As the thunderous laughter echoed throughout the land, everyone watched with surprise as beams flashed across the sky and landed on the ground.
When the light rays dissipated, an army in gray armor appeared in front of everyone. The numbers of this troop were not any less than compared to the Nine Nether Troop. A big, black, hideous-looking serpent exuding a bloodthirsty aura was emblazoned on their armor.
Two middle-aged figures stood arrogantly at the forefront of the army. One of them was clean-looking, while the other one was more rowdy-looking. His body was well-built like an iron man. The earth seemed to shake beneath him.
The iron man sneered as he looked at Mu Chen, who was standing outside of the swamp. Apparently, the thunderous voice had come from the iron man.
"That is... Lu Wu and Lu Kui, the two clan leaders from the Dragon Snake Sect!"
Everyone else was coming to that realization as well. As they quickly recognized the army's identity, they could not help but exclaim in shock.
"The Dragon Snake Sect?"
Mu Chen stared at the army in the distance with his dark, cold eyes. He had also heard about them before. They were one of the top-notch forces in the North Territory. However, they were far from Daluo Territory and seemed to have a relationship with the Divine Pavilion. With such a background, they naturally did not need to fear Daluo Territory, unlike the rest of the forces.
Mu Chen tilted his head and exchanged glances with Nine Nether. Their eyes surged with cold radiance.
"I am Lu Wu from the Dragon Snake Sect. Heh heh. I presume you are one of the nine lords in the Daluo Territory, as well as the lord of the Nine Nether Palace, right?" The clean-looking, middle-aged man looked at Nine Nether and smiled faintly.
Nine Nether glanced at him indifferently and said, "The Dragon Snake Sect seems to have plenty of guts. How dare you fight with Daluo Territory? Do you really think that having a relationship with the Divine Pavillion will stop us from doing anything to you?"
Lu Wu smiled when he heard this. "Perhaps during normal times we would think twice about it. But Daluo Territory cannot even save themselves in this Big Hunting War. So don't try to scare me with your name."
"Nine Nether Palace is capable of dealing with the likes of you," Nine Nether said calmly.
"Heh, shameless boasting."
The iron man, Lu Kui, stood beside Lu Wu and smiled hideously as he clasped his hands in front of his chest. He looked mockingly at the Nine Nether Troop behind Mu Chen and said, "As far as I know, Nine Nether Troop is the weakest army in the entire Daluo Territory. They have been bullied for years, and they don't even dare to rebel against it. Don't you feel ashamed bringing them out for a stroll?"
A bloodthirsty aura immediately surged in the eyes of thousands of soldiers when they heard his verbal abuse. They stared at Lu Kui with sharp and piercing eyes, and a vast fighting spirit seemed to be surging among them.
Lu Kui naturally noticed the surging of the fighting spirit. His mocking look disappeared as his eyes narrowed. As a leader of a troop, he knew that such fighting spirit could not be cultivated by just any Tom, Dick, or Harry.
"I heard that there are two renowned troops, the Dragon Troop and Snake Troop, in the Dragon Snake Sect. I guess the one behind you should be the Snake Troop, right?" Mu Chen spoke calmly as his pitch-black eyes swept across the troop behind Lu Kui.
Not only did the troop share an identical strength with Nine Nether Troop, but they had eerie fluctuations lingering around them as if poisonous snakes were hiding in the dark. Hence, it would not be wise to belittle them.
This troop was considered to be by far one of the strongest troops Mu Chen had met on his way.
"You, lad, are green, but you have good eyesight."
Lu Kui grinned widely as he looked at Mu Chen. "Mu Chen, the one who has provoked much discussion lately in the North Territory? Having such an achievement at your age is uncommon. But now, this is not child's play here. Go back and practice for another ten years or more before you come out again."
"You seem to have overestimated yourself." Mu Chen shook his head and smiled.
Lu Kui's meaty face twitched as he narrowed his eyes and released a sharp killing radiance. A surge of powerful spiritual energy surrounding him slowly spread out.
Mu Chen could sense the pressure exuded from that spiritual energy. He raised his eyebrow slightly. Even though Lu Kui's character was not superior, his strength was considered to be acceptable. Given such an amount of spiritual energy, he should have reached the level of Grade Five Sovereign. Compared to Qiu Taiyin, who just recently reached the level of Grade Five Sovereign, Lu Kui was much more powerful.
"You dare to show off your power when you are only a Grade Five Sovereign?" Nine Nether sharpened her gaze, and a surge of purple flames appeared to be radiating from her body. The heat from the flames dispersed the coldness in the air, and at the same time, eased the pressure that came from Lu Kui's spiritual energy.
