Chapter 164: An Unexplainable Sense of Rivalry

Hearing these words, Master Taiyi sneered even more coldly.

"She..."

"Are you really not considering letting Bai Ze make a move?"

He could tell Shiji's realm at a single glance; she was also in the Primordial Golden Immortal realm.

However, she was merely in the early stage of the Primordial Golden Immortal realm, and one who had just advanced to this realm not long ago.

Master Taiyi did not believe that Shiji could be his match.

Therefore, he asked Jiang Yuan if he had no intention of letting Bai Ze fight.

If the Human Emperor truly did not intend to let Bai Ze make a move, then Master Taiyi would feel more secure in his mind.

Should he blindly believe the Human Emperor when he claimed Bai Ze was at the Quasi-Sage realm?

If Bai Ze never made a move, it might mean that Jiang Yuan was merely trying to intimidate him.

It would mean that Bai Ze was not at the Quasi-Sage realm at all!

If that were the case, he would have no need to feel the slightest bit of fear.

Master Taiyi was at the mid-stage of the Primordial Golden Immortal realm. Even if he could not defeat Bai Ze, as long as Bai Ze was not a Quasi-Sage, he was confident in his ability to escape.

Hearing this, Jiang Yuan looked at Master Taiyi as if he were looking at a fool.

He actually wanted Bai Ze to make a move?

After a brief thought, Jiang Yuan instantly understood Master Taiyi's intention. It seemed that he did not believe his words and assumed Bai Ze could not possibly be a Quasi-Sage.

So that was it. Jiang Yuan smiled playfully and said, "It seems the Daoist priest is quite looking forward to Senior Bai Ze making a move?"

"This poor Daoist is merely reminding the Human Emperor that Shiji, being in the early stage of the Primordial Golden Immortal realm, is hardly a match for this poor Daoist," Master Taiyi sneered.

There was a hint of mockery on his face, along with a trace of contempt for Jiang Yuan.

He believed that Jiang Yuan was merely in the Great Golden Immortal realm and probably did not even understand what his own realm entailed.

"Does the Daoist priest believe that his mid-stage Primordial Golden Immortal realm is vastly superior to Goddess Shiji's early-stage Primordial Golden Immortal realm?"

"Or does the Daoist priest think that the孤 (Lone One) is deceiving you, and that Senior Bai Ze is actually not a Quasi-Sage at all? Do you truly believe you have a chance to escape?" Jiang Yuan asked, raising an eyebrow.

He directly voiced the thoughts hidden in Master Taiyi's mind.

"Does the Human Emperor still wish to continue trying to frighten this poor Daoist?" Master Taiyi sneered.

As long as Bai Ze did not actually make a move against him or truly reveal his realm, there was no need for him to show any cowardice.

"If the Daoist priest believes that the Lone One is merely trying to frighten you, then I will not offer any explanations. In any case, I will leave these words here today: unless a Saint intervenes, you, Master Taiyi, will likely have your physical body destroyed and your spirit scattered today," Jiang Yuan said coldly. His patience with Master Taiyi had worn thin, and he held no favorable impression of the entire Clan of Elucidation either.

To use an unborn child as a tool to achieve one's ends—had his strength not been insufficient previously, he would have long since executed justice on behalf of heaven.

"The Human Emperor is welcome to try!" Master Taiyi showed no fear whatsoever.

The more Jiang Yuan spoke to him like this, the more convinced he became that Bai Ze was not a Quasi-Sage.

If he truly possessed such power, why would he waste so many words with him?

Jiang Yuan could not be bothered to say anything more to Master Taiyi.

He looked directly at Bai Ze and asked, "Senior Bai Ze, is there a way to seal Master Taiyi's realm down to the same level as Shiji's?"

"How hard can that be?" Bai Ze replied indifferently.

Before Master Taiyi could react, Bai Ze waved his large sleeve. Master Taiyi had no time to react, nor did he have any room for resistance.

He was swept straight into Bai Ze's sleeve. When Master Taiyi reappeared before everyone's eyes,

Jiang Yuan discovered through the system that Master Taiyi was now also in the early stage of the Primordial Golden Immortal realm, exactly the same as Shiji.

