Chapter 357: Intense
Translator: Transn Editor: Lucas
Bam! Broken bricks smashed into the ground, raising a cloud of dust and smog like in an action film and raising a powerful scent of danger.
The desire to kill felt almost tangible. This man was a terrifying enemy!
Any minor mistake would cost him his life in front of this powerful enemy. It would be even worse if he had a.s.sistants.
Lou Cheng felt besieged on all sides.
His muscles tensed up and he felt gooseb.u.mps all over. A mixed feeling of fear, panic, and tension-filled his heart, culminating in an intense desire to survive.
“No… I don’t want to die here!”
His parents’ tears of sorrow, their love even in nagging and silence, his life despite difficulties and hards.h.i.+ps, and Yan Zheke’s broken heart, joy and ecstasy upon his love confession, and their sweet daily life… These memories flashed through his mind.
“No! I can’t let this happen! I can’t lose my happiness!”
Lou Cheng’s spirit lifted at the silent shout from his heart. A fire gathered in his eyes, igniting his feelings and holding his body up.
Bam!
The takeaway box of grilled eggplants flew out of the broken window, drawing a beautiful curve in the air.
Bang!
The ceiling was broken again and rocks and bricks came pouring down. As soon as Lou Cheng landed, his two hands formed a spell seal and his mind visualized glittering ancient characters. He then shouted with an overwhelming will to fight at the attacking figure in the air,
“Bang!”
The atmosphere instantly turned fierce, with smoke from guns rising as if hundreds of thousands of troops were gathering from all directions.
Lou Cheng believed it was the most imposing and most powerful launch of the “Army” Formula so far. When his mind and emotions perfectly corresponded to the secret discipline, a breakthrough occured.
“Army!”
The chilling sound echoed in Dong Shaoyang’s ears. It felt like a gun was at his temple and the trigger was being pulled.
He felt a sudden s.h.i.+ver and his body shook noticeably. Lou Cheng took two steps forward while gathering his qi and blood to throw a heavy blow to the side of his waist with his tremble force before his landing. No hesitation or mercy, he was firm, decisive, and cold-blooded
“I pity him, but who has mercy for me? There’s no room for mercy in front of a life or death matter.”
Dong Shaoyang’s eyes suddenly became clear and grim. As someone who was well experienced on the battlefield, he had tempered his heart into a rock through dangers and risks, so he effectively resisted the “Army” Formula.
“What a joke! Where were you when I led my troops into enemy territory, into extreme dangers, into the realm of death to slay the enemy general?”
“What a joke! Where were you when I fought for my life against ruthless killers and ended their lives?”
“How can a young fighter who has only seen blood once in the arena be able to perform the essence of the secret discipline?”
“I’ve gone through things you can never imagine. Using such a secret discipline on me is not a good idea!”
Dong Shaoyang’s killing desire was fully exposed. He curled his body in the air to focus his qi, blood, spirit, and force in one point.
Bam!
His body turned slightly, swinging his extended right arm at Lou Cheng using the strength from fall and his Dan stage explosion. Tendons and vessels were bulging on his dark fist.
Right before their fists met, Dong Shaoyang completed a strange visualization, compressing the surging force at his fist once again.
The contraction was followed by an explosion. Wild waves flooded out.
Bam!
A dull sound echoed in the room of tens of square meters. Lou Cheng felt pain in his fist and his arm s.h.i.+vered. He was forced to step back by that odd double explosion.
One step… Two steps… He couldn’t stop until his body hit the wall hard!
This was a six-floor residential building that was waiting to be torn down. The structure was not very open because of the walls of the flats and s.p.a.ce was limited, making it hard for them to utilize their moves. It was like they were fighting in a small living room or someone’s bedroom.
Bang!
Lou Cheng fell back, breaking the weight-bearing wall and falling into another flat.
Knowing that he was at a disadvantage and in extreme danger, he managed to remain calm and regained his balance thanks to his recently achieved Ice Mirror. His right hand moved rapidly, firing a brutal fireball to stop Dong shaoyang from getting closer.
He immediately threw a left hook, sending out a cold beam along the ground towards the enemy.
The upper, middle, and lower paths were all blocked.
Bam!
Outside, the box of grilled eggplant had just landed on the ground.
Slightly affected by the s.h.i.+ver zen, Dong shaoyang swayed a bit in the air. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he strode forward to catch up with Lou Cheng, giving him no time to catch his breath.
A red glow shone in his eyes as the fireball approached at high speed.
