain, and the immortal aura evaporated as devilish fog rose and covered the entire district.

Along with a deafening boom, there was a loud explosion at the entrance of the Kunlun Mountains, causing te the defense array formation to shatter, and a large crack to appear.

All the half-step Spirit Emperor Realm masters in the front rushed inside. They had great power and moved at an incredible speed. Jianghuang Zhao of the Sword-Emperor Sect, Binghuang Dao of the Blade-Emperor Sect, Yihuang Shou of the Beast-Emperor Sect, and Huohuang of the Seal-Emperor Sect were at the very front.

Behind those were the Old Monster of the North Sea, the South Pole Spirit King, the Black Wind Duo Demons, and so on.

After the orthodox half-step spirit emperor powers had rushed in, some of the half-step spirit emperor powers of the unorthodox, demonic, and devilish forces followed.

After the half-step Spirit Emperor powerhouses entered, other Spirit King Realm masters followed.

These Spirit King Realm forces included the Eastern Sea, Northern Sea, and Southern Sea Dragon Palaces, along with the Bamboo King sect, Flying Beast sect, Piano King sect and so on.

When all the powerful self-cultivators had entered, the other ten thousand self-cultivators followed them inside the forbidden Kunlun district.

Finally, after all had entered, only Qingfeng and his group were left.

“Boss, why aren’t we entering?” asked Daoist with a frown.

Qingfeng smiled lightly, and said, “No rush, we’ll enter once everyone else has.”

When Qingfeng said everyone else, he didn’t just mean those in front of him, but the hidden independent self-cultivators in the surrounding area.

These independent self-cultivators were hidden throughout Huaxia and trained in seclusion, but they were extremely powerful. They were at least of the Spirit King Realm, as average independent cultivators wouldn’t dare to come here on their own.

Qingfeng did want to enter Hell quickly, but he knew that it was extremely dangerous, and people had to die for the others to survive.

Qingfeng only had one thought: he wanted to wait until everyone else had entered, and see how those in the front reacted to the danger.

Qingfeng knew that if he died here, then the baby would die, Xue Lin and Ruyan Liu would also be sad, so Qingfeng wanted to live and thus needed to plot accordingly.

Swoosh swoosh!!

About ten independent cultivators flew out from behind the rocks and trees around the entrance, every one of them incredibly powerful. They took one look at Qingfeng and then entered the district.

This time, finally no one else was left but Qingfeng and his group.

“Come, let’s go in.” Qingfeng waved his hand and led the group inside the district.

Nothing had changed inside the forbidden Kunlun district; it was still filled with danger, with roars of demonic beasts ringing everywhere, all sounding extremely powerful.

Qingfeng walked in the very front, and had Black Puppy lead the way. The Wolf Fang Team walked in the middle and Ziyue Jiang, and Sky-Devouring Snake followed in the back.

Among everyone there, only Black Puppy knew the location of Hell, so it saved the most time if Black Puppy led the way.

The forbidden Kunlun district had four parts: external, internal, centre, and core.

Among these four parts, it became more dangerous the further in they go. Qingfeng had visited before so he naturally knew of its dangers.

Qingfeng asked Black Puppy beside him, “Puppy, how far are we from the entrance to Hell?”

Puppy thought for a moment and said, “This was back in the ancient era, but if I remember correctly, it was a hundred kilometers east of the core region.”

Qingfeng appeared satisfied when he heard Black Puppy.

As long as they knew the exact location, then they could go there directly without wasting too much time.

However, the joy was wiped from Qingfeng’s face almost immediately.

Qingfeng had noticed that the core region far away was filled with devilish air. There were shadows of evil gods, and they covered all three hundred miles. It was the most dangerous, and the trapped devil gods beneath Hell wanted to escape.

Qingfeng knew he had to go there no matter what, because the Saint-Perishing Fruit was there.

Qingfeng and the group came across danger only after a short walk.

It was a massive spider that blocked their path.

This spider’s main body was a hundred meters long, with legs that spanned several hundred meters. It was definitely a gigantic one.

This spider was black all over, and emitted gusts of devilish aura that made one quiver at its sight.

It was the Spider Demon King, of the seventh level of the Spirit King Realm!

Qingfeng frowned as he recognized the demonic beast before him.

Qingfeng had researched the district before leaving and he found, in materials on the ancient era, information about the demonic beasts that existed during ancient era in the Kunlun Mountains.

Of course, Qingfeng had read about some lower-tier demonic beasts, and he had yet to read about truly powerful ones.

Qingfeng ordered Ziyue Jiang, who was behind him, “Go and kill that Spider Demon King.”

Amongst all the people around Qingfeng, Ziyue Jiang was the most powerful. She was already at the eighth level of the Spirit King Realm, so she could easily deal with this demonic beast.

At Qingfeng request, Ziyue Jiang stepped out from the back, flourished the silver long sword in her hands, and charged at the Spider Demon King.

The Spider Demon King was powerful and couldn’t be defeated by an average self-cultivator, but for Ziyue Jiang, the princess of a high-tier planet, it was very weak.

With only one sword slash, Ziyue Jiang split the Spider Demon King in half and killed it.

The Wolf Fang Team all looked with confusion in awe of Ziyue Jiang’s beauty and power.

The Wolf Fang Team had never seen this woman. How could she be so much more powerful than everyone else? They even felt that this woman was even more powerful than Qingfeng.

