Jiang Chen's battle with the mysterious large man instantly drew the attention of many onlookers. The sheer intensity of the fight had clearly exceeded everyone's expectations.
Originally, everyone had figured Pill King Zhen's tenth consecutive victory was a foregone conclusion — there couldn't possibly be any suspense left. Who would have thought that a mysterious large man would suddenly appear out of nowhere to challenge him?
Judging by the man's imposing aura and the depth of his cultivation, he was simply unfathomable.
As the saying went, experts could appreciate the finer points while the uninitiated merely enjoyed the spectacle.
This mysterious large man had projected a completely different presence from the moment he stepped onto the stage compared to all the previous challengers. The combat prowess he now displayed had every spectator gasping in cold air.
When Cloud-brightening Emperor witnessed such a brutal battle, he too was momentarily stunned.
"Your Majesty, where did this genius martial artist come from?"
Peacock Emperor's deep gaze was fixed on the battlefield, his expression one of contemplation.
"This martial artist carries himself with the bearing of a disciple from a major sect. Though he's been trying to hide it and deliberately presents himself as crude and rough, in truth, there is calculation in every move beneath that coarse exterior. In my estimation, he came here specifically for Pill King Zhen."
"Oh?" Cloud-brightening Emperor was somewhat surprised. "Specifically for Pill King Zhen? Does that mean...?"
Peacock Emperor's tone grew solemn. "Pill King Zhen has had things far too easy up until now. This opponent is a perfect test. If he can overcome this trial, his prospects of breaking into the Young Master Rankings in the future will be greatly enhanced."
"This trial is that difficult?"
"Extremely difficult. This opponent is far more troublesome than you might imagine." Peacock Emperor let out a soft sigh.
Although Cloud-brightening Emperor had also recognized that this opponent would not be easy to deal with, he hadn't expected Peacock Emperor to describe the situation in such grave terms.
For a moment, Cloud-brightening Emperor couldn't help but pay closer attention to the large man.
On the擂台, the arena platform.
The large man threw back his head and let out a thunderous roar, his voice like a tsunami — majestic and overwhelming. In that instant, the entire arena felt as though a storm was about to break, suffused with an oppressive weight.
Countless leaden clouds pressed down darkly over the arena.
The man's wild, tangled hair stood up like individual steel needles.
"Kid, come again!" The large man bellowed, his powerful legs propelling him forward as he charged straight at Jiang Chen.
In the next instant, the man's body began spinning like a rapidly rotating top. His two mighty arms swung in wide arcs, sweeping laterally across the space.
"Bring it on!"
Jiang Chen licked his lips, a flash of wild defiance crossing his smile.
It had been far too long since he'd been able to fight this freely and without restraint. His Divine Demon Golden Body activated to perfection, his fists rained down like a storm of iron, hammering relentlessly toward his opponent.
The two figures flashed past each other in rapid exchange, growing faster and faster, more frenzied with every passing second.
In the end, all that could be seen on the arena were two swirling currents of qi spinning at tremendous speed, making it impