©WebNovelPub
Nine Star Hegemon Body Art (WN)-Chapter 44: Deathbed Struggle
Huang Chang’s attack was something Long Chen was already expecting. Although he didn’t understand beast cultivation, he could assume that using a Magical Beast’s strength to increase one’s own combat strength would definitely cause a person to become more berserk and have less control.
Although that berserk strength was frightening, such a person could only fight instinctively. Long Chen believed that a wild bull was definitely a bit easier to deal with than a cunning fox.
This time, Long Chen was prepared and he also moved just as soon as Huang Chang. A leg kicked out right towards Huang Chang’s stomach.
Bang!
Long Chen’s kick landed right on his stomach, forcing him back. The berserk Huang Chang was just like a wild beast and hadn’t even been slightly prepared for Long Chen’s attack.
But seeing the berserk Huang Chang’s speed, Long Chen coldly sweated. When Long Chen’s kick had landed on Huang Chang’s stomach, Huang Chang’s claw had almost reached Long Chen’s throat.
Were it not for Long Chen being prepared and making his move first, he definitely would not have been able to react fast enough. This was the terror of beast cultivation. After the beast transformation, one’s strength, speed, and defense would sharply rise as if becoming a new person.
“ROAR!!”
Being forced back by Long Chen, Huang Chang emitted a bestial roar. His eyes became completely red, as his claws once more reached towards Long Chen.
“Breaking Wind Fist!”
Long Chen shouted loudly and punched out.
BOOM! Long Chen’s fist smashed into both of his claws, and the two were shaken back several meters.
“What strength...” Long Chen grumbled inside, not expecting Huang Chang to have such a terrifying trump card. This bastard really had hidden himself deeply.
The Breaking Wind Fist Long Chen had used before this had sent Huang Chang flying without the slightest resistance. But Huang Chang who had undergone the beast transformation could no longer even be harmed by Long Chen’s fist.
Huang Chang was just like a furious Magical Beast. As soon as he was forced back, he once more charged forward, wildly brandishing his claws towards Long Chen.
Long Chen grit his teeth and the FengFu Star on the bottom of his foot circulated once more. The seven cyclones within his Dantian quickly whirled, his entire body’s energy surging out. Two fists punched out, directly confronting Huang Chang.
Explosive ringing shook the heavens and gale winds blew everywhere. Terrifying energy waves jolted back all the people watching.
“Heavens, what kind of battle is this?”
“It’s too terrifying!”
Those people had never seen such a berserk battle. Their faces were white and their legs were trembling from fear.
Even those experienced veterans were filled with shock. None of them had ever expected Huang Chang to be a beast cultivator and have such a terrifying combat ability.
And what was even more shocking was Long Chen, who once had a reputation of being the capital’s number one trash noble heir. Now, he was actually able to battle a monster like Huang Chang.
Claw afterimages filled the sky and the wind howled, shaking the heavens. The most shocked people were definitely Xia Changfeng and Wei Cang.
They could have never imagined that a small Qi Condensation newbie like Long Chen could explode with enough power to contend with Huang Chang who had undergone beast transformation.
After all, Huang Chang was a martial weapon who had been secretly groomed. Out of a thousand participants, he had been one out of a dozen who had survived a hellish training.
And Huang Chang was the most powerful amongst those remaining people. That was why Xia Changfeng viewed him so importantly and had spent great effort to groom him.
It could be said that Huang Chang was a slaughter machine who had been trained with an immeasurable amount of resources. If it weren’t for Long Chen infuriating Xia Changfeng and Wei Cang, they would definitely not have revealed such a secret martial weapon.
But while they were shocked by Long Chen’s strength, they now saw that although Long Chen was capable of defending, he was already starting to fall into a disadvantageous position under Huang Chang’s violent berserk attacks.
Currently, Long Chen’s cultivation base was only at the seventh Heavenstage of Qi Condensation, and he had only established a single star. The amount of spiritual qi that he could control was a far cry from Huang Chang.
He could only survive thanks to his powerful physical body. Any other person would have long since been destroyed.
Long Chen’s arm was once more slashed by Huang Chang’s claw. Although he did his best to dodge, his clothing was torn and blood dripped down from his wounds.
At this time, Long Chen’s body was covered by many bloody scars, and the blood stained most of his clothing. Chu Yao’s heart clenched tightly at the sight.
“Continuing like this won’t do. The current Huang Chang is no different than a Magical Beast in a humanoid form. His strength is endless, and the sharpness and hardness of his claws would not lose out to the steel.” Long Chen was astonished. Without the soul of a Pill God and the superficial battle experience that had come with it, he would have already been unable to endure.
“Grandmaster Yun Qi, please save Long Chen.” Chu Yao couldn’t help begging grandmaster Yun Qi.
“Wait a bit.” Grandmaster Yun Qi only continued to look at Long Chen. He had yet to make a move. That was because he was very conflicted inside. Long Chen’s accomplishments in alchemy were something he admired greatly.
He had once advised Long Chen to focus his energy on the pill path. With his talent, he would definitely walk far on that path.
But the battle strength Long Chen revealed today was completely astonishing. As a Pill Master, he was unable to deny that if Long Chen focused all his attention on the martial path, he might go even further than on the pill path.