Chapter 1234: Fire Essence Spiritual Fruit

 

The Wolf Fang Team members all looked at Ziyue Jiang with shock and surprise in their eyes.

Alice was especially surprised amongst them. She was a pretty girl, so naturally regarded other pretty girls with hostility, especially when Ziyue Jiang was so beautiful and prideful that she seemed like an immortal who was not meant for earth.

Alice pouted her lips, and grumbled, “She’s just more powerful, what’s so great about it? Watch me become more powerful than her one day.”

Qingfeng’s ears were especially sensitive, so he giggled inside when he heard Alice.

He knew Alice felt jealous of Ziyue Jiang.

Qingfeng patted Alice’s shoulders, and said, “She is my new servant, there’s nothing else to it.”

Servant?

Alice was shocked when she heard Qingfeng. She couldn’t imagine this beautiful yet powerful woman was Qingfeng’s servant.

Hints of pride rose inside of Alice; she was Qingfeng’s woman, so she was much better than that Ziyue Jiang woman.

The Wolf Fang Team looked at Alice with amusement; they didn’t think that Alice would be jealous of a servant.

Of course, that was because the Wolf Fang Team didn’t know of Ziyue Jiang’s identity as someone from a higher-tier planet, or they would not dare to laugh.

Qingfeng waved to cease the gossip, and they continued forward.

This time, they met another group who had surrounded a little tree in an attempt to find treasure.

“There are treasures.” Qingfeng’s eyes glowed with joy.

Frankly, Qingfeng loved the treasures there, because all self-cultivators loved treasures that could improve their cultivation.

“Come, let’s look at the treasures there.” Qingfeng led everyone towards the tree.

Qingfeng wasn’t in a hurry to get to Hell, because he knew that he wasn’t strong enough and that even if he went, he would die.

Therefore, Qingfeng wanted to increase his strength, as only in that way would he survive.

The Kunlun Mountains had many spiritual fruits, herbs, and precious treasures. These all provided Qingfeng with a great opportunity to increase his strength.

Qingfeng moved very fast and shortly arrived beside the little tree.

It was a small tree that was red all over. There was a fruit the size of a fist on it, and it glowed with bright rays of red light.

A fire essence spiritual fruit! Qingfeng was overjoyed at the sight of this red fruit.

This was a fire essence spiritual fruit, capable of drastically increasing the strength of self-cultivators that practiced fire-element techniques. It was arguably one of the best treasures for fire element self-cultivators.

Qingfeng knew that as long as he ate this fire essence spiritual fruit, his power would undoubtedly increase by a level.

Qingfeng swore to himself, he had to obtain this fire essence spiritual fruit.

Qingfeng looked in front of him and saw there were at least thirty self-cultivators gathered around the fire essence spiritual fruit.

Amongst them, the leader was the Eastern Sea Prince, causing Qingfeng to feel a bit odd seeing such a familiar face there.

Beside Eastern Sea Prince, stood the Third Princess. The Second Princess of Eastern Sea Dragon Palace however didn’t come, perhaps due to conflicts in their schedules.

“Hey, brother-in-law, long time no see.” Qingfeng said as he walked to stand beside the Eastern Sea Prince.

The Eastern Sea Prince had wanted to turn in anger when he heard such a teasing voice, but when he turned to find Qingfeng, his face changed.

“Why are you here?” The Eastern Sea Prince frowned with hints of surprise.

The Eastern Sea Prince had stood in the very front beneath the forbidden Kunlun Mountain district, and not in the very back, so naturally, he didn’t know that Qingfeng came as well.

“Brother-in-law, I came because I’ve missed you,” Qingfeng said with a smile.

The Eastern Sea Prince felt his anger reigniting when he heard Qingfeng call him brother-in-law.

The Eastern Sea Prince detested that title because he felt Qingfeng was taking advantage of him. Although the Prince was mad, he didn’t lash out, because he knew he was no match for Qingfeng.

At the bottom of the ocean, the Eastern Sea Prince had battled Qingfeng and was defeated.

When the Third Princess beside them heard Qingfeng, she blushed as her heart thumped, and she looked at Qingfeng with mixed emotions.

Qingfeng walked forward and said to the Eastern Sea Prince, “I want this fire essence spiritual fruit, can you let me have it?”

Everyone who saw this scene all looked at the Prince and waited for his response.

These self-cultivators knew the Prince but didn’t know Qingfeng. They all were eager to snatch the fire essence spiritual fruit but were terrified of the Prince, so no one had made a move yet.

However to everyone’s surprise, Qingfeng had teased Eastern Sea Prince, called him brother-in-law, and the Prince has yet shown his anger. This was already strange enough.

The Eastern Sea Prince’s facial expression changed when he heard Qingfeng ask for the fire essence spiritual fruit. He had wanted the Fruit but decided to step out of the competition.

“Fine, this fire essence spiritual fruit is yours,” the Prince said and nodded.

“What, the Eastern Sea Prince has given up? How is this possible? He is the Prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace.”

“Yeah, the Prince is very powerful! Even Spirit King Realm masters aren’t his opponent! Who is this youth? Why would the Prince give way to him?”

“I know him! His name is Qingfeng, the strongest out of the younger generation in Huaxia’s self-cultivation world. He is extremely powerful,” said someone who recgonized Qingfeng.

Everyone around discussed endlessly as their eyes filled with shock.

The Eastern Sea Prince turned green at the sound of the discussion. He was a respected idol, but now, he was being ridiculed by others. He even heard some say that he was no match for Qingfeng, and this angered him.

The Eastern Sea Prince stared at the people around them to shut them up and then turned to leave.

Seeing that the Eastern Sea Prince had left, the Third Princess followed. But before she left, she stared at Qingfeng with a tough look to express her dissatisfaction. This guy before him had embarrassed her brother.

Qingfeng didn’t mind the Third Princess, because he didn’t have the time to deal with her. All his focus was placed on the fire essence spiritual fruit before him.

The fruit emitted off a dense fire vital essence; it was incredibly powerful, and greatly attracted Qingfeng’s attention.

Chapter 1235: Sneak Attack from Behind

 

Qingfeng reached out his right hand to pick the fire essence spiritual fruit, when he suddenly felt a sense of danger.

Swoosh!

A dagger flew at him from afar, aimed straight at Qingfeng’s back above where his heart was.

“Dammit, which asshole dares to attack me,” Qingfeng cursed and his eyes filled with anger.

Qingfeng couldn’t imagine that at such a key moment, a flying dagger would be thrown at him.

Qingfeng turned around immediately, and, with the two fingers of his right hand, he caught the dagger as quick as lightning. With a twist, he broke the dagger in half.

Crack!

The sharp dagger shattered into two pieces and dropped to the ground.

This dagger was forged from meteorite and mixed with iron, so it was very sharp.

However, Qingfeng had trained in the Mortal Purgatory Body and had great physical strength, allowing him to break the dagger with one snap of his fingers.

Even the toughest meteor stones turned into scrap in Qingfeng’s hands.

Qingfeng turned around and looked behind him. All he saw was a man in black, who must have been the one who attacked him.

The man in black was about twenty-some years old and, although he had a skinny face, he had a powerful aura.

“Wow that’s Black Shadowless. He is Black Wind Duo Demons’s most powerful disciple.”

“Yes, I’ve met Black Shadowless before. He is supposedly in the seventh level of the Spirit King Realm and specializes in sneak attacks.”

“Black Shadowless must’ve wanted the Fire essence spiritual fruit and attacked Qingfeng for it. Qingfeng is so screwed.”

“Yes, death is inevitable when you irk Black Shadowless.”

Everyone discussed and looked at Qingfeng with mockery.

Qingfeng might have just scared away the Eastern Sea Prince, and demonstrated his powers to everyone, but this Black Shadowless was no easy opponent.

Black Shadowless was Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple and was very powerful.

Black Wind Duo Demons was a half-step Spirit Emperor Realm powerhouse and was ranked amongst the top of Huaxia’s self-cultivators.

Also, this Black Shadowless was clearly more powerful than Qingfeng, so no one had faith in Qingfeng.

From the surrounding gossip, Qingfeng learned that this youth before him was called Black Shadowless and also heard a bit about his identity and background.

Although Black Shadowless had a big name, Qingfeng was not afraid.

“Black Shadowless, how dare you attack me so sneakily?” Qingfeng asked with a smile.

Black Shadowless smiled and replied, “I want this Fire essence spiritual fruit. It’s mine, so get lost.”

Black Shadowless was especially rude and arrogant. He demanded the Fire essence spiritual fruit and told Qingfeng to get lost so he clearly wasn’t threatened by Qingfeng’s presence.

Qingfeng hadn’t said a word, and those around him had already turned angry. This guy is despicable, how dare he mock Qingfeng?

Alice was the first to step out, she said, “Who are you to tell my boss to get lost?”

Hmm, it is a pretty girl! Black Shadowless’ eyes gleamed when he saw Alice’s pretty face and curvy figure, clearly expressing his approval.

“Pretty girl, come hang out with me from now on,” Black Shadowless said to Alice with desire in his eyes.

Alice’s pretty face filled with anger when she heard his pick up line. She said coldly, “You look atrocious, go and wait until your next life.”

“Pretty girl, how dare you mock me. Not only will I get the fire essence spiritual fruit, I will also get you,” Black Shadowless said with great arrogance.

As Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple, Black Shadowless was famous in the self-cultivation world. Not only was he powerful, he was also an arrogant bully.

Qingfeng stepped out and patted Alice’s shoulder to tell her to back up; he wanted to deal with this Black Shadowless personally.

Undeniably Qingfeng initially didn’t want to fight; instead he wanted Ziyue Jiang to take care of Black Shadowless.

However Qingfeng was angered by Black Shadowless’ words.

He felt he had to fight and punish this guy, and let him know that some words can’t be said, and that some people can’t be mocked.

Qingfeng walked to Black Shadowless’s side, and said, “You’re trash, get lost.”

Alice was Qingfeng’s woman and she was just hit on by Black Shadowless, so Qingfeng needed to get revenge.

Ha ha ha ha ha…

Black Shadowless laughed at Qingfeng’s threat. Who was he? He was the disciple of the half-step Spirit Emperor Realm Black Wind Duo Demons. No one in the self-cultivator realm ever dared to threaten him.

Qingfeng was the first, as if he was begging to die.

“Asshole, I’ll give you one more chance, kneel before me and maybe I’ll let you live, or I’ll break all of your bones.” Black Shadowless said to Qingfeng with murderous rage and cold eyes.

As he felt Black Shadowless’ murderous rage, Qingfeng’s murderous intent appeared.

Since there was no point of talking, a battle was the only solution to their conflict.

Qingfeng flipped out his right wrist and pulled out the Golden Light Sword, unleashing a large bout of sword energy.

Qingfeng charged at Black Shadowless before him. With a slash, he split the air as the sword energy appeared before Black Shadowless.

This Black Shadowless was no average cultivator. He immediately pulled out a large black blade called the Black Wind Blade.

With a forward swing of the black blade, its great blade energy clashed with Qingfeng’s long sword, and a loud bang rang through the sky.

The clash of sword energy and blade energy shook the whole sky, causing massive energy to spread out, and heaven and earth to turn dark.

The self-cultivators around all backed up with shock on their faces. The attack power of these two were beyond their imaginations.

“Not bad, little kid. You’re only at the fourth level of the Spirit King Realm and you still dare to battle me.” Black Shadowless looked at Qingfeng with hints of surprise.

Black Shadowless was at the seventh level of the Spirit King Realm, which was three realms higher than Qingfeng, but Qingfeng’s sword technique clashed with his blade without losing.

Qingfeng merely smiled coldly at Black Shadowless’s words, he said, “Is your blade only this strong? If so, I can defeat you with one slash of my sword.”

Qingfeng told the truth, he had only used a normal sword technique. It was barely all the power in his techniques, but, even so, they still tied. If he truly used sword techniques, then he could defeat Black Shadowless effortlessly.

He was only a seventh level Spirit King Realm cultivator, so Qingfeng didn’t care at all.

Chapter 1236: Tearing Through Heavens and Earth

 

Black Shadowless’s eyes appeared cold after he heard Qingfeng’s arrogant words; he felt that Qingfeng had mocked him, so he swore to unleash his blade techniques to defeat Qingfeng.

“Asshole, how dare you call my attack weak? I’ll let you test the power of my blade technique,” Black Shadowless sneered as his eyes flashed cold.

Black Shadowless was able to reach seventh level Spirit King Realm due to his own hard work. He was most skilled in blade techniques and didn’t use his full force before, so who knew Qingfeng would mock him because it.

Black Shadowless waved the long blade across his chest, and shouted, “Black Wind Blade”.

A massive black blade appeared in the sky, nearly three hundred meters long and formed with blade energy. It tore through the whole space.

The people around all felt the greatness of this blade energy, and some grew pale and recoiled in terror.

The blade energy moved quickly. Like a ray of black lightning, it struck down upon Qingfeng.

Naturally Qingfeng wasn’t a coward, so he lifted his Golden Light Sword and prepared to battle.

“Sky-Roaming Golden Light!” shouted Qingfeng. With a sudden wave of his long sword, he formed a massive ray of golden sword energy.

The golden sword energy shone through the sky; it was three hundred meters tall, and it brightened the whole sky.

As the three hundred meters tall golden sword energy clashed with the equally sized black blade energy, a sound boom sounded as the sky tore and the ground cracked. Shattered pieces and debris flew everywhere.

Whether it was Qingfeng’s sword technique attack, or Black Shadowless’ sword attack, both were strong beyond imagination, and their powers could tear open space.

“Your blade technique is only so so.” Qingfeng shook his head and as he looked down upon Black Shadowless.

Qingfeng told the truth. There were four sword skills that he mastered from the Golden Light Sword techniques, and Qingfeng had only used the first one. There were still more to come that he hadn’t used yet.

As soon as Qingfeng used the last few sword skills, his attacks would be incredibly powerful and would definitely kill Black Shadowless.

Qingfeng didn’t kill him from the start because he wanted to see Black Shadowless’s power. He badly wanted to know how powerful the disciple of Black Wind Duo Demons would be.

Qingfeng knew that if he killed Black Shadowless today, he would eventually have to face Black Wind Duo Demons.

Qingfeng had to prepare ahead of time. If he wanted to fight Black Wind Duo Demons, he had to understand the opponent’s powers, and then he would win.

“Qingfeng is too powerful, he tied with Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple. This is incredible.”

“That’s right, I thought Qingfeng would definitely lose. Who knew Black Shadowless can’t do anything to him?”

“We’ve wrongly judged Qingfeng. He must be powerful to become the number one amongst the younger generation of Huaxia’s self-cultivators.”

All the nearby self-cultivators discussed and looked at Qingfeng with surprise.

Only a while ago, they had all ridiculed Qingfeng, and thought he was dumb for battling Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple.

Now, however, they all withdrew that thought because they knew this Qingfeng before them was not simple. He had blocked Black Shadowless’s attack with just the long sword in his hands.

Plus, Qingfeng seemed to not have used much effort yet.

If Qingfeng were to use full force, then Black Shadowless wouldn’t be his match.

The Wolf Fang Team all appeared excited when they saw how powerful Qingfeng was.

Qingfeng didn’t take the Wolf Fang Team with him to Ice Island, so they didn’t know about what he had experienced there. They also didn’t know how much Qingfeng’s power had increased.

Amongst all of them, Alice was the happiest. Black Shadowless had just teased her which greatly angered her.

Now, the powerful Black Shadowless was no match for Qingfeng, or at least haven’t defeated Qingfeng. This filled her heart with joy.

“Go boss, kill that despicable guy,” Alice said loudly to Qingfeng as she waved her fists.

Qingfeng turned around and nodded at her when he heard “Alice, don’t worry, I’ll kill this guy in a bit. He asked for it with his arrogant mouth.”

