Chapter 745: Strength Out Of Expectations
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The seclusion of Dragon King was known to almost everybody at the higher levels. If he had really reached the end of his life, nobody would hesitate to disregard his face. Nobody knew his true strength; it was only known that he was the most ancient King of humanity, already over a thousand years old. It was also said that in terms of cultivation base, even titled Monarchs were not his match.
Before such a fearsome Dragon King, people were naturally be apprehensive. Unfortunately, this was the second time he was going into a closed-door seclusion. The chances of him making out alive were not high.
“Two gentlemen, to avoid needless enmity, why don’t you leave the lake?” Ye Chen put the matter of killing Ice Spear King at the back of his head and spoke smilingly.
Hearing that, the Punishment King said coldly, “Kid, are you joking?”
“Don’t think that you have the qualifications to talk before us by killing Ice Spear King.” Armored King grimly looked at Ye Chen.
The death Ice Spear King couldn’t be accounted on Ye Chen’s strength surpassing the former; it was mainly because of Ice Spear King’s carelessness. Inside the lake, if one didn’t control their body, they would be drowned in fire. If the fight had happened above, Ice Spear King wouldn’t have died so tragically.
Ye Chen said, “Be careful, because I can bury you here. I’m only afraid that the Void Emperor and Prison King behind you won’t let me off. You leave and keep your life, while we get the fruit. It would be …best for everybody.”
“You really dare to spout nonsense!” The Punishment King’s eyes squinted while a killing intent appeared in his heart.
“Punishment King, your opponent is me.” Qin Liu strangely glanced at Ye Chen; he was not one to talk big. Could it be that his strength had really improved to a frightening level?
“Senior Qin Liu, let me take care of him. You go deal with the Armored King.”
By relying on the Sky Hammer, Qin Liu could suppress Punishment King for a brief period. However, once her Zhen Yuan ran out, she would be in trouble. Moreover, Ye Chen also wished to face the Punishment King, since the Armored King’s defense was too strong, and he might not be able to do much to the latter.
“You sure?” Qin Liu herself wasn’t too willing to battle Punishment King either, but was more worried for Ye Chen.
“Too late!”
Punishment King wasn’t idly waiting for the opponents to make their choice. His Zhen Yuan surged as his two palms formed a seal. In an instant, five chains whipped out from different directions, aiming Ye Chen’s and limbs.
Punishment Martial Skill—Punishment Strike!
Among the peak half step Kings on the True Spirit Continent, the one with greatest fame was undoubtedly the Punishment King. His Punishment Martial Skill was simply too bizarre. His every move and style seemed like it was carrying out an execution. The slightest bit of carelessness would have one’s head severed. Therefore, even peak half step Kings with strength equivalent to the Punishment King were not too willing to provoke him and left him some face.
Swish Swish!
The speed of chains moving down was too fast, not slowing down due to the lava at all. They were about to coil around Ye Chen’s body.
“Break!”
Floating in the lake, Ye Chen’s hand holding the Thunder Disaster Sword slashed upwards.
Clang Clang Clang!
The chains were fast, but Ye Chen’s sword was faster. The five chains were slashed apart almost in a blink. Nobody could tell how many times they had been slashed.
The chains were merely the prelude. Following it came a blade light that seemed like an executioner’s blade.
Unfortunately, how could it get past Ye Chen’s eyes?
With a clang sound, the blade light scattered from a casual slash.
As of now, the Punishment Strike, which had once almost wiped off Ye Chen and the rest earlier on, was thoroughly crushed. It couldn’t even touch Ye Chen.
“Ye Chen?”
Qin Liu was dumbstruck. Ye Chen’s opponent was the Punishment King, one of the peak half step Kings of the continent! The Punishment Martial Skill had killed countless warriors, especially this Punishment Strike. It was one of Punishment King’s prime moves, tested again and again through time. However, Ye Chen actually broke it in just a few swords.
“This kid…how is this possible!”
Qin Liu was dumbstruck, and Armored King was even more stunned. He had always considered Ye Chen a member of the younger generation. To shine amongst the ranks of half step Kings, he needed a few more years in his opinion. He simply didn’t treat him as a figure of the same level as them. Hence, at this moment, his mind was in chaos.
However, nothing could surpass the shock of Punishment King. Nobody knew his move better than himself. One shouldn’t look down on the chains because they were condensed from Zhen Yuan. They contained the metal profound with seventy percent completion. Moreover, the following blade light was the very incarnation of metal profound offense.
And Ye Chen had broken it with a few swords!
“Good! Take my next move—Executioner Blade!” Punishment King roared as his boundless Zhen Yuan pushed the lava away and condensed into hollow sphere with a diameter of a dozen meters. Within the hollow sphere, Punishment King’s hair fluttered as his two hands rapidly changed seals, forming eight seals within one-fifth of a blink.
Rumble!
The lava lake surged, and a huge platform rose. Above the platform, a huge amount of metal profound condensed into an enormous executioner blade. Ye Chen, Qin Liu, and Armored King were all above this platform, which was also condensed from Zhen Yuan. It was extremely hard, and even had an energy field that restricted body’s movements.