He twisted around and s.h.i.+fted his weight. He used his footwork to move along the ground smoothly, dodging the ice fire attack.
Bang!
The fire exploded and cold beams sprang out in all directions. He broke through a wall and barged into Lou Cheng’s room in an imposing manner.
Bam. The weight bearing wall completely collapsed, breaking into a mess of rubble.
Lou Cheng had already regained his balance. Instead of withdrawing, he advanced to approach the enemy.
Courage wins in a life or death battle!
Beams of light shone in his eyes while his mind seemed to be filled with drifting snowflakes. His hands were raised unconsciously and his wrists quivered to perform seven attacks at Dong shaoyang’s body simultaneously.
Cold beams shot out from his fists, creating a ma.s.sive fog with tiny ice crystals to block Dong Shaoyang’s vision. These ice crystals trembled constantly and gave off a buzzing noise which interfered with the enemy’s hearing ability.
The 13th move of the Ice Sect, Snow Cover!
With strength acc.u.mulating in his hands, Lou Cheng suddenly tightened his pelvis and legs and launched a silent low kick with his right foot, aiming at the enemy’s ankle.
Dong Shaoyang apparently had seen this coming. He lifted his arms and contracted his thighs, launching a powerful left kick in return.
In a split second, Lou Cheng bent forward to lower his center of gravity and put his right foot down on the ground gently.
After the brief, gentle touch, he dragged his body to the side of the enemy and created an excellent opportunity before Dong Shaoyang threw a left kick.
This was the use of the 19th move of the Ice Sect, Cold Swallow!
Lou Cheng combined this move with the Snow Cover and formed a combination of two strikes.
After the defeat dealt by Peng Leyun, his hardcore training and effort were finally paying off.
Master the techniques and follow the heart.
He visualized an ice-bound river and crackling thunderclouds and raised his right arm high into the air to perform a downward punch calmly.
The simplified physical invulnerability, Severe Warning!
With such a short distance between them, Dong Shaoyang faced a very dangerous situation as he had missed and lost his previous advantages.
No despair or panic could be seen. Instead, he calmly gathered all his strength and exploded the danqi in his spine.
Pang!
His spine curved in the shape of a bow, flinging his body back onto another weight-bearing wall.
His Severe Warning had missed the target, but Lou Cheng didn’t feel down. He s.h.i.+fted his weight with his intense desire to fight and extraordinary calmness and threw himself onto the enemy who was about to fall onto the ground.
His danqi fired out and he easily closed the distance between them with one dash.
Monk Wenguang lifted the sleeping girl and went somewhere else with the Divine Enchanter of Sin Flame. He muttered quietly, “Very gifted in battle… Senior, try to speak quietly. We don’t want to draw any attention.”
“Yeah.” The Divine Enchanter of Sin Flame gently nodded.
…
Dong shaoyang tried to recover after cras.h.i.+ng into the broken wall and regained balance in the air. Watching Lou Cheng approaching, all the color faded from his eyes except for a ghostly white.
He visualized accordingly, shook his chest, and opened his throat to perform a loud exhalation.
“Dong.”
The surroundings suddenly turned silent. Lou Cheng stood in an empty room in the middle of the night, listening to the knock at the door. Outside of his window was a graveyard with the biting wind blowing by.
He felt scared and nervous instantly, his body shaking out of control.
However, he was extremely determined at that moment. He quickly calmed his body and formed a seal to perform the Nine Words Formula.
“Forwarding!”
His voice transformed into a sharp arrow, carrying his negative feelings towards the enemy.
Dong shaoyang looked grim and resolute. He seized this opportunity to approach Lou Cheng from the front, concentrated his force, and prepared his body to perform another double explosion.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Lou Cheng put on a series of the Dan stage explosions in response, but the double strikes pushed him backward after each exchange. More and more walls were broken, causing the entire sixth floor to shake.
Clang!
Dong shaoyang didn’t stick to a reckless frontal offensive. Instead, he changed his rhythm and started using his agility, leaving Lou Cheng no room to perform his simplified physical invulnerability or to dodge.
Quintuple explosion, then s.e.xtuple and septuple…
Appearing to be completely at a disadvantage, Lou Cheng continued to retreat and break more walls behind him. His back hurt, but his footwork and concentration were still together. Thanks to the perception ability from the Ice Mirror, he managed to antic.i.p.ate the enemy’s next move and dodge again and again.
Without this martial arts style, he would have been defeated many times.
Bang.
Another weight-bearing wall collapsed and the entire room was s.h.i.+vering. Dong shaoyang moved to Lou Cheng’s left and pulled his arm once again.