Black Shadowless’s eyes grew cold when he heard Qingfeng. He said, “Who do you think you are? Kill me? You’ve got no chance! Let me show you my true powers.”

Black Shadowless’s Black Wind blade technique had four blades skills.

He had already trained through the fourth blade skill, and it was extremely powerful. He had just used the first skill and still haven’t used the last three ones yet.

He had originally thought, he could kill Qingfeng with just the first blade skill.

However, now, this Qingfeng’s sword techniques appeared to be very powerful, and the first blade skill had no effect on Qingfeng.

This time, Black Shadowless swore, he would use the most powerful fourth blade, and kill Qingfeng in one slice to show Qingfeng and all those nearby his strength.

Black Shadow wanted to prove not only himself, but also his master Black Wind Duo Demons’s strength.

He knew if he were to fail, then not only would his name be ridiculed, his master’s name would be tainted as well. Therefore, he had to win and had to defeat Qingfeng.

“Black Wind fourth blade, Blade Tears Heaven and Earth” Black Shadowless shouted and unleashed his strongest attack, the fourth skill of the Black Wind Blade Technique.

A massive long blade appeared in the sky, formed by blade energy. It soared through the clouds and cracked both heaven and earth.

It was like an earthquake on the firm ground, and like a tsunami in the sky.

Undeniably, this Black Shadowless’s fourth blade skill was very powerful, causing the whole space to shake.

Qingfeng frowned. He could see his opponent’s strength in the fourth technique, and he knew that Golden Light Sword’s first sword skill wouldn’t do. He had to unleash the fourth sword skill, his strongest sword technique, to defeat his opponent.

“Sword Energy Mountains and Rivers,” shouted Qingfeng.

The long sword in Qingfeng’s hand waved out, and the vital essence gathered onto the sword. Its sword energy ruled, tore through, and condensed into a massive sword energy mountain and river.

The technique conjured mountains and rivers formed from sword energy, containing invincible strength.

The powerful blade energy clashed onto the Sword Energy Mountains and Rivers, but it had no effect.

The blade energy could tear through air, and earth, but it couldn’t tear through the mountains and rivers formed from Qingfeng’s sword energy. These mountains and rivers were all formed from invincible Golden Light sword energy. Its power was insurmountable.

“Break it!” Qingfeng shouted, and with a sudden slash of his Golden Light Sword, the Sword Energy Mountains and Rivers crashed down suddenly, and immediately shattered Black Shadowless’s blade energy into nothingness.

Chapter 1237: Decapitating Black Shadowless

 

What?

Qingfeng’s Sword Energy Mountains and Rivers destroyed Black Shadowless’s fourth blade easily, causing Qingfeng’s opponent’s eyes to fill with shock.

Others might not know the power of his blade technique, but Black Shadowless knew very clearly. His Black Wind blade technique was passed on by his master Black Wind Duo Demons; it was an extremely powerful ninth level Spirit King Realm technique.

Towards the end of the training, if one understood the blade, then they would reach the half-step Spirit Emperor Realm.

However, even such a powerful blade technique was defeated by Qingfeng’s sword technique.

This demonstrated that Qingfeng’s sword technique attacks were far more powerful than Black Shadowless’s blade techniques.

Qingfeng smiled coldly and looked at him with disdain.

Did this guy really think he was invincible because he was Black Wind Duo Demon’s disciple? He was courting death. Didn’t he see who he was battling against? Qingfeng was the destined one, with the potential to become the future Sky Emperor.

Aside from the future, Qingfeng’s Golden Light Sword itself had a great background.

The Daoist ancestral Peacock Demon Empress of Dragon-Tiger Mountain once used this Golden Light Sword.

In the ancient era, the Peacock Demon Empress used the Golden Light Sword to rule the world, and had oppressed all the younger generations in the universe.

Qingfeng’s Golden Light Sword came from the Peacock Demon Empress, so it was naturally powerful. It easily could defeat Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple.

After Qingfeng’s Golden Light Sword had defeated Black Shadowless’s Black Wind Blade, the long sword suddenly charged forward with great sword energy and cut off Black Shadowless’s right arm.

Pa!

Black Shadowless’s right arm, the one that held the blade, dropped onto the floor. Fresh blood poured out as his face turned pale, and pain filled his eyes.

“Asshole, do you know who I am? I’m the half-step Spirit Emperor Realm Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple, how dare you cut off my arm? Do you want to die?” Black Shadowless cursed at Qingfeng as he tried to stifle the pain.

Qingfeng didn’t speak a single word in front of Black Shadowless’ curses, and with another slash of his long sword, Black Shadowless’ other arm was sliced off as fresh blood poured out yet again.

Black Shadowless screamed in pain. He had lost both of his arms, and this immense pain couldn’t be bared by anyone.

Plus, Black Shadowless had never been treated so badly.

This Qingfeng was too powerful.

“Asshole, you’ll die miserably, I will kill you and everyone around you,” Black Shadowless looked at his arm and screamed in anger as he cursed at Qingfeng.

Qingfeng’s face grew dark. He hated when people cursed him or threatened him. This Black Shadowless was basically begging to die, since he wouldn’t even stop cursing at this point.

Slash! Slash!

Qingfeng waved the Golden Light Sword once again, and he directly sliced off both of Black Shadowless’ legs with blood splashing everywhere.

People who witnessed turned white in fear, and they all stepped back in fear.

“This Qingfeng was too powerful. He chopped off Black Shadowless’s arms and legs.”

