Chapter 253: Are You Convinced Now?
This was Zhou Donghuang going easy on the man.
Otherwise, he could have landed that blow on Han Yuzheng’s head instead and ended his life!
Even without killing the man, he could beat him completely with just a blow to his shoulder.
Whoos.h.!.+
Han Yuzheng was completely terrified after the blow Zhou Donghuang landed on his shoulder. He hurried to convert what inner Yuan he had left, scurrying back to avoid the other man.
Zhou Donghuang made no move to chase him. He stood rooted to the spot, looking at the other man with a calm face. “There. You satisfied now?”
Han Yuzheng was back to his senses now. Just the mere thought of what had transpired earlier was enough to scare him so much he broke into a cold sweat.
He knew full well that the other party had gone easy on him.
Otherwise, he would have been crippled even if he made it out alive!
He sucked in a cold breath discreetly, then turned a baleful glare onto Zhou Donghuang. He spoke with a serious look on his face, “One day, I will defeat you!”
Han Yuzheng thought about it; he was only 24 this year.
The young man standing in front of him seemed to be even younger than him. Although, there was a possibility that he was older than Han Yuzheng, but he just had a baby face.
“Is that so?”
In the face of Han Yuzheng’s vengeful declaration, Zhou Donghuang offered nothing but a mild simple. “Well, then, I’ll be waiting!”
At this time, the audience finally recovered from their shocked stupor.
“He won?”
“Did Zhou Donghuang really take out the Thunder Knife Sect disciple Han Yuzheng with a single blow?”
“My G.o.d! This sort of power is too much, isn’t it?”
“That technique he used earlier was Dharmic possession, no? From what I know, the current Tielao planet barely has any adepts who are capable of mastering Dharmic possession, even amongst the adepts at the ultimate Dharma stage.”
“And to think we’re harboring such a beast in the Lightning Sword Sect!”
…
The people of the Lightning Sword Sect had initially thought that today’s showdown would end in their loss against the Thunder Knife Sect, since the latter was much more prepared than they had been. After all, the only core disciple they had that was at the Dharma stage had already lost.
They never expected for Autumn Valley disciple, Zhou Donghuang, to make his entrance at the eleventh hour. They also did not expect for him to take down the strongest mid Dharma adept in the Thunder Knife Sect, Han Yuzheng, with a single blow!
Anyone with good sense could tell from that scene earlier on that that one blow Zhou Donghuang dealt was already him going easy on his opponent. Otherwise, Han Yuzheng would be crippled if not dead!
“Sect Leader Luo, I didn’t think you’d know that we had a mid Dharma adept stronger than Hu Jian… How did you find out about this?”
He Jin was not surprised when he saw Zhou Donghuang take Han Yuzheng down with a single blow. Now, he was even teasing the Thunder Knife Sect leader, Luo Yuanqiu.
Luo Yuanqiu was smiling, but it did not reach his eyes. It was obvious that he was being put on the spot.
After some hesitation, he stared firmly at He Jin before directing his gaze at the Lightning Sword Sect leader Yu Yucheng. “Sect Leader Yu, the Thunder Knife Sect has lost in this showdown.
“To think the Lightning Sword Sect had been harboring such a talent!
“I take my leave!” Luo Yuanqiu said, not even bothering with niceties. He announced that he was taking his leave and left with the Thunder Knife Sect members.
As the people of the Lightning Sword Sect watched Luo Yuanqiu and the bunch take their leave, a sense of fulfillment filled them.
They watched as the silhouettes of Luo Yuanqiu and the bunch disappeared from their sight. The atmosphere seemed to be charged with excitement yet again. “Haha… That Thunder Knife Sect leader probably never imagined, not even in his wildest dreams, that this would be the outcome of a showdown initiated by the Thunder Knife Sect.”
“I thought we’d lost just now, what with Hu Jian losing and all.”
“Me too.”
“I really didn’t expect for the Autumn Valley to have been hiding a trump card like Zhou Donghuang… Zhou Donghuang’s made his appearance, then demonstrated Dharma power more perfect than Han Yuzheng’s was. He even went as far as demonstrating Dharmic possession and taking Han Yuzheng out with a single blow!”
“Even the Lightning Sword Sect’s only mid Dharma core disciple, Hu Jian, could not take more than three blows from Han Yuzheng. Han Yuzheng, on the other hand, was wiped out with just one blow from Zhou Donghuang.”
“From today on, the number one mid Dharma adept in the Lightning Sword Sect is no longer Hu Jian—it’s Zhou Donghuang!”
…
Let’s say the tale of Zhou Donghuang heading towards the Summer Valley a few months prior and his defeating of the Summer Valley disciple, Lian Can, had been but a small tale.
The Zhou Donghuang of today, though, had earned a bona fide reputation after helping the Lightning Sword Sect score a victory against the Thunder Knife Sect in that showdown. His name had spread through the whole of the Lightning Sword Sect!
Today, he had exacted revenge on behalf of the Lightning Sword Sect.
This incident was reason enough for a majority of the sect to owe Zhou Donghuang a debt of grat.i.tude.
“Haha…”
After the people from the Thunder Knife Sect took their leave, Yu Yucheng, as the Sect Leader, could not help but burst into raucous laughter. “Delightful, absolutely delightful!
“That Luo Yuanqiu, he put in all that effort to come all the way here to the Lightning Sword Sect just so he could flaunt that genius of a disciple Han Yuzheng, no? And what became of that? One of our inner disciples of the same age struck him down with a single blow!
“Poor guy, he’s probably drowning in his own regrets.”