However, this time he didn’t concentrate his force but visualized a flame aggregating, condensing, and exploding.
The simplified physical invulnerability, Internal Explosion!
This strike will explode within the target’s body.
His previous double strikes were not tricks. He had no intention to reduce Lou Cheng’s alertness or hide this move. When it came down to life or death, no trickery was necessary. A sudden inspiration at the right time would serve the best because too many things could change.
Dong Shaoyang’s arm muscles pulsed as he revealed his fists, hoping Lou Cheng would block subconsciously like earlier. Even if he could sense the difference, his rushed dodge would be a great opportunity for Dong Shaoyang to launch follow-up moves.
With his heart peaceful like an ice mirror reflecting everything in the surroundings, Lou Cheng noticed that Dong Shaoyang hadn’t gathered his qi and blood or force.
” d.a.m.n it!” His spirit suddenly felt threatened and his hair stood up. A few ideas flashed through his mind and he exerted strength from his feet to spring up without hesitation.
This move would be considered too risky. The wielder would be courting death in the ring unless they could fly or was close to the physical invulnerability stage. However, in this situation, Lou Cheng wouldn’t fall in a hurry or get stuck.
Ka!
He reached the ceiling and his ten fingers opened wide to grab the rock, keeping his body hanging in the air.
He concentrated his force and curled his back, using his fingers for support to push his body back like a gymnast. His feet pushed against the ceiling to throw himself into a counterattack.
Dong Shaoyang, who was on the floor, saw all this. He knew about his forced direction change and that the Internal Explosion punch would make Lou Cheng bounce to another direction. He was waiting for him to land before landing a fatal blow to him in the air. His target was Lou Cheng, while Lou Cheng’s target was the ceiling, which meant that he had nowhere to go.
With that idea flas.h.i.+ng in his mind, Dong Shaoyang tightened his lower stomach and prepared to jump in another direction in hopes of luring Lou Cheng to approaching him, thus giving Dong an opening to dodge and then launching an attack from behind with his elbow.
It was not a trick but a slow movement that would give him enough room yet cause his rival to make a mistake from his Absolute Reaction.
Bam!
Lou Cheng kicked his legs and pulled with all his strength, breaking the ceiling and pouring rocks down.
He bounced back towards the window away from Dong Shaoyang as if trying to escape.
“Want to run?” Dong Shaoyang’s mouth curved upward, his tightened stomach loosened up, and his knees straightened. He changed his direction suddenly and jumped at the enemy from behind.
“You exposed your flaw!”
By the window, Lou Cheng felt the approaching attack from behind and a fierce wind blowing behind him, yet he remained calm and collected. His hands grabbed the window sill to flip his body facing up and he performed a twist and kick.
Pang!
His tattered shoes flew out alongside flames and a crystal cold beam from his feet towards the das.h.i.+ng Dong Shaoyang.
Dong Shaoyang let out a dull hum and exerted strength from his feet with his muscles bursting. He attempted to produce an explosive sound in the air to generate a hurricane to block the strike of ice and fire so that his physical body could withstand this attack.
Bang!
Before he could complete his move, the fireball exploded, shooting out extreme heat that turned the cold beam into spreading fog which completely blocked his vision and blurred everything around him.
Bam!
The fog exploded and a fist with dark tendons and vessels appeared like a deadly weapon, punching at Dong Shaoyang’s head from a higher angle.
“To withdraw to allow for a better attack!”
Lou Cheng’s eyes were sharp, fists firm, flesh hardened, and his entire body was taller and stronger. Everything obstructing his future happiness would be destroyed.
With no time to launch another double strike, Dong Shaoyang had to concentrate his force and lifted his right arm in a hurry to block.
Bam!
Since the fight was at the life or death level, this was the first time Dong Shaoyang had to withdraw.
Lou Cheng advanced further to reduce the distance between them. He completed a double explosion before his opponent could prepare for another double strike.
Triple Explosion, quadruple explosion, and quintuple explosions in a row! He included the techniques of the 24 Blizzard Strikes and met Dong Shaoyang in close quarters. He kept punching, giving Dong Shaoyang no time to perform the mysterious double strike or any unknown secret spell.
Six, seven, and eight burst explosions! Lou Cheng was increasingly wild and fierce. The Dan stage explosion was thrown out as if it cost nothing at all. He realized that his rival was not as powerful as Peng Leyun and not yet at the Inhuman level. In other words, he had great physical strength, but he was no monster.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Lou Cheng was burning with his desire to battle. His sweat evaporated from his head, forming a puff of white fog.
bam!