"Heh, don't be angry, Lord of Nine Nether Palace. If you're not impressed with the Grade Five Sovereign strength of my third brother, perhaps I can please you a little more."
That clean-looking Lu Wu smiled softly while his palms clapped together. A sudden vast spiritual energy shot up into the sky as if the power from the ocean was drifting in mid-air. There seemed to be the sound of water gushing out. Apparently, his spiritual energy had reached a shocking level.
The power of this spiritual energy was undoubtedly much stronger than Lu Kui's!
Lu Wu had reached the Grade Six Sovereign stage!
"Spiritual Energy Solidify, Grade Six Sovereign?"
Nine Nether's cold and beautiful eyes narrowed slightly as she sized up Lu Wu. She did not think that the latter had already achieved such a standard.
It seemed like the Dragon Snake Sect had some foundation to become a top-notch force in the North Territory. Such strength could be considered a high mid-range level among the lords in the Daluo Territory.
It was also said that there were three clan leaders in the Dragon Snake Sect. Lu Wu and Lu Kui were only ranked second and third.
The rest of the people from the various forces understood that a fight was inevitable once they saw this scene. Although Daluo Territory had a well-known reputation, only the Nine Nether Troop was there at the moment. Despite the fact that the Dragon Snake Sect was weaker than Daluo Territory, they were also considered to be one of the top-notch forces. That was all the more reason why they would not allow the relic to be taken.
Since both parties were not willing to compromise, the ownership of the relic would have to be decided by the most practical method - with fists!
The rest were happy to see a confrontation because if a war started, someone was bound to get hurt. They could fish in troubled waters during such a time.
Mu Chen squinted slightly at their formation. From a certain point of view, their strength was not any less than that of Nine Nether Palace. If it had been, they would not dare to snatch the relic from them. It seemed like a war was unavoidable if they wanted that relic.
"I will handle that guy," Nine Nether said to Mu Chen while looking coldly at Lu Wu. Her body slowly rose in mid-air, gathered all the light beams, and transformed them into a pair of purple wings with a purple fire burning fiercely on them.
Eek!
A crisp, bright, and sharp chirping sound came from Nine Nether's body. The formidable spiritual energy fluctuation surged around the land. The sound of the chirp dispersed Lu Wu's spiritual energy.
"The Nine Netherworld Bird?"
Lu Wu's eyes sharpened and became cautious. He knew how troublesome it was to deal with those with a body that contained a Divine Beast.
Something flickered in Lu Wu's eyes, and he smiled. "Lord of Nine Nether Palace, I know you are a Nine Netherworld Bird with majestic powers. But if we are to fight, I am afraid there will be no end to it."
Nine Nether felt indifferent to his words. "If you don't wish to fight, then get lost."
Lu Wu raised his eyebrows. "Why don't we use another method to decide the ownership of this relic?"
"What do you want to do?" Nine Nether gave a cold smile. She did not make a move immediately. It would not be an easy fight since Lu Wu had some foundation. She needed to conserve her energy since there might be more and more forces attracted to their current location.
"I have heard that the Nine Nether Troop is one of the elite troops in Daluo Territory. I wonder who would win if they were to fight with our Snake Troop from the Dragon Snake Sect."
Lu Wu smiled and continued, "Why not let the two armies give their best shot and whoever wins gets the relic? What do you think?"
"Heh heh, I think the young lad has no guts." Lu Kui laughed hideously as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. He was able to tell that the Nine Nether Troop was under Mu Chen's command.
Although he looked big and burly, he had a deceitful mind. He wished to goad Mu Chen into competing with him using his mockery and contemptible words.
Lu Kui was not afraid of Mu Chen, who was still a young commander, since he had personally led the troop for many years with notable achievements.
But when Nine Nether heard their plans, she was not angry. Instead, her lips curved slightly.
Mu Chen on the other hand, smiled as he turned to look at the Nine Nether Troop. "Someone wishes to pick a fight with us. What should we do?"
"Kill!"
Thousands of soldiers displayed a fearsome look in their eyes as they let out a low growl accompanied by intense killing desire. Even though Lu Kui had a fierce look on his face, he could not help but also narrow his eyes.
He saw a curve at the corner of Mu Chen's lips and suddenly felt uneasy. He thought he could break through easily via Mu Chen, but the situation seemed to be beyond his expectation.
But, Lu Kui was, after all, not an ordinary character. He quickly dismissed the thought and regained his composure as his eyes turned cold.
He had been through numerous wars over so many years. Hence, he did not believe such a lad could get in his way!
He was going to wipe out the so-called Nine Nether Troop!