“This is one of Punishment King’s aces!” Armored King breathed heavily. The strangeness of Punishment King’s arts was that they were extremely hard to dodge. Punishment Strike bound people, then followed by blade strike. Executioner Blade, however, greatly reduced the opponent’s speed, and the huge blade hanging above was an executioner blade that could lock on its target. Once this blade descended, one’s head would split into two regardless of how reputed one was.
“Sure enough, it’s really strange!”
Ye Chen could feel himself being restricted by an energy field. Moreover, the blade above had already locked onto him. The hair at the back of his neck were standing erect. This was his body instinctively making him aware of the danger.
“Descend!” The Punishment King roared.
Swish!
The huge blade descended, the blade light it issued so fast that it seemed illusory.
Clang!
Ye Chen raised the Thunder Disaster Sword to face the blade.
“This is a bit more troublesome than Punishment Strike’s final blade light, but not that much.”
Based on the power being transmitted through Thunder Disaster Sword, Ye Chen judged the offensive power of Executioner’s Blade.
“Humph! Executioner’s blade will not stop until a head hits the ground.” Punishment King controlled Executioner Blade above with his right hand and sent another one down.
Clang Clang Clang!
Unceasing metal collision sounds rang out.
“Eh, no wonder the Punishment King is so confident! Turns out that this Executioner Blade is like a flying sword and can attack unceasingly. Moreover, each attack is stronger than before, beating one’s body and mind, which allows the blade to have a chance of slipping past and cleaving the head in two.” Ye Chen praised inwardly. Punishment King’s fame was not undeserved in the least. His strength was the real deal, without any exaggeration.
Unfortunately, his opponent was Ye Chen. No matter how quick the Executioner Blade was, could it be quicker than the Spiritual Sword? Ye Chen could strike several hundred times in an instant with that attack. The Executioner’s blade speed before him was like an apprentice flaunting before a real magician.
“Punishment King, this move of yours isn’t anything special. Now take one of mine.”
As soon as another blade descended, Ye Chen suddenly sent out a waning moon shaped sword energy toward the Punishment King. The latter was a peak half step King, so using the Thunder Devour or Golden Hurricane would have no use at all. Thus, he directly used his strongest sword move.
Although crescent moon sword energy didn’t look much different from crescent moon sword Qi, the two were poles apart. The sword energy concentrated together in an infinite cycle, and as soon as it was unleashed, the region ahead it immediately turned devoid of lava.
‘Danger!’ Punishment King didn’t expect Ye Chen would have to the time to counterattack while defending.
“Cut Off Everything, Prison Gate!”
Punishment King could only disregard controlling the Executioner Blade as he joined his hands and separated them again. With that, a prison gate appeared before his body while emitting a black Qi. The prison gate seemed as if it had been unattended for a long time. With a bang, the door closed, separating everything from Punishment King.
Clang!
The sword energy only cut off a few tiles of the gate.
“Formidable! A fusion profound martial skill…Ought to be a fusion of metal profound and dark profound.” Ye Chen’s eyes squinted. He could tell that the Punishment King could obviously not create such a powerful fusion art. It ought to be created by the patriarch of Prison Gate. The mysteries of this move ran too deep. It was not a simple fusion of two profounds; instead, it seemed to carry a peculiar power.
“The comprehension of your dark profound is too low. Let’s see how many strikes you can take.” Ye Chen again slashed, sending another crescent moon shaped sword energy. The prison gate swayed incessantly.
‘This kid is troublesome. Prison gate will soon fall.’ Punishment King’s face turned ashen. He thought that his opponent would be Armored King. Never did he expect to be suppressed by Ye Chen.
“Leave!”
Deciding resolutely, the moment prison gate was about to be destroyed, Punishment King aroused his Zhen Yuan and shot upwards.
Ye Chen didn’t chase after him. He had already offended many powers. If not necessary, he didn’t wish to fight to death with Punishment King. Just forcing him to leave was enough.
Once Punishment King left, only three people were left behind inside the lake—Qin Liu and Ye Chen on one side and Armored King on the other by himself.
“Fine…Seems like we both miscalculated.”
Armored King cast a parting gaze filled with reluctance toward the ripened Sky Fiend Fire Spirit Fruit and shot upwards as well. He alone couldn’t contend against both Ye Chen and Qin Liu. Therefore, regardless of how tempting the fruit was, he had to have his life to enjoy it. Without any option, he could only give up.
After all the opponents left, Qin Liu let out a sigh of relief, then gazed at Ye Chen as if looking at a monster, “No wonder Qing Xuan said that once you enter Life and Death realm, nobody under the heavens can do anything to you, and you’ll be ever stronger than she was at that time. I didn’t believe that before, but now I’m starting to.”
Ye Chen was only at late Sea of Soul realm! If he reached the half step King realm, then would any half step King be his opponent? She even doubted if he could break the universal law and defeat a King with the half step King cultivation. Of course, she was only thinking of such affairs.
Ye Chen smiled and looked at the fruit.
Qin Liu said, “You can have it. It’s more meaningful for you to have it than me.”
“Then I won’t be polite.” Ye Chen raised his soul eyes to the maximum, increasing his insight and attentiveness to their limits, then slowly approached the Sky Fiend Fire Spirit Tree while dodging the golden Qi currents one after another. Soon, he arrived before the tree and plucked down the fruit.
The moment the fruit was plucked, the reddish purple tree immediately decayed and turned into ashes, vanishing from existence.