That was why he had yet to make a move. He wanted to see what Long Chen’s limit was, and also to have this life and death trial temper him.
Through such tempering, it didn’t matter whether Long Chen cultivated the martial path or the pill path; either would have inestimable benefits for him.
Blood splattered again as Long Chen’s chest was slashed by a claw. A few more bloody scars appeared upon him.
“Long Chen, I won’t let you die easily. I’ve already said that I’ll tear you apart piece by piece!” After this prolonged exchange, the originally berserk Huang Chang had calmed down by quite a bit and now coldly laughed.
Long Chen had no reply for him. He found that the current Huang Chang had openings all over, but his defensive ability was too shocking.
He had landed a kick on one of his vital points in their exchanges just now, but shockingly, Huang Chang had merely stumbled slightly before completely recovering without the slightest hesitation.
After battling for the time it took for an incense stick to burn, Long Chen had already come to an understanding about Huang Chang’s current state. His physical strength and endurance could no longer be judged by human standards. He would have no chance of victory if he continued on like this.
He had to try something!
Long Chen suddenly shouted and sent a fist right at Huang Chang’s claw. But it was he who was blown back ten meters from the exchange.
Huang Chang didn’t immediately chase after him, and instead indifferently looked at Long Chen. He was just like a tiger examining his prey.
The crowd was completely silent. The intense pressure coming from that battle was hard to bear. But now they had a slight breather.
Those berserk exchanges had caused their hearts to leap into their throats. That was especially the case for those maidens who were tightly clutching their hands to their chests. They were afraid that if Long Chen revealed the slightest opening, his blood would splatter throughout.
“Do you have to continue this deathbed struggle?” Huang Chang waved his hands, his long claws covered with Long Chen’s blood.
Currently, Long Chen’s clothes were completely torn and dozens of bloody scars slowly continued to flow, making his appearance extremely frightening.
“Deathbed struggle? It hasn’t reached such a point.” Long Chen shook his head. Although he was covered in wounds, they were all superficial. They appeared frightening, but they didn’t affect him too much.
Long Chen had known that the battle today would be very difficult. It was the most difficult battle ever since he was born, but it would definitely not be the last.
As long as he defied fate, the battles he would face in the future would only become fiercer. He needed that feeling of being close to death to increase his will to live.
To become a true martial cultivator, you had to experience the threat of walking the line between life and death. Only by surviving the terror of death could you walk further along your path. This was something all experts had to experience.
The battle just now had been fought over the brink of life and death for him. It was true that he had fused with a Pill God’s soul and had merged with some of his battle experience.
But just one mistake would have turned him into a corpse. He was only able to fight like this because of his firm resolve.
He also had his own difficulties. If he was unable to handle even such pressure, how would he face his future enemies? How could he save himself from his own plight? How could he repay the enmity of stealing his blood, plundering his bone, and destroying his root?
After experiencing the feeling of being on the edge of death just now, his intuition had become increasingly sharper and his heart clearer. Now that he had achieved this goal, it was time for the true death battle.
“But if you say it was a deathbed struggle, then sure. Take a look at what my ‘deathbed struggle’ is.”
Long Chen clasped his hands, and a flame soared out from them. Heat waves spread everywhere, and in the end, his entire body was covered in a pale yellow flame.
“What?!”
Wei Cang was so shocked that he stood up, his face filled with disbelief. He pointed at Long Chen and said in disbelief, “Pill Flame armor! How is that possible?!”
Other than Wei Cang, the other most shocked person would have to be grandmaster Yun Qi. So, Long Chen could actually spread his Pill Flame all over his body.
Using Pill Flame to protect the body was something only Pill Masters like Yun Qi and Wei Cang were capable of doing.
This not only required a powerful Pill Flame and a forceful spiritual qi, but it also required an extremely powerful Spiritual Strength as support.
Only the most powerful of Pill Masters could use Pill Flame to protect the body. It was commonly known for them that Pill Masters had to reach the Tendon Transformation realm before having enough spiritual energy and Spiritual Strength to just barely use Pill Flame to protect the body.
Although according to rank, Long Chen could already be counted as a Pill Adept, his cultivation base was only at the seventh Heavenstage of Qi Condensation.
Under normal situations, pill cultivation and martial cultivation weren’t necessarily equal, but they were definitely related.
To become a Pill Apprentice required one to at least reach Qi Condensation. That was because only then could one agglomerate a Pill Flame.
But just agglomerating Pill Flame didn’t make you a Pill Apprentice. Only by refining a medicinal pill that met the standards could you obtain the qualifications to become a Pill Apprentice.
And the majority of Pill Apprentices had already reached the Blood Condensation realm; otherwise, they wouldn’t have enough spiritual qi to refine medicinal pills.
Only extremely talented pill cultivators could become Pill Apprentices in the Qi Condensation realm. People like Long Chen and Xia Baichi, who could refine the second tier medicinal pills at the Qi Condensation realm and thus, have the qualification to be Pill Adepts, could already be considered geniuses.
But no matter how much of a genius you were, you definitely couldn’t condense a Pill Flame to protect your body at just the Qi Condensation realm. This undermined everything the two of them knew.
Long Chen was now completely wrapped in a yellow flame. His hair drifted in the air, and his eyes were like stars, just as if a domineering flame god had descended upon the earth.
“I’m coming.”