Yu Yucheng looked at He Jin as he laughed. “He Jin, your disciple, Zhou Donghuang, should take all the credit for what happened today! As of today, he’ll be a core disciple of the Lightning Sword Sect.”
Lian Can, who had been standing behind Summer Valley Head Lian Kun, was green with envy as he heard Yu Yucheng’s words. His bitterness was written clearly all over his face.
He had initially thought that breaking through to the Dharma stage with his own efforts alone and quickly raising his Dharma power would have been enough to redeem himself in front of Zhou Donghuang.
He did not expect for Zhou Donghuang to have also broken through to the Dharma stage, but it was not just that. Zhou Donghuang had displayed capabilities so advanced that late Dharma adepts, let alone mid Dharma adepts, would be no match for him.
That Thunder Knife Sect disciple, Han Yuzheng, had abilities that were universally recognized. Not even an adept at the late Dharma stage would claim to be able to strike him down with a single blow.
But Zhou Donghuang had managed that feat.
In that instant, Lian Can had felt that the distance between him and Zhou Donghuang was much like a chasm. Just the sheer thought of this gap was enough to make him despair.
“Junior Brother He, you people from the Autumn Valley bury your secrets well.”
Spring Valley Head Liu Fengao looked at He Jin, praise and admiration written all over his visage. “To think that we had a mid Dharma adept who had such abilities in the Lightning Sword Sect… On top of all of that, you mentioned earlier that he was only 24 years old his year?”
The surrounding crowd, save for He Mengxi, turned to look at He Jin the moment after Liu Fengao spoke.
“Mm.” He Jin nodded with a smile.
The crowd could not help but suck in a cold breath. Summer Valley Head Lian Kun exclaimed, “Junior Brother He, you people of the Autumn Valley truly found a gem in him.”
“Senior Brother He, do you mind telling me where you found this Zhou Donghuang? I want to try my luck, too!”
Winter Valley Head Leng Qianqiu looked austere. It did not seem like he was joking.
They were treating He Jin as if he had hung the stars in the sky and he basked in it, a radiant smile plastered on his face. This sort of pride and elation was a foreign feeling to have when he was in front of this crowd.
At the same time, Zhou Donghuang took to the skies again under the watchful gaze of the crowd, flying to He Mengxi’s side. “Third Senior Sister, now that things here are settled… Shall we return?”
“Little Junior Brother, the Sect Leader said earlier that you’d be a core disciple of the sect from this day forth. You can head to the Lightning Peak to train now,” He Mengxi said with a smile.
Although she knew that Zhou Donghuang had little care for being a core disciple or being able to train at the Lightning Peak, she was still excited for him.
After all, this little junior brother of hers was no ordinary talent. His true abilities were something only she, Da Zhuang, and her father were privy to.
This time, he had gained the recognition of the Sect Leader, which was as good as gaining the recognition of the entire sect.
“Zhou Donghuang!”
At this moment, Yu Yucheng looked towards Zhou Donghuang with a warm smile. “It’s all thanks to you that the Lightning Sword Sect’s reputation is still intact today.
“With this G.o.d-given talent of yours, becoming a core disciple of the Lighting Sword Sect is no tall order for you, so making you a core disciple should not be a reward for you.
“Tell me… What would you like as a reward?” Yu Yucheng asked.
Zhou Donghuang’s eyes gleamed as he took in Yu Yucheng’s words. As compared to Autumn Valley Head He Jin, there was a higher chance that Yu Yucheng, as the Lightning Sword Sect leader, would have collected the rare herbs he wanted.
How could he pa.s.s up such a good opportunity when it was presented to him now?
At this point, Zhou Donghuang responded with no hesitation, “Sect Leader, I would like some rare herbs…”
To Zhou Donghuang, the most pressing issue at this moment was elevating his level of training.
His abilities as of now could not even rank within the top band in the Lightning Sword Sect, let alone the Tielao planet, and even less so in the entirety of the Hengliu galaxy.
It was true that his current abilities placed him well and above every adept in the entire Hengliu galaxy who was below the Dharma stage,
However, if he were to cross path with an adept above the Dharma stage, it would be difficult for him to hold his own against them.
…
The bunch of Thunder Knife Sect members followed their sect leader, Luo Yuanqiu, and took their leave from the base of the Lightning Sword Sect. The mood was gloomy and suffocating.
“Yuzheng.”
Ultimately, it was still their sect leader who had made the first move to break the oppressive mood. “This failure of today, is temporary. They determine nothing.”
“I understand, Master.”
Han Yuzheng nodded, his eyes gleaming. “Just as I said to Zhou Donghuang earlier, there will come a day where I strike him down!
“I am only 24 years old this year. When he was 24, he probably was not as strong as I am now,” Han Yuzheng said.
Luo Yuanqiu was stunned when he heard Han Yuzheng’s words. He replied with a bitter smile, “I forgot to mention earlier, Yuzheng… That Zhou Donghuang, he’s as old as you are. He’s only 24 years old this year.”
Han Yuzheng’s face fell upon hearing Luo Yuanqiu’s words. The other members of the Thunder Knife Sect had looks of horror and astonishment on their faces.
There was someone a step up from Han Yuzheng here on the Tielao planet?
“Be that as it may, this does not mean you will not be better than him in the future… I am telling you all of this in hopes that it will pressure you. The greater the pressure, the greater the drive,” Luo Yuanqiu said to Han Yuzheng as he patted the latter’s shoulder.
“Master’s got faith in you.”
Some said that the glimmer that had vanished from Han Yuzheng’s eyes not long ago had returned even stronger than before. There was now a magnificent gleam in his eyes that greatly complemented his dark eyes, looking every bit like stars twinkling in the night sky.