Chapter 538

Cheng Hu, transformed into the slant-eye tiger, attacks Hao Ji Liu, and his rank four tiger roar Gu sends sound waves that explode a blue water current into a huge rain. Tiger claw, skin, tooth and tail Gu complete the set. A transformation path Gu Master who completes such a set gains a huge qualitative surge in battle strength. Hao Ji Liu can only evade, yet Cheng Hu cannot turn his huge advantage into victory, and the battle stays deadlocked. ^{ch. 538}

In Ma tribe’s main tent, Ma Ying Jie says Water Demon Hao Ji Liu is very crafty and Cheng Hu is in danger. A killer move spends primeval essence at a very high rate, and once Cheng Hu returns to human form, Hao Ji Liu will retaliate. Ma Shang Feng knows that after two losses the tribes submitted to Ma tribe have wavered. He sighs and sends Fei Sheng Cheng to fight the second battle. ^{ch. 538}

Fei Sheng Cheng is a fierce general whom Fei tribe ostracised, and Ma tribe used him as an insider to take Fei tribe down. Sun Shi Han tells the Hei tribe main tent that Fei Sheng Cheng has killed eight rank four experts since the Imperial Court contest, and used numbness Gu to fight three experts of the same realm alone. In that earlier battle Ye Lui Sang lost and was chased, and the tribes submitted to him, such as Qi Lian tribe, went to Ma tribe. Numbness Gu is a rare rank four Gu valued as a rank five that briefly paralyzes whoever it strikes. Hei Lou Lan asks who can battle, and Pan Ping volunteers. ^{ch. 538}

Pan Ping insults Fei Sheng Cheng, who answers furiously, and the two fight evenly. Both were doing badly when the contest began, and battle merits have since raised their strength sharply. Pan Ping exchanged merits for an exquisite set of Gu worms beyond sole blade Gu, and Fei Sheng Cheng exchanged them for numbness Gu. Pan Ping fears numbness Gu, and Fei Sheng Cheng guards against sole blade Gu. ^{ch. 538}

Sole blade Gu resides in the scimitar, not in the body of Pan Ping. It alone survived when Liu tribe’s three brothers blew Pan Ping to bits. Tai Bai Yun Sheng revived him with man as before Gu, which targets only human bodies, so he lost all his other Gu worms. Gao Yang and Zhu Zai were revived the same way and also lost all their Gu worms, and Gao Yang’s rank five treacherous cloud wave Gu was destroyed. Pan Ping still had many unused battle merits, and the other two borrowed merits to replenish their worms and have since repaid them with gains left. ^{ch. 538}

Ma tribe sends six more fierce generals, and Hei Lou Lan accepts all the challenges, sending Pei Yan Fei, Gao Yang, Zhu Zai and others. Cheng Hu finally loses and escapes safely because Hao Ji Liu has no strength to chase. Hei tribe’s morale surges. Ma tribe wins the third battle and ties the scores. More than thirty battle rings appear, with around seventy rank four Gu Masters fighting at once. ^{ch. 538}

Ge Guang, Ge tribe leader and newly rank four, asks to battle. Hei Lou Lan looks to Fang Yuan, supreme elder of Ge and Chang tribes, who orders Ge Guang to stand down because a tribe leader should not risk himself. Ge Guang obeys. Fang Yuan then orders the sickly Chang Biao to fight. Chang Biao, enraged at being ordered like a beast, thinks he will wait and endure until he can send Fang Yuan to the underworld, and obeys, dragging his injured body into the battlefield. ^{ch. 538}