“Does this Qingfeng not know that Black Shadowless is Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple?”

“Black Wind Double Evil would never forgive him for what he did to Black Shadowless.”

Black Shadowless filled with anger and hatred when he saw that both his legs had been chopped off.

“Asshole, how dare you chop off my limbs!? My master will tear you to pieces when he finds out! You’ll be begging to die!” Black Shadowless threatened Qingfeng as he lied on the ground.

Qingfeng didn’t care at all for Black Shadowless’s threats. He had a rule; if one didn’t bother him then he wouldn’t bother them. If they bothered him, then he will return the favor.

Black Shadowless had just threatened him, swore to break his limbs, and attacked him with a dagger behind his back.

Therefore, Qingfeng tore off his limbs; it was only to pay him back for what he said.

Qingfeng knew that if he had lost, then this Black Shadowless before him would not only chop off his limbs, but he would also take Alice away from him.

Therefore, Black Shadowless himself had caused all of what Qingfeng did to him.

Splash!

Qingfeng wasted no words with Black Shadowless’ mad curses and threats, and he swung the long sword in his hand and decapitated Black Shadowless’s head.

His voice immediately ceased.

Black Shadowless died brutally, as all his limbs and head were chopped off.

Murderers deserved to be butchered, and this was fitting for people like Black Shadowless.

If Black Shadowless didn’t want to kill Qingfeng first, then Qingfeng wouldn’t have killed him; he had brought it onto himself.

“This Qingfeng is in great trouble! He killed Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple, isn’t he scared of that Half-Step Spirit Emperor powerhouse?”

“Damn, I was just saying how powerful Qingfeng was, and the number one of younger generations. But with this, he is doomed! What a waste.”

“No one in Huaxia’s self-cultivation world had escaped the wrath of Black Wind Duo Demons.”

The people nearby discussed endlessly, and looked at Qingfeng as if they were looking at a dead man.

They thought that since Qingfeng killed Black Shadowless, Black Wind Duo demons would definitely kill him.

Many hid away far from Qingfeng, in fear that he might attack Black Wind Duo Demons’s vengeance.

Qingfeng naturally knew from the faces of everyone nearby, but he didn’t care.

He knew these onlookers were too shallow, but he didn’t fear Black Wind Double Evil at all.

After all, Qingfeng still had the Golden Flame, and when necessary, he could use it to kill those two.

Of course, Qingfeng’s most prioritized mission was to acquire the fire essence spiritual fruit before him.

This spiritual fruit could immensely increase Qingfeng’s power, and it was the most important priority no matter when.

As long as he became more powerful, he could acquire what he wanted and other things wouldn’t be important anymore.

Qingfeng reached out with his hand and picked the fire essence spiritual fruit before him, immediately feeling its heat.

This fire essence spiritual fruit emitted out rays of red light. The fire vital essence was incredibly dense and powerful, like the sea.

Qingfeng placed the fire essence spiritual fruit inside his shirt and led the others away.

Qingfeng found a cave and entered. He ordered Ziyue Jiang and the others to guard the outside. He wanted to refine this fire essence spiritual fruit immediately to increase his power.

This cave wasn’t big; it was about fifty metres deep, and perfect for training.

Qingfeng entered the cave and sat with crossed legs on the ground. He took out the fire essence spiritual fruit and put it into his mouth.

Chapter 1238: Fifth Level Spirit King Realm Reached

 

The fire essence spiritual fruit was the size of an apple; it melted in one’s mouth and formed a current of fire-element vital essence. It entered Qingfeng’s mouth along his throat, and then down to his veins, skin, muscle, and bones.

Fire vital essence was very powerful; it condensed into Qingfeng’s skin, turning it as strong as steel, and lit its surface with a colourful glow.

The fire vital essence inside the fire essence spiritual fruit was way too strong. Not only did Qingfeng’s skin temper as tough as steel, his muscle also turned as strong as steel. He was much stronger than before, his bones also emitting a golden light that shone bright.

After the fire vital essence in the fire essence spiritual fruit strengthened Qingfeng’s muscles, it entered Qingfeng’s body and rushed towards his abdomen.

This mass of fire vital essence gathered at Qingfeng’s abdomen, forming a fifth scar on his spirit nucleus.

Five scars, this symbolized the fifth level of the Spirit King Realm.

Qingfeng stood up, and his bones, muscles, and veins all began emitting rubbing sounds.

Qingfeng punched out one fist, and the punch tore a hole in the top of the cave. The sunlight shone through to the inside of the dark cave, showing that his power had reached at least ten thousand kilos. Qingfeng’s heart filled with excitement.

The forbidden Kunlun district was filled with danger. Not only were there demonic beasts and poisonous bugs, there were also all sorts of dangerous human self-cultivators.

These self-cultivator might just attack you sneakily and steal your treasures. Qingfeng was now at the fifth level of the Spirit King Realm, so his fighting strength increased massively.

If Qingfeng were to meet those demonic beasts again, he would be able to kill them easily. For instance, he would be able to kill Black Shadowless in just one punch if they battled again.

Qingfeng patted off the dust on him, turned to leave the cave, and saw that everyone was waiting outside for him.

“Boss, you’re out. You’ve reached it!” said Daoist as he felt the massive power coming from Qingfeng’s body.

His eyes were filled with shock.

Qingfeng nodded, and said, “Yes, I’ve reached it.”

