Free Web NovelChapter 162: Chapter 157: Withstanding an Elder’s Blow
The red light on the Martial Arts Arena was Luo Changjie’s doing. Since it was his creation, he surely had some kind of deadly ultimate technique hidden within it. The spectators had all thought Zhaang Ye was a dead man for sure this time. But to their surprise, when the red light dissipated, the winner was actually Zhaang Ye! As for Luo Changjie, not only had he lost, but he had lost miserably—Zhaang Ye had even severed his legs!
A complete upset! It was utterly unexpected!
Luo Changjie was, after all, ranked fifth among the top ten young experts of Cyan Mulberry City. How could a figure like him have his legs cut off?!
Cyan Mulberry City had a great many Martial Artists, and stunningly brilliant young experts often emerged. However, most of these young experts were like shooting stars; after a brief flash of brilliance, they would quickly fade into mediocrity, unable to stand the test of time. The ten greatest young experts of Cyan Mulberry City, on the other hand, were masters who had earned public recognition after enduring one trial after another.
The reputations of these ten great young experts were forged through countless life-and-death battles. Each was a battle-hardened veteran, a formidable warrior who had crawled out of a pile of corpses. Compared to these long-famous masters, Zhaang Ye was like an upstart. Although he had repeatedly performed brilliantly and attracted some attention, few people were optimistic about his chances in a duel that tested both strength and wits.
Yet, after just one battle, Zhaang Ye, this upstart, had actually defeated the long-famous and well-prepared Luo Changjie! How could this not be shocking?
On the Martial Arts Arena, the referee gave Zhaang Ye a deep look and announced loudly, "First match, Zhaang Ye is the victor!"
"Heh. Good!" Below the stage, Zhaang Tianlong let out a low roar and pumped his fist at the elders of the Luo Family, Zhou Family, and Lee Family.
Just now, under the brilliant crimson glow of Luo Changjie’s Red Lantern technique, even Zhaang Tianlong couldn’t see the state of the battle clearly. If he hadn’t believed in Zhaang Ye’s strength, Zhaang Tianlong might have even called out for him to concede. But now, Zhaang Ye had won a clean and decisive victory, felling his opponent with his saber. How could Zhaang Tianlong not be thrilled?
While Zhaang Tianlong was ecstatic, the Luo Family Elder’s face was ashen. With an angry snort, Elder Luo flew onto the Martial Arts Arena. Seeing the tragic state of his Luo Family disciple with both legs severed, and then seeing Zhaang Ye standing calmly to the side, the Elder’s fury blazed. He bellowed, "Zhaang Ye, why were your actions so vicious? Speak! Did you intentionally try to cripple him?"
Zhaang Ye had, in fact, intentionally crippled him. ’But I can’t admit that even if they beat me to death,’ he thought. He said respectfully, "Elder Luo, the Martial Arts Arena was just filled with a blinding red light. I couldn’t even see my hand in front of my face. In a flurry of wild, random slashes, I didn’t expect to actually cut off this senior brother’s legs. It was a complete accident..."
"WAAH—" Luo Changjie pointed at Zhaang Ye and spat out a mouthful of blood. He had originally planned to kill Zhaang Ye and then claim he couldn’t see clearly and killed him by accident. He never imagined that not only would he fail to kill Zhaang Ye, but Zhaang Ye would use the very same excuse of an "accidental injury" to shirk responsibility. This left Luo Changjie both shocked and enraged.
"It wasn’t an accident! You did it on purpose! You deliberately cut off my legs!" Luo Changjie roared madly, spitting out another mouthful of blood.
Seeing Luo Changjie in this state, Elder Luo could no longer contain his rage. He stared coldly at Zhaang Ye and said, "What a Zhaang Ye you are. So young, yet so ruthless, crippling others at the drop of a hat. It seems I must teach you a lesson!"
As he spoke, Elder Luo flicked his wrist. With a thunderous "BANG," a formless but incredibly sharp mass of Qi Force shot straight toward Zhaang Ye!
After a Martial Artist’s Cultivation reached the Seventh Layer, they would gain a new ability called "Binding Qi into Thunder." This so-called Binding Qi into Thunder meant that once True Qi was compressed to a certain point, it would explode like thunder upon leaving the body. The explosive power of this True Force was terrifying, capable of leveling even a small hill.
Elder Luo possessed the Cultivation of the Martial Arts Eighth Layer. His casual strike just now had employed this very ability, Binding Qi into Thunder. He intended to shatter Zhaang Ye’s bones and tear his tendons in a single blow!
No one could have imagined that the distinguished Elder Luo would actually attack a junior. Below the stage, Zhaang Tianlong roared in fury, his figure blurring as he shot toward the Martial Arts Arena, so fast the eye could barely follow. But no matter how fast he was, he wasn’t faster than Elder Luo. Before Zhaang Tianlong’s feet could even touch the stage, Elder Luo’s Binding Qi into Thunder had already been unleashed!
While others were caught by surprise, Zhaang Ye had already been prepared.
The moment Elder Luo began to berate him, Zhaang Ye had a bad feeling and quickly gripped his Heavy Saber. When the Elder flicked his wrist and unleashed the Qi Force, Zhaang Ye felt an immense sense of crisis. With no time to think, he instantly swung his Heavy Saber in a flash! freēwebnovel.com
"BOOM!"
Zhaang Ye felt as if his slash had struck a bolt of lightning, or perhaps a charging Fierce Beast. A terrifyingly tyrannical force erupted from the Blade Tip, surging toward him with boundless, chilling killing intent!
"ARGH!" Zhaang Ye roared as his body suddenly moved. The Force-Dissipating Technique he had comprehended in the Mammoth Cemetery activated instantly, and his body flew backward like a kite with a snapped string.
After sending Zhaang Ye flying with one strike, Elder Luo didn’t even have time to check on his condition before he heard a sharp yell. A black shadow descended upon him with a tyrannical aura, its dreadful momentum as unstoppable as a falling meteor.
Elder Luo grunted and thrust a hand upward like lightning.
"RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE!"
A series of thunderous booms suddenly erupted on the Martial Arts Arena. A violent Qi Force swept out, engulfing the entire stage. The terrifying power of the shockwave made even the referees on the stage turn pale as they all used their Body Techniques to retreat.
Amidst the sound of the violent Qi Force clashing, Zhaang Tianlong’s cold voice rang out: "Elder Luo, I never thought you could be so shameless! To think a respected Elder of a clan would attack a junior! You’re truly becoming more disgraceful with age!"
Elder Luo grunted, remaining silent.
When the Qi Force that had swept across the Martial Arts Arena dissipated, the crowd looked toward the stage. They saw that the hard, smooth surface of the arena had been blasted into rubble by the force of their clash. In the center of the stage, Zhaang Tianlong’s robes fluttered as he stared intently at Elder Luo. Meanwhile, Elder Luo was holding Luo Changjie with one hand, his other arm held across his chest. A trickle of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. In the exchange just now, Elder Luo had to protect Luo Changjie, so he could only use one hand to deal with Zhaang Tianlong’s attack, resulting in a minor injury.
Elder Luo’s gaze turned icy. He tossed Luo Changjie’s body to Luo Zheng, who was below the stage, then fixed his eyes on Zhaang Tianlong. Their gazes clashed.
Elder Luo said slowly, "Elder Zhaang, don’t think I’m afraid of you. Today, I will test you and see just how much your Cultivation has progressed in the last thirty-odd years."
Zhaang Tianlong sneered. "Elder Luo, thirty years ago, you lost to me. Today, I can still beat you to the ground. You’ll see that soon enough."
Zhaang Tianlong brought up this old score from over thirty years ago in front of all the juniors. No matter how good Elder Luo’s self-control was, his face turned ashen. Fury blazed in his eyes, and killing intent flashed as he said grimly, "Elder Zhaang, today I will see to it that you die!"
Zhaang Tianlong gave a cold smile and retorted tit for tat, "I’d like to see who kills who."
Their gazes clashed in mid-air, and the atmosphere seemed to freeze. A great battle looked inevitable.
"Cough, cough."
Just then, a light cough drew everyone’s attention.
Everyone looked over to see Zhaang Ye standing far off, over a hundred yards away, his face slightly pale. But aside from that, he appeared completely unharmed.
It turned out that after taking Elder Luo’s blow head-on, Zhaang Ye had used the Force-Dissipating Technique with all his might. His body had flown for more than a hundred yards before he finally landed.
’That Luo Family Elder’s attack was clearly just a casual strike. I doubt he even used ten percent of his True Qi. But even a casual blow like that left me in such a sorry state. If I didn’t have the Force-Dissipating Technique, I would have been severely injured by that single strike.’ Now that he was on the ground, the Qi and blood in Zhaang Ye’s body roiled, and his internal organs had nearly been injured. He was horrified.
"Heh heh." Seeing Zhaang Ye emerge completely unscathed from Elder Luo’s attack, Zhaang Tianlong’s expression was first one of slight surprise, which was then followed by laughter. The hostility in his eyes dissipated considerably.
"Hmm?" Elder Luo was greatly surprised to see that Zhaang Ye hadn’t even coughed up a mouthful of blood after taking his attack head-on. His strike just now had only used a little over ten percent of his power, but its might was by no means small. An ordinary Mid-level Fierce Beast would have been killed by it. He never expected Zhaang Ye to be completely fine after taking the blow.
If Elder Luo was surprised, the crowd of young experts below the Martial Arts Arena was even more astounded. Elder Luo’s attack had been powerful and sharp; even if they were to take such a hit, they would inevitably end up spitting blood and being injured. They never thought that after taking the blow, Zhaang Ye would just cough a few times and be fine, without even spitting up a drop of blood.
’This Zhaang Ye kid is even more formidable than I imagined,’ Lee Lie thought, his hand gripping his sharp saber, his eyes flashing.
Besides Lee Lie, two others among Cyan Mulberry City’s top ten young experts, Luo Yongsheng and Zhou Yuhe River, also had flickering glints in their eyes. Zhaang Ye’s repeatedly formidable performance had far exceeded their expectations. By now, they already considered him a powerful opponent second only to Zhaang Yijian... (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote with Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
