However, after a single glance, Hu Qi shook his head.

"Hm? You’re not willing?"

Ji Wuxing’s face darkened instantly upon seeing this.

He hadn’t been patient to begin with, and after everything that had happened, he had precious little left.

Besides forcing a leader to submit, there was another way to obtain their national fortune: killing them directly. Doing so would render their portion of the fortune ownerless.

Then, by taking their place as the new leader, he could claim it for himself.

But in the past year, Ji Wuxing had rarely used this method.

There was no other reason; it was simply too time-consuming compared to the first option.

"It’s not that I’m unwilling. It’s that you’re too weak! You don’t stand a chance of winning against Mother Earth. If I give you the national fortune and let you become the sovereign of the Human Race, the moment she kills you, the entire Federation—everyone on Earth Star—will die with you!"

Hu Qi’s voice was flat, as if he were merely stating a fact.

"Very well! It seems you doubt my strength.

Since you enjoy playing the enigmatic sage so much, then I shall see what you are truly made of!"

Ji Wuxing laughed, but it was a laugh of pure fury.

Honestly, he had never imagined someone could be so utterly clueless, so thoroughly courting death.

He considered himself to have been merciful enough, but it was a shame this person didn’t appreciate it, casting his benevolence aside.

In that case, he could not be blamed for what came next.

Ji Wuxing took a step forward, and the Emperor Dharma Aspect reappeared behind him, clad in an Emperor’s Robe, wearing a Crown, with a Longsword hanging from its waist.

An invisible wave of Pseudo Domain Power descended, enveloping the world around them.

The expressions of Wang Jing, Lei Bao, and Meng Ke all shifted.

It was simple: the power of this Pseudo Domain was immense.

This was especially true for Wang Jing. As a cultivator at the Early Stage of Divine Phase in the Refining God Third Realm, he was far more familiar with Pseudo Domains.

And having personally clashed with Ji Wuxing before, he had a much deeper understanding of the power he could display.

In his eyes, ’Even though Hu Qi is powerful, he’s probably not Ji Wuxing’s match.’

But in the next instant, a cold snort boomed like a sudden clap of thunder.

Ji Wuxing’s face went pale. He staggered as trickles of blood seeped from his seven orifices.

Instantly, the Pseudo Domain enveloping the area was shattered.

The figure of the Dharma Aspect flickered violently, looking as if it might disintegrate at any moment.

"You?!"

Ji Wuxing looked up, his gaze filled with horror as he stared intently at Hu Qi.

The man had nearly shattered his Domain and Dharma Aspect with a single snort.

He wasn’t the only one; Wang Jing and the other two were equally stunned.

Once they recovered, they subtly distanced themselves from Ji Wuxing, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire.

Only Xuanqing remained motionless, lost in thought. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"It seems I have underestimated you."

Ji Wuxing’s expression was grim.

Though he said as much, he knew the man before him was no ordinary opponent. His power was far beyond that of a typical Refining God Realm master.

’Xuanqing said he was powerful, and I had my doubts. But now I see it’s true.’

He knew he could no longer hold back.

At this thought, a surging golden light erupted from his body, accompanied by the roars of a dragon.

"Heaven’s will is my will! I act as heaven’s judgment! Slay!"

As the final word fell, the Dharma Aspect around him exploded.

Simultaneously, a vast will descended upon them.

In a flash, an absolute silence seemed to fall over the world.

The air solidified, the wind died, and all things fell motionless under a mysterious pressure.

High in the sky, clouds churned like a raging tide, gathering and swirling into a massive vortex.

At the center of the vortex, light flickered erratically.

A semi-ethereal Long Spear, seemingly forged from molten Gold, abruptly materialized.

Mysterious Runes flickered across its entire length, radiating an aura of destruction.

It was like a symbol of judgment—sacred, majestic, and seemingly capable of Piercing through anything.

The Long Spear’s descent seemed slow, but it was as fast as lightning.

Space twisted and warped in its wake, as if unable to withstand its immense power.

In a mere instant, it was directly above Hu Qi’s head.

But in the next moment, Hu Qi, who should have been paralyzed and unable to move, raised a glowing hand and snatched the descending golden Long Spear from the air.

"You!"

Ji Wuxing’s expression changed drastically.

This technique was a powerful killing move from the Emperor’s Fusion Map.

It used his Celestial Son Dharma Aspect’s Martial Arts to connect with and borrow a sliver of the world’s will, manifesting it as the Celestial Punishment Spear.

It was said that no living being of this world could possibly resist the Celestial Punishment Spear.

This was the ultimate killing blow he had prepared for his fight against Mother Earth.

’And yet, he caught it with a single hand?!’

CRACK!

The Divine Spear then shattered with a deafening crack as Hu Qi clenched his fist.

Ji Wuxing coughed up a mouthful of blood.

The Divine Spear had been formed from his Celestial Son Dharma Aspect; with its destruction, he was instantly and severely wounded.

But Hu Qi wasn’t finished.

His figure blurred, reappearing in front of Ji Wuxing as if by teleportation. A hand glowing with white light pierced straight through his body.

But in the next moment, as if sensing something was wrong,

a translucent golden figure detached itself from Ji Wuxing’s physical body.

It was a Spirit Body whose face bore a slight resemblance to Ji Wuxing’s.

This was Ji Wuxing’s true Divine Soul.

Unlike ordinary people, or even Qi Dao Grandmasters, a Refining God Venerable who had broken through the Divine Barrier and awakened the Power of the Heart had a Divine Soul that was practically indistinguishable from a physical person.

Suddenly, just as his Divine Soul left its body and tried to flee,

countless multicolored threads pierced through it, tethering it to the physical body and rendering it completely immobile.

"Young friend..."

Seeing this, Xuanqing stirred, as if wanting to say something.

"Relax. I’m not going to kill him right now,"

Hu Qi said nonchalantly.

He glanced at the others.

"As for Mother Earth, I will deal with her myself."

With that, his figure—and the Ji Wuxing he held captive—dissipated, as if they had never been there at all.

Only a cold voice was left echoing through the space.

"And Xuanqing... out of consideration for the help you’ve given me before, I hope this is the first and last time."

Hearing this, Xuanqing stood frozen in place.

He knew what Hu Qi meant.

He had, in fact, intentionally guided Ji Wuxing here.

As one who relied on the faith of worshippers to exist, he was nearly immortal. But that same faith bound him to always think and act from the perspective of humanity.

Nothing he did was for selfish reasons; he simply needed to help this world select a true savior capable of defeating Mother Earth.

However, as he stared at the spot where Hu Qi had vanished, his expression was one of someone who had just witnessed the impossible.

His voice was strained.

"...The Divine Celestial Threads of the Earth God Hall... And... that... was just a Clone... Don’t tell me... he’s already..."

Hearing this, the distant Wang Jing, Lei Bao, and Meng Ke all reacted.

Their faces, too, filled with shock.

Xuanqing’s voice was quiet, and he hadn’t finished his sentence, but as Refining God Venerables, their perception was extraordinarily keen—far beyond that of an ordinary Secret Martial Artist.

With just a little speculation, they understood what Xuanqing meant.

They all turned to look down toward Anshan City, their eyes involuntarily filling with awe and a burning fervor.