This was an unnamed stretch of grassland, its soil barren and its pastures desolate — mostly withered yellow grass.
The sky hung gray and overcast, sunlight nowhere to be seen.
A cold wind blew across the faces of the assembled immortals.
Yet in this unremarkable place, dozens of Gu Immortals had gathered!
Every gaze was fixed on only two among them.
One was a male immortal, dressed in a tan-brown leather robe native to the Northern Plains, cinched with a wide, coarse crimson leather belt, his feet clad in a pair of pitch-black boots.
The broad leather robe could not conceal his powerfully built frame. As for his features, they were not particularly outstanding — leaning toward ordinary.
But not a single Gu Immortal present could afford to ignore him.
Because his surname was Chu, and his given name was Du.
He was the Overbearing Immortal!
Opposite him, at a distance, stood a female immortal.
She wore black-gold armor, her face half-hidden behind a faceplate that covered her nose, mouth, and cheeks. The exposed upper portion revealed hard, angular lines — sword-stroke brows sweeping toward her temples, star-bright eyes glinting with spirit, an imposing and heroic air radiating from every inch of her.
She was none other than the Black Moon Fairy, whose name had been rising meteorically through the Northern Plains' Gu Immortal world as she challenged one powerful figure after another without suffering a single defeat!
As for her true identity — Hei Loulan — only a scant few Gu Immortals knew it.
Not long ago, after defeating Liu Chang, the Seventh Transformation cornerstone and premier powerhouse of the Liu clan, she had proactively challenged Chu Du.
Chu Du had not retreated. He accepted immediately.
The moment news of this duel spread, it had set every nerve in the Northern Plains' immortal community alight, commanding the utmost attention.
Now, at last, the two immortals stood ready to battle.
"Chu Du, you've finally come." The fighting spirit in Hei Loulan's eyes blazed like roaring flames.
"A clash of strength path — I've been looking forward to this fight for a long time." Chu Du replied with a smile. "No matter how today turns out, I'd like to invite you, Fairy, to visit the Chu residence and exchange insights on strength-path cultivation."
Hei Loulan let out a cold snort. "Chu Du, your reputation precedes you. But if you want to spar and exchange pointers, we'll first have to see whether you have the qualifications. Come — fight me!"
Chu Du smiled. "Please."
Hei Loulan wasted no more words. Her figure shot upward like lightning, ascending into the higher cloud layers.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
One figure after another dove from the clouds like meteors, hurtling down toward Chu Du.
Chu Du looked up, saw what was happening, and immediately pulled back.
He was faster. He rapidly widened the distance, activated a killer move, and thrust both palms upward.
BOOM…
A tremendous surge of power erupted forth, the shockwave curling back on itself. Hei Loulan's strength-path phantom shattered like foam under the ferocious onslaught.
Chu Du pushed his palms once more, sweeping the overcast clouds above his head clean away, revealing dozens of miles of clear sky. Brilliant sunlight poured down.
Hei Loulan, who had been concealed within the clouds, was now fully exposed.
Her expression solemn, she had used the cover of the clouds to complete the preparation of her own killer move.
In the next instant, she clasped both hands into a single fist, raised it high above her head, and hammered it down toward Chu Du below.
A thunderclap exploded. The air warped and twisted. The fist shadow reached Chu Du's face almost instantaneously.
Chu Du raised both arms to block head-on.
BANG.
A deafening boom. He was knocked back over a hundred steps.
But he quickly stabilized in midair, shook his arms, and a layer of dust slid from his sleeves.
Not a scratch on him!
Hei Loulan was entirely unfazed. Her subsequent attacks crashed down like a tempest — fierce, relentless, unbroken.
Chu Du parried again and again while launching his own counterattacks.
The two remained at a distance, bombarding each other from afar, their clashes shaking heaven and earth.
The observing immortals stared without blinking.
"Spectacular — who knew strength-path Gu Immortals had so many long-range techniques."
"From what we've seen so far, Black Moon Fairy and Chu Du are dead even."
"Hmph, it's still too early for that." Chou Laowu snorted coldly. "The greatest strength of a strength-path Gu Immortal lies in close combat. Right now they're both fighting at range — nothing more than a probe."
Chu Du stood steady as a mountain. Hei Loulan, for her part, unleashed a dazzling array of exquisite long-range techniques. After a dozen or so exchanges, both suddenly charged forward and collided at the center with a devastating crash.
A single explosive boom that shook the hearts of every immortal present.
"They've truly engaged!"
"This is an exceedingly rare battle between strength-path masters!"