Chapter 164: The Suspended Island (Part 4)

Hearing Wisdom Tooth's ambiguous words, which were both soft and firm, everyone became even more confused. It was clearly a conciliatory gesture, yet he brought up the secluded Master Tooth. Since Wisdom Tooth was already a Nascent Soul cultivator, Master Tooth must be at least in the mid-Nascent Soul stage. If this mighty figure were truly provoked, these people might not even be able to leave the Floating Island alive.

After much deliberation, Tian Rui first sent a voice transmission to Lei Xiang to discuss how to respond. Only then did Lei Xiang speak up: "Mr. Wisdom Tooth exaggerates. We harbor no deep hatred or fierce grudges against your Smiling Tooth organization. It is simply that my sworn brother, Dugu Yixiao, once walked out from this place, and we hope you will no longer pursue him. Furthermore, my brother's wife remains within your organization, and this time we wish to take her with us as well."

Wisdom Tooth was slightly startled and slowly replied, "What is Young Master Lei saying? Dugu Yixiao voluntarily severed ties with us, and from now on, he will no longer be pursued. If Young Master Dugu ever wishes to return for a visit, we would be more than delighted. As for his wife, however, that is somewhat thorny. She is one of the individuals most deeply valued by our Master Tooth. I cannot make the decision on this matter alone and must wait until Master Tooth emerges from seclusion to render a final verdict."

Lei Xiang pondered slightly. He figured that at this juncture, Wisdom Tooth had no reason to lie to him over a woman, and moreover, Dugu Yixiao's girlfriend could not be found right now anyway, leaving them no choice but to wait for Master Tooth to willingly hand her over. Thus, he said nothing more. Instead, Tian Rui chimed in, "Mr. Wisdom Tooth, I also have a request. To be frank, I have come here to retrieve an item. This object is of paramount importance to me, and I sincerely hope Mr. Wisdom Tooth can grant us this convenience."

Wisdom Tooth nodded and said, "Please state your request, Heroine. Whatever our Smiling Tooth possesses, you are free to take."

Unexpectedly, Tian Rui did not say it aloud. Instead, she sent a voice transmission directly to Wisdom Tooth, which demonstrated just how crucial the item was—she did not even want Lei Xiang and the others to know too soon. Lei Xiang was indifferent to this; their primary purpose in coming to the Floating Island was for Dugu Yixiao, while whatever Tian Rui was after was secondary. Since she had repeatedly chosen to withhold it, and Lei Xiang was not one to pry into gossip, he simply assumed it must be an extremely significant artifact. He looked toward Wisdom Tooth. Upon hearing Tian Rui's transmission, Wisdom Tooth's expression shifted into one of shock for the very first time. Without even thinking, he shook his head vigorously and transmitted a reply. Tian Rui shook her head resolutely in return, and the two began exchanging rapid voice transmissions, their expressions growing increasingly icy.

Seeing this, Lei Xiang knew the matter could not be resolved amicably. He poured spiritual power into the Four-Seven Immortal-Shooting Spear, preparing to strike at any moment. Indeed, after less than three minutes of private transmission, Tian Rui's temper flared. Abandoning voice transmission, she cried out loudly, "Mr. Wisdom Tooth, since you are so stubbornly unyielding, we are left with no choice but to resort to force! Young Master Lei, negotiations have broken down; we have no choice but to take it by sheer strength. I am determined to acquire this item. As I told you before, obtaining it will be of immeasurable benefit to your forging of the Immortal-Shooting Spear. I hope you will help me."

Lei Xiang sighed inwardly. Operating the Divine Cultivation Mirror, the full pressure of his early Nascent Soul stage radiated from his entire body without reservation. He knew the extreme peril of this battle, so he could no longer conceal his cultivation level merely to guard against Master Tooth. "Mr. Wisdom Tooth, is that object truly something you cannot bear to part with? In that case, Lei has no choice but to seize it by force."

Seeing the power Lei Xiang displayed, Wisdom Tooth gave a slight, bitter smile and shook his head. He knew that today's battle might well mark his dying day. Tian Rui alone was unfathomably deep and unpredictable, and coupled with a Lei Xiang of his equal rank, this combat held zero chance of victory. Yet, he still nodded firmly, uttering no further words. He opened his mouth and spat out a flawless molar. Its crown, roots, and surface enamel were all textbook perfection, except that this wisdom tooth grew horizontally. At this moment, it hovered horizontally right above Wisdom Tooth's head.

Faced with this horizontally growing molar, Lei Xiang turned solemn for the very first time. This might well be his fiercest battle since reaching the Nascent Soul realm. The terrifying aura emanating from the molar—while perhaps not capable of destroying heaven and earth—still exerted immense pressure on a master of his caliber. "Tian Rui, take them to break the seals and retrieve the item first. I will hold them off for a while. Remember to wake Qimenzi up first; without him, you won't be able to break that seal just like last time. I have already successfully bled Qimenzi just now; you only need to use your spiritual power to guide the stagnant blood out of his meridians. Dugu Yixiao, Yang Jian, assist her, and be quick about it. Wisdom Tooth is about to unleash this tooth immediately."

Tian Rui did not hesitate, fleeing together with Yang Jian. Dugu Yixiao paused only briefly; his granite-like face remained completely expressionless as he nodded to Lei Xiang and soared away as well. Only Lei Xiang and Wisdom Tooth remained in the clearing. Meanwhile, Wisdom Tooth was hardly idle, busy organizing the members of Smiling Tooth to respond. He assigned who would intercept, who would encircle, and who would act as a mobile reserve, delegating tasks with immaculate order. He harbored no desire to leave the slightest regret in his battle against Lei Xiang, arranging his manpower as thoroughly as possible to eliminate any rear concerns. After all, with the ancient seals suppressing that treasure, it would be harder than ascending to heaven for Tian Rui and her companions to succeed.

Both men completed their respective deployments simultaneously and concentrated entirely on this impending Nascent Soul-tier clash. Lei Xiang summoned his ultimate defensive artifact, the Blue Lotus Flower Dish, holding the Nine-Treasure Lotus Rod in his left hand while tightly gripping the Four-Seven Immortal-Shooting Spear in his right. He stared fixedly at the molar across from him. By now, though still floating above Wisdom Tooth's head, the molar had expanded to the size of a small mountain, radiating a pitch-black glow from its entire body that chilled the hearts of all who beheld it.

A molar as white and pure as jade, yet radiating a blackness that signified death—what a bizarre spectacle this was.

The demonic fog had completely dissipated, leaving the area wide open. Not even a breath of wind stirred; it was as calm as stagnant water. Yet both men understood in their hearts that even stagnant water harbored towering billows, and once those waves surged, they would be beyond their control. Neither man was in a hurry, however; it was as though each was waiting for the other to make the first move, or perhaps each wished to pierce through the opponent's flaws.

Meanwhile, over a thousand paces behind Wisdom Tooth, astonishing sounds erupted. Wave after wave of massive explosions, billows of multicolored smoke, and cries of desperate agony converged into a harrowing dirge of human misery. This caused even Wisdom Tooth, usually as steady as a mountain, to suffer a jolt of alarm. He could tell those screams came from the mouths of his own subordinates, and he knew these loyal Smiling Tooth members would never wail or howl simply from losing a limb—not unless it was the critical moment of losing their lives. That meant those few intruders had completely seized control of the situation, and his own people were likely facing total annihilation.

He had underestimated Tian Rui's strength after all. He never expected her to wipe out over a hundred Smiling Tooth elites so quickly. It seemed the red-haired woman's power must even surpass that of Lei Xiang. If that was the case, even if Master Tooth emerged from seclusion, he would be completely powerless against them. Could today truly be the twilight of the millennium-old Smiling Tooth? Could that immemorial, immovable object really be snatched away? If so, would he not become a sinner through the ages?

Reaching this thought, Wisdom Tooth could no longer maintain his composure and launched a preemptive strike. True motion is like thunder; anyone who had never witnessed Wisdom Tooth attack could never have imagined such a scene. He formed reverse orchid hand seals with both hands and thrust them fiercely toward the molar in the air. The gigantic molar erupted with tens of thousands of pitch-black, sinister rays of light, surging toward Lei Xiang like a cascading avalanche. It completely sealed off all paths of retreat before and behind Lei Xiang, forcing him to take the blow head-on. Lei Xiang had not anticipated that Wisdom Tooth's sudden eruption would possess such immense might; completely engulfed by the offensive, he had no choice but to drive the Blue Lotus Flower Dish to withstand it forcefully.

The Blue Lotus Flower Dish, with its nine lotus blossoms blooming in brilliant competition, met the hundreds of thousands of pitch-black rays. The moment they collided, not a single sound was emitted. Instead, the dark, eerie rays were effortlessly deflected backward, as though it were not a clash between peers at all. Far away, Wisdom Tooth stared in dumbfounded shock. Frantically churning his hand seals, his figure rapidly teleported away, for he dared not withstand the rebounded rays himself. Fortunately, his instinctual dread of the dark light allowed him to dodge via teleportation in the nick of time; otherwise, he would have been killed on the spot.

"Crack!" The very instant he vanished, a black crystal bomb struck the exact spot where he had stood and detonated, sending a lingering wave of terror through Wisdom Tooth's heart. Channeling his entire body's spiritual energy to accelerate the molar, the gigantic tooth flew horizontally toward Lei Xiang, pressing down savagely like an insurmountable mountain.

No matter how formidable your broken dish may be, can it possibly withstand the full-strength blow of my natal magical treasure? Fight to the death!

This was Wisdom Tooth's genuine thought. Yet what he never, ever imagined was that Lei Xiang was even faster than him.