Dong Shaoyang was finally hit by the ruthless Brutal Blizzard. He smashed into a weight-bearing wall and the six-floor building shook violently.
Rocks fell down in a shower. Lou Cheng stamped his foot and once again approached the rival who had just stabilized his body. In his mind was the scene of the great red sun and a bleak frozen river.
Bang!
The great sun hit the ice on the river. When the two vanished, Lou Cheng withdrew his arm and then threw his fist out.
A variation of the Severe Warning!
Dong Shaoyang showed no panic as if he had faced this many times. He had no time to jump and he knew he couldn’t withstand this. He chose to fall on the floor and roll like a lazy donkey.
“Army!”
Lou Cheng dispersed his force and formed a hand seal while shouting out an ancient spell.
Dong Shaoyang was shocked while rolling. He felt threatened from all directions.
The shock didn’t last long. His powerful mind quickly overcame the impact. However, Lou Cheng seized this opportunity to slide closer and threw a right kick.
Bam! Bam!
Dong Shaoyang managed to handle a few strikes until his defense was broken. He collapsed onto the wall.
Bam!
This crash left the weight-bearing wall and the entire building shaking. Blood came out of his mouth.
With calmness in his eyes, Lou Cheng was about to slide forward to finish Dong Shaoyang with one final kick to the neck.
But the shaking building had crossed the tipping point and hundreds of rock started to fall down, giving off a rumbling, terrifying roar.
Lou Cheng paused and decided to save his own life first. He broke through the side wall with his Force Concentration and moved quickly to the open area outside the building. Dong Shaoyang was resigned, and loss and disappointment filled his eyes.
Bang!
The second Lou Cheng landed on the ground, an ear-piercing sound came. Half of the six-floor building collapsed and soon the entire structure broke down, burying this strong killer.
…
” Should be dead this time, right? ” Lou Cheng dared not stay in the dust, afraid of other enemies. He quickly snuck into another residential complex and found a place to hide. He dialed Geezer s.h.i.+’s number.
It was his first time experiencing such a situation. He was seeking aid from his master without thinking.
“h.e.l.lo, Master. Someone wanted me dead.” Lou Cheng gushed at his master as soon as the call was connected.
“Who? Cough… who has the b.a.l.l.s?” Geezer s.h.i.+ was shocked and then furious.
“I don’t know… ” Lou Cheng still felt lost.
“It was too sudden… I had no idea what was going on… ”
” Who did I annoy?” he thought to himself, feeling wronged and angry.
“Are you safe now? Go to Xing if you are still in danger.” Geezer s.h.i.+ said, puzzled, as soon as he calmed down.
Lou Cheng briefed him quickly, describing the enemy’s moves and his own condition. He asked in the end, “Master, do you have any ideas?”
“…” Geezer s.h.i.+ was silent for a moment before he opened his mouth with his teeth ground tightly together. “I got it. Don’t worry. Go back and sleep. It won’t happen again. d.a.m.n it. I’ll tear the base apart. No apology for the Fire Sect’s simplified physical invulnerability… Cough… Anyway, it won’t happen again. Don’t ask questions for your own sake.”
“Fine…” Lou Cheng was completely lost. He chose to trust his master.
It was not a random attack…
After walking out of the safe, dark place, he looked back at the place where he just had an intense fight. The building had collapsed and dust and haze were still in the air.
Something was very odd here. The loud sound of the collapsing building didn’t wake up anyone in the nearby complexes.
” Very odd… ” Lou Cheng frowned and thought to himself,
Lou Cheng thought for a moment before giving Yan Zheke a call.
“Cheng, you’ve arrived?” Yan Zheke sounded full of joy.
“Not yet… I had some problem. Could you… Could you get me a pair of pants?” Lou Cheng didn’t know whether he should smile or cry when looking at his broken jeans.
It was not a match and Lou Cheng was not in martial arts suit. His tight pants had broken after the use of the Dan stage force.
“Ah?” Yan Zheke asked in bewilderment.
…
After dinner, Jiang Fei led his cla.s.smates towards the end of the alley, planning on a late night cruise. The girl in the Korean style jacket suddenly burst into a scream, pointing,
“Shouldn’t there be a building?”
The chubby, round-faced girl followed her hand and noticed a pile of ruins. She was so shocked that she was dazed.
“Right… I saw it earlier. It was right there before dinner. How did it collapse?”
How did it collapse?