Having his realm forcibly suppressed, Master Taiyi's face was filled with sheer horror. Could Bai Ze truly be a Quasi-Sage?

Even against a peak Primordial Golden Immortal, he would not have been left without the slightest room for resistance.

Just now, when Bai Ze swept him into his sleeve, he had not even possessed the thought of resisting, feeling only that his life could be ended by Bai Ze at any second!

This left him utterly bewildered. Why would Bai Ze, merely one of the Top Ten Demon Saints, suddenly become a Quasi-Sage?

It was simply mind-boggling. The Saints of the entire Clan of Elucidation were exceedingly rare, yet Bai Ze, who had always maintained a low profile, had just become a Quasi-Sage like this?

Mostly because Bai Ze had remained extremely mysterious over the years, rarely participating in any affairs or showing his face in front of others.

Seeing Master Taiyi's terrified expression, Jiang Yuan asked with an amused smile, "Now the Daoist priest can finally believe that Senior Bai Ze is a Quasi-Sage, right?"

"Hmph!"

Master Taiyi was furious now, but having no other recourse, he could only let out a cold snort.

Since he could confirm that Bai Ze was a Quasi-Sage, he naturally would not court death by uttering any more harsh threats.

Jiang Yuan did not care much about Master Taiyi's attitude. Why waste so much concern on a dead man?

He saw Jiang Yuan slowly take a step back and stand behind Shiji.

Bai Ze also appeared behind Shiji at some point.

"Goddess Shiji, since Master Taiyi is your destined tribulation, you should bring this tribulation to an end yourself," Jiang Yuan said with a faint smile.

Shiji nodded solemnly. Ever since entering the Golden Light Cave, she had felt an intense aversion toward Master Taiyi, especially when he produced the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Shield.

She had even felt a trace of panic, harboring an inexplicable fear toward the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Shield.

"Can the Human Emperor guarantee that once this poor Daoist defeats fellow Daoist Shiji, no further action will be taken against me?" Master Taiyi asked solemnly.

Now that he and Shiji were on the same realm, he could not guarantee that he would emerge victorious over her.

If someone else were to interfere at that juncture, he truly might perish here.

Jiang Yuan did not answer the question directly.

Instead, he said, "The Lone One can only guarantee to give the Daoist priest a fair chance. You can choose to accept the fight, or you can choose to refuse."

"However, the consequence of refusal is that the three of us will deal with the Daoist priest together. Make your own choice."

Master Taiyi was momentarily speechless. Was the Human Emperor giving him a choice? This was clearly forcing him to fight.

If Master Taiyi couldn't even weigh the difference between a one-on-one fight and a three-on-one fight, he would truly be wasting the flesh on his bones.

"Come then, this poor Daoist shall test fellow Daoist Shiji's strength."

Master Taiyi summoned the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Shield and activated it.

Nine golden divine dragons coiled within the Golden Light Cave, letting out violent dragon roars. These dragons were engulfed in roaring golden flames.

Even the dragon breath they exhaled turned into golden divine fire.

The imposing momentum looked extraordinary indeed.

Jiang Yuan glanced at the grade of the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Shield; as expected, it was at the Houtian Supreme Treasure level, just a hair's breadth away from the Xiantian Spiritual Treasure—wait, Primordial/Chaos level (referring to high-tier treasures).

Shiji wore a solemn expression and quickly summoned the Eight Trigrams Cloud-Paired Silk.

Jiang Yuan glanced at the grade of the Eight Trigrams Cloud-Paired Silk as well, and it turned out to be a Houtian Supreme Treasure too. As expected, none of the disciples from these major sects were poor.

He didn't bother to consider what grade the Xuanyuan Sword in his own possession was. If one were to talk about the wealthiest person present, aside from the unfathomable Demon Saint Bai Ze,

Jiang Yuan's Xuanyuan Sword was probably the most prestigious—a Chaos Supreme Treasure, something even the Quasi-Sage Bai Ze might not necessarily possess.

Yet, why was Jiang Yuan having this inexplicable urge to compare? They were supposed to be dealing with Master Taiyi right now.