Chapter Fifty-One: The Great Battle

Chapter Fifty-One: The Great Battle

After Chen Wansheng finished speaking, he unleashed a streak of radiant light directly at Chu Jie. Chu Jie dodged with a swift movement, and the light struck the spot behind him, exploding with a thunderous roar and leaving a gaping hole in the ground.

"Seeking death!" Chu Jie let out a long howl, brandishing his sword as he charged forward. His body blurred into a flurry of afterimages, closing the distance to Chen Wansheng in an instant. His blade swung toward Chen Wansheng’s neck.

Facing two masters of the Spirit Gathering Realm, he had to conserve his spiritual energy; if it ran dry, defeat would be inevitable. They were two, and he was only one.

Seeing Chen Wansheng attack, Li Feng also joined the assault against Chu Jie. Li Feng wielded a sword as well, but his was peculiar—it seemed to be a treasured artifact, shimmering with a faint blue light and incredibly sharp.

The blue sword blocked Chu Jie's blade, and after a screech of metal, Chu Jie’s sword shattered into fragments from the force. Discarding his broken sword, Chu Jie stepped forward once more.

Solar Blaze Fist! At his fist's tip, a miniature sun appeared suddenly. Now that he had advanced to the fifth tier of the Spirit Gathering Realm, the Solar Blaze Fist was far more formidable than before. The brilliant sun seemed to blind the eye, larger and fiercer than ever.

Li Feng slipped away in a flash, his sword dancing and trailing blue phantoms. His movements were ethereal, swift as a gust, and before Chu Jie could react, Li Feng was already behind him.

"Your speed is too slow." Li Feng’s sword slashed at Chu Jie's neck, this strike infused with eighty percent of his power as spiritual energy poured madly into the blue sword.

Meanwhile, Chen Wansheng seized the opportunity, tapping his fingers rapidly and sending five streaks of radiant light toward Chu Jie's face. He was using a finger technique.

Thunderbolt Finger—a method that unleashed lightning-fast bolts of thunder, exploding upon contact.

Both opponents were true masters of the Spirit Gathering Realm, and Chu Jie dared not be careless. There was no time to dodge; he raised his hand clad in the Universe Wheel gauntlet to block his neck, clashing with Li Feng’s blue sword.

Where the blue sword met the Universe Wheel gauntlet, a violent reaction erupted. Each tried to grind the other into dust. The gauntlet was incomparably hard, capable of shattering mystical crystals, while Li Feng’s artifact was slightly inferior.

Realizing things were unfavorable, Li Feng immediately withdrew his sword and found several cracks had appeared along its blade. A wave of frustration surged in his heart—this blue sword was his precious treasure, and seeing it damaged filled him with wrath.

Meanwhile, Chen Wansheng’s Thunderbolt Finger struck Chu Jie, exploding repeatedly upon his body. Chu Jie had no time to evade at such close range. Yet, after the barrage, Chu Jie emerged unscathed, merely coughing up a bit of blood from the shock, his body otherwise unharmed.

"Be careful! His body is incredibly resilient. My Thunderbolt Finger is a deadly technique, its power immense—and it only dealt him minor internal injuries!" Chen Wansheng warned Li Feng.

After weathering the first wave of attacks, Chu Jie quickly found a favorable position. The Scroll of Reincarnation within him spun rapidly, causing the spiritual energy in his core to whirl and then be swiftly absorbed by the scroll.

With the scroll’s assistance, Chu Jie’s Solar Blaze Fist grew even more formidable.

He punched, nullifying Chen Wansheng’s Thunderbolt Finger, then unleashed a flurry of blows, breaking more than ten consecutive Thunderbolt Finger attacks.

"Give me your life!" Li Feng flashed before Chu Jie, his footwork incomprehensible—speed like lightning.

The blue sword spewed sword energy at Chu Jie, each strike aimed at his vital points. Some Chu Jie dodged, others he obliterated with the Solar Blaze Fist.

A fifth-tier Spirit Gathering Realm warrior, Chu Jie fought two seventh-tier opponents, yet still held his own.

For a moment, the battle reached a stalemate.

Meanwhile, the Mad Dog Camp’s followers, seeing Chu Jie completely occupying the two masters, sprang into action.

"Mad Dog Camp! Form battle array!" Chen Long shouted, and instantly, the entire camp shifted formation, adopting an offensive battle array.

Jiang Ziwen led the charge, being the strongest attacker. The thirty-plus members of Mad Dog Camp surged towards the thirty-plus from the Luo family.

Wang Ye, leading his small group—only about ten men—did not join the melee. Instead, they picked up their crossbows, preparing to strike the Luo family from the shadows.

In truth, Luo family’s outer forces here were largely insignificant, mere Body Tempering Realm fighters of little renown.

But Mad Dog Camp was also Body Tempering Realm, their average cultivation higher than those of the Luo family. In terms of odds, Mad Dog Camp had a substantial advantage.

