If one disregarded all other factors, the one area where Jiang Chen was certain he held an advantage over his opponent was his spiritual sense. In terms of speed, the cloaked figure was no slower than he was. His martial potential and combat prowess were at least on par with Jiang Chen's in his normal state.
However, there was one dimension where Jiang Chen could decisively overpower the man — the level of his spiritual sense.
The battle had long since reached a white-hot stage. Through his spiritual perception, Jiang Chen could clearly see that under the relentless stalemate, his opponent's fighting spirit had already plummeted. The man was even looking for an opening to retreat.
"No — I've gone through all this trouble to lure him here. If I let him escape, the trail goes completely cold." At that thought, Jiang Chen steered the fight even more aggressively toward the area where the Stormwind Soul-Scattering Powder had been laid.
The black-cloaked figure's composure, once absolute, was slowly giving way to agitation. He had never imagined that after this long, with nearly every trump card he possessed played, he still couldn't bring down this terrifying opponent. Was this man truly just a trial-taker from Dongyan Island?
Doubt and resentment churned in the cloaked figure's heart.
Bam!
Fist collided with fist, and the resulting shockwave sent both fighters stumbling backward, their steps unsteady. The toll of the battle was clearly significant on both sides.
Whether it was Jiang Chen's Divine Demon Golden Body or the other's evil spirit possession combat method, both were extraordinarily draining.
"Come again." Jiang Chen was utterly ferocious, charging at his opponent once more.
The black-cloaked figure swung his massive axe to force Jiang Chen back.
"Wait!" The cloaked figure raised a hand, signaling for Jiang Chen to hold his attack.
Jiang Chen hovered in place without striking, a grim smile on his face as he regarded his opponent. He wanted to see what else this black-cloaked figure had up his sleeve.
He estimated the Stormwind Soul-Scattering Powder's effects were about to manifest.
"Sir, your abilities are impressive — I suspect you're not a mere trial-taker from Dongyan Island?" The cloaked figure's body hadn't fully recovered, but his tone was noticeably more restrained than the arrogance he'd shown before the fight.
Clearly, this battle had stripped away his pride and forced him to face reality.
Jiang Chen regarded him with a cold smile. "I have my trial token and my trial identification number. I am a trial-taker from Dongyan Island. But I can assure you — you are not!"
The cloaked figure spoke icily. "Since you don't actually know whether I am or not, and neither of us can best the other, why don't we call this a draw? What do you say?"
Jiang Chen shook his head. "This isn't a ring match. There are no draws."
The cloaked figure's voice turned heavy. "Oh? Then what do you intend? You want to see it through to a decisive outcome? Do you seriously think I'm afraid of you?"
"Aren't you?" Jiang Chen scoffed. "If you're not afraid, why did you stop? If you're not afraid, why are you already thinking of running? Don't you want the Xuanhuang Divine Root anymore?"
The cloaked figure nearly spat blood.
As a disciple of one of the Eight Great Families, he had always been proud. The trial-takers of Dongyan Island were nothing but ants in his eyes.
Yet here he was, locked in battle with one such ant for this long, and he hadn't gained even the slightest advantage. The thought of backing down had begun to creep into his mind.
After all, their trial time was limited. He couldn't afford to waste it all on a fight where victory was far from certain.
No matter how formidable this opponent was, he was ultimately just an elite trial-taker from Dongyan Island — worth a mere five points if killed.
But the reality of the battle was already clear. Those five points were difficult to obtain, perhaps impossible. Continuing to expend time and energy here was becoming foolish.
There were sixty elite trial-takers in total. Why waste so much effort on this one freak? Surely not every elite trial-taker was this terrifying.
The competition between the Eight Great Families this time might appear on the surface to be a straightforward contest, but beneath it lay a web of intrigue and scheming between the great clans.
No one wanted to lose, and none could afford to.
The Xuanhuang Divine Root was precious, but compared to the interests of the family, a single herb wasn't worth losing sleep over.
The black-cloaked figure stared daggers at Jiang Chen, eyes blazing with fury as though he could burn his opponent alive with his gaze alone.
"You lucked out this time. I have other matters to attend to."
In the end, the cloaked figure swallowed his pride, tossed out a parting platitude, and prepared to leverage his absolute speed advantage to flee.
Jiang Chen smiled casually. "You think you can still leave?"
The cloaked figure's gaze darkened. "What? Do you genuinely believe you have the ability to keep me here? Don't be naive. Even if we fought for another half month, we'd be no closer to a victor."
"That's hard to say."
Jiang Chen's tone carried the faintest hint of a smirk. By his calculations, the Stormwind Soul-Scattering Powder's effects were just about to take hold.
"Hmph, enjoy your sweet little daydream." The cloaked figure was a remarkably disciplined individual — despite the rage roiling inside him, he kept it leashed, reading the situation, and choosing to avoid the brunt of Jiang Chen's power.
But then, his expression shifted abruptly.
He immediately circulated his energy to probe his dantian. That brief test sent his mood plummeting to rock bottom. During this short lull, his dantian had been sealed by some unknown force!
A bone-deep chill shot through the entire body of the black-cloaked figure. His peripheral vision caught Jiang Chen, and he saw a face written over with mocking amusement.
A terrible premonition drenched the cloaked figure in cold sweat.
"Resign yourself. No matter who you are, I told you — I only gave you two choices. Either you remove that cloak yourself, or I do it for you."