Everyone’s faces filled with joy and excitement when they heard Qingfeng.

Everyone knew that Qingfeng’s increase in power would bring them advantages, and, at the least, would increase their chances of survival.

They felt great danger as soon as they stepped into the forbidden Kunlun district.

“Let’s go, let’s leave this place,” Qingfeng waved as he said.

This time, Qingfeng still walked at the very front as Black Puppy followed by his side. The Wolf Fang Team was in the middle, while Ziyue Jiang and Sky-Devouring Snake stayed at the back.

After only a short while, Qingfeng met some self-cultivators. There were ten thousand self-cultivators that entered the Kunlun Mountain, so they were easy to bump into.

These self-cultivators were all talking about him.

“Did you hear, Qingfeng killed Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple.”

“Of course I heard, Black Wind Duo Demons had already released Qingfeng’s death warrant.”

“Qingfeng is doomed. That Black Wind Duo Demons is too powerful. If he wants someone dead, there’s no way that person can escape.”

These self-cultivators discussed endlessly there, they didn’t know whom the real Qingfeng was, and that he wasn’t far away from them.

Daoist frowned and said, “Boss, someone is after you, what should we do?”

Qingfeng said, “Don’t worry, if Black Wind Duo Demons comes here, I will make sure that he leaves unsatisfied.”

Qingfeng naturally knew that Black Wind Duo Demons was a powerful half-step Spirit Emperor Realm master, which he wouldn’t be able to defeat, but he had the Golden Flame.

As long as Qingfeng used the Golden Flames, he would have a chance of killing Black Wind Duo Demons.

However Qingfeng wouldn’t use the Golden Flames unless it was a life or death situation, because he knew the Golden Flames was specialized in fighting beings from Hell. He had to acquire the Perishing-Saint Fruit to save his daughter, and the Golden Flames was his most powerful card, which he wouldn’t use under any normal circumstances.

Qingfeng led the others forward; the forbidden Kunlun district changed massively this time. There were newly surfaced spiritual devices, devilish aura that filled the air, and the whole atmosphere of the forbidden district turned oppressive, making people uncomfortable.

Qingfeng walked forward and was soon met by a demonic beast.

This demonic beast was a massive centipede. That’s right, a massive centipede two hundred metres in length.

This centipede had several hundred legs, and was just fighting those from the Bamboo King Sect.

Those from the Bamboo King Sect had discovered a spirit herb highly crucial to them. However, a massive centipede guarded this spiritual herb, so they fought for it.

The massive centipede was very powerful, and the Bamboo King Sect wasn’t its match, even as the Bamboo King Sect Master attacked the massive centipede with her disciples.

Swoosh!

The massive centipede waved its large tail suddenly. It punched through the air and onto the disciples of the Bamboo King Sect.

The disciples were thrown into the air; their faces pale as they spat blood out, and all fell to the ground with deep wounds.

The strength of common disciples of the Bamboo King Sect was limited, so they were clearly no match for the massive centipede.

Only the Bamboo King Sect Master possessed a sufficient amount of power and could somewhat manage to fight the massive centipede.

However even she was defeated again and again by the massive centipede, her face pale as she scrambled to come up with a new plan.

The massive centipede swung its massive legs and stepped on one of the female disciples below, who was smashed into the ground with deep wounds.

This female disciple was none other than Bamboo King Sect’s top disciple, Xianxian Mu.

Her eyes filled with terror as she saw the centipede charge towards her.

Xianxian Mu was just badly wounded and possessed limited vital essence. Without any ability to fight back, she had to give into the centipede leg that smashed at her.

Xianxian Mu had closed her eyes already. She knew that she would be squashed to death under the centipede leg and turned into mush in the next second.

Right before death, a man appeared before Xianxian Mu’s mind, and it was Qingfeng.

A lot had happened between Xianxian Mu and Qingfeng. He had saved her once.

For Xianxian Mu, Qingfeng always held a strange place in her heart, but she was never clear what it was.

Qingfeng was very powerful, and very famous in Huaxia’s self-cultivation world. He wasn’t someone she could catch up to, so she had always hidden her feelings.

Xianxian Mu knew, she could die in the next second.

However Xianxian Mu had waited a while, and still hasn’t felt the centipede’s leg. What had happened?

Xianxian Mu opened her eyes, and a man appeared. This man wasn’t very tall, but he blocked the centipede’s legs with one palm, standing there as if he could hold up the sky for her.

Chapter 1239: Poison Demon King

 

Xianxian Mu saw this man who had, without any hassle, easily blocked the domineering demonic centipede.

This man’s back seemed very familiar, and very close, as if Xianxian Mu had seen him many times in both real life and in her dreams.

Xianxian Mu’s eyes tears up. It was Qingfeng.

“Xianxian Mu, are you okay?” Qingfeng asked with a frown.

Qingfeng looked at Xianxian’s pale face that barely had any signs of life. There were still blood on her, possibly from what she spat out. Qingfeng felt worried when he saw this.

Xianxian gradually responded when she heard Qingfeng, she said, “I’m fine.”

“That’s good, I’ll kill this massive centipede for you,” Qingfeng said with confidence.

This massive centipede was a demonic beast at the seventh level of the Spirit King Realm, it was too powerful for the Bamboo King sect. However it was nothing for Qingfeng.

“Elder Sister, who is this man? How could he be strong enough to kill the centipede?” asked a female disciple beside Xianxian Mu.

This female disciple didn’t know who Qingfeng was; she thought he was only bragging, because she has personally experienced the massive centipede’s extreme power.

Xianxian looked at her younger sister, and said, “His name is Qingfeng, the strongest amongst the younger Huaxia self-cultivation generation.”

“What, he is Qingfeng?” The female disciple’s eyes filled with shock when she heard her elder sister’s words.

This female disciple had never met Qingfeng, but she had heard of his stories.

Amongst the younger Huaxia self-cultivators, Qingfeng’s existance was like a god. He was extremely powerful, and was even an idol of many self-cultivators.

At the same time, he was the target of many unorthodox self-cultivators.

Qingfeng held the massive centipede’s leg with his right hand, and with a light squeeze, the strong leg was shattered to the ground at a crackle sound.

The massive centipede cried out in pain as its leg shattered, and its eyes turned grim.

Damn human, I’ll kill you. The massive centipede stared at Qingfeng with anger.

Swoosh!

The massive centipede swung its tail, sending it tearing through the sky and flying down towards Qingfeng with great power.

Qingfeng didn’t care at all; his right fist suddenly punched out with fierce energy and shattered the centipede’s tail as it made contact.

The massive centipede cried out in pain much more gruesome than the one before. Because its tail was shattered, its body shook in imbalance.

The massive centipede had thought it could kill Qingfeng with one wave of its tail, but it didn’t think that Qingfeng could be this powerful, being able to break its tail with one punch.

“You’re too weak, go die,” Qingfeng smiled as he said coldly.

Qingfeng swung his right fist. which conjured a massive fist that took up half of the sky. The fist landed on the centipede’s head and shattered it, causing its massive body to fall to the ground.

Crumble!

All of the massive centipede’s bones were shattered by Qingfeng’s fist, as it fell dead.

Inside the massive centipede’s belly, a black demonic pill sat silently.

This was the massive centipede’s demonic pill; the poor centipede didn’t even get to use it before Qingfeng killed it.

Qingfeng walked towards the massive centipede. As he reached out for the demonic pill, a shadow appeared.

It was a red shadow, dressed in a red robe. It appeared suddenly before the massive centipede and took its demonic pill.

This man in the red robe was about forty-some years old, with a red face that looked like someone who sucked blood. He had hints of strangeness with hints of devilish air.

Qingfeng frowned as he saw the red middle-aged man prepare to leave. He coldly said, “Stop.”

Qingfeng would never let this guy go. He killed the massive centipede, so the demonic pill belonged to him.

This middle-aged man in red robe didn’t even say one word when he stole Qingfeng’s fruit of success, and he wanted to leave. How could Qingfeng let him off easily?

The middle-aged man in red turned to look at Qingfeng with cold eyes and said nonchalantly, “You should feel lucky that I’ve set my eyes on this demonic pill. If you dare to say one more word, I’ll kill you.”

“Kill me?” Qingfeng laughed arrogantly. Many have threatened Qingfeng, and they have all died. Now, there was someone else who didn’t fear death.

“I want to know who you are. How can you kill me?” Qingfeng said as he smiled.

The red middle-aged man smiled coldly and said, “I’ll tell you, I’m the Poison Demon King of the Devilish Dao.”

Poison Demon King?

Everyone around grew terrified when they heard this name; it clearly had a lot of sway on them.

“It’s the Poison Demon King! He is a big character among the self-cultivators of the Devilish Dao and is very powerful.”

“I’ve heard the Poison Demon King had killed many people, and his devilish techniques can shake the world.”

“The Poison Demon King loves the demonic pills of these poisonous demonic beasts. He must have wanted this massive centipede’s demonic pill.”

“Qingfeng really doesn’t know much about managing relationships. The Poison Demon King wanted the demonic pill, so give it to him. Why is he fighting for it?”

Everyone discussed endlessly, of course most of them spoke for the Poison Demon King, and no one cheered Qingfeng on.

Qingfeng might have been one of the Orthodox Dao, but all these other orthodox self-cultivators were terrified of the Poison Demon King.

These people feared that if they spoke badly about the Poison Demon King, he would kill them, so they had to speak badly about Qingfeng instead.

Qingfeng clearly heard what the others self-cultivators said, but he didn’t care.

For Qingfeng, the Poison Demon King meant nothing. He killed Black Wind Duo Demons’s disciple, and so a Devilish Dao self-cultivator didn’t scare him at all.

Orthodox and devils were always in conflict, as the orthodox felt the need to defeat the devils based on their ethical viewpoints. Besides, the Poison Demon King had stolen his demonic pill.

Qingfeng was no coward, he couldn’t just give in to bullies, and so he had to fight for it.

“Poison Demon King, I’ll give you one last chance. Give me the demonic pill, and I’ll let you live,” Qingfeng said as he smiled coldly.

Poison Demon King roared in laughter, and, with disdain, he said, “If you want the demonic pill, maybe you can trade for it with your life.”

After he spoke, the Poison Demon King clapped his palms and charged at Qingfeng. This Poison Demon King’s palm strike carried a poisonous gas.

Qingfeng was extremely careful. He didn’t use his fist techniques, because he was wary of the opponent’s poisonous palm.

Qingfeng pulled out the Golden Light Sword and charged forward.

The fierce sword energy shot out suddenly and clashed onto the Poison Demon King’s palm. A loud clash sound shook the sky, and both stepped back upon contact.