"Boss, while they’re fighting, let’s run!" The Luo family members were in chaos; their first thought was not to fight, but to flee. Their steward was dead, so there was no reason to persist.

"No! If the Luo family investigates and finds we ran, they’ll never forgive us. Fight!" Their leader—a ninth-tier Body Tempering Realm warrior—roared.

"Right, we have numbers; we may not lose!" Some echoed.

Yet others still wanted to escape, knowing that whichever side won between Chu Jie and the two masters, their own fate was unlikely to be good—most likely, they'd be silenced.

Several dashed toward the corridor exit, hoping to leave the place. But before they reached it, bolts from crossbows whistled through the air. One arrow struck a runner in the back, pinning him to the ground.

That one’s cultivation was too weak and was pierced clean through.

Seeing this, the others ran faster, but more arrows rained down, and within moments, two more were shot dead.

"I despise deserters most. I did you a favor by killing them; be grateful," Wang Ye sneered.

The Luo family’s men glared at Wang Ye, murderous intent thick in the air.

Just then, Jiang Ziwen led Mad Dog Camp into the Luo family ranks, and slaughter began.

Roars echoed ceaselessly as Jiang Ziwen's group massacred without restraint.

Their training had been rigorous, and their battle array was expertly executed. In attack and retreat, they moved like fish in water—thirty men acting as one, nearly flawless.

The Luo family, meanwhile, faltered. Fearful from the start, now they felt disaster looming closer. Some knelt, begging for mercy, but Mad Dog Camp had blood in their eyes and cut them down without hesitation.

This prompted more attempts at escape, and Wang Ye and his squad picked them off with arrows.

After several more deaths, the Luo family finally stopped running, but they were hopelessly outmatched by Mad Dog Camp.

"Mad Dog Camp! Unstoppable!" The camp’s rallying cry reverberated through the entire cavern.

"Heh, your Mad Dog Camp certainly has spirit," Li Feng said, his sword whirling as he continued to attack Chu Jie.

Now their side was at a critical moment. All three—Chu Jie and his two opponents—had expended vast amounts of spiritual energy. Chu Jie had suffered only minor internal injuries, but Chen Wansheng’s arm had been broken by Chu Jie, leaving him to use Thunderbolt Finger with one hand.

Li Feng’s sword tip had been shattered by the Universe Wheel gauntlet and was now a broken blade.

Thus, the two and Chu Jie fought with true fury. They would not rest until Chu Jie was destroyed.

"If you two cripple your cultivation, I’ll let you go!" Chu Jie urged once more, infuriating them further.

Chu Jie shattered Chen Wansheng’s Thunderbolt Finger light with a punch, stepped forward, and slipped past Li Feng’s attack. Suddenly, nine miniature suns appeared behind him.

"Quick, dodge!" Li Feng shouted, warning Chen Wansheng.

If either were crippled now, defeat would be inevitable; hope for victory would vanish.

Chen Wansheng, though shocked, remained calm. He took a pill from his pocket and swallowed it. Instantly, his broken arm regenerated, spiritual energy flooding his body, restoring him to peak condition.

Chu Jie did not know what kind of pill it was, but he coveted it. If only he had such a pill, he could unleash the Nine Suns Rending Claw more often in battle.

"Nine Suns Rending Claw!" Chu Jie launched his attack at Chen Wansheng.

Chen Wansheng’s Thunderbolt Finger was powerful and troublesome, so Chu Jie aimed to eliminate him first.

A golden dragon claw appeared above Chen Wansheng’s head. No matter how he dodged, the claw remained overhead.

The martial arts from the Scroll of Reincarnation could never be ordinary.

Finally, Chen Wansheng stopped dodging, let out a furious roar, and raised both hands. Ten Thunderbolt Fingers shot upward at the golden dragon claw, ten bolts of lightning interweaving spectacularly.

The dragon claw and Thunderbolt Fingers collided, and the nine miniature suns flew toward the fray.

Boom!

A series of explosions followed. Chen Wansheng was unharmed, save for blood trickling from his lips.

As the light faded, the golden dragon claw remained, ghost-like. Despite Chen Wansheng’s desperate evasions, it struck his shoulder.

With a muffled crack, his entire arm was torn off by the golden dragon claw.

Shock!

Li Feng and Chen Wansheng were dumbfounded. With such a monstrous Nine Suns Rending Claw, how could they continue?

"Ah! My arm!" Chen Wansheng's eyes were bloodshot; would he forever be a one-armed warrior?

Chu Jie was surprised too. He had thought the Nine Suns Rending Claw would counterbalance the ten Thunderbolt Fingers, but unexpectedly, it retained enough force to tear off Chen Wansheng’s arm. That was unforeseen.

Yet Chu Jie noticed the claw had torn off the arm that had previously been broken—perhaps the pill had not restored it perfectly, its strength lacking, and thus it was completely destroyed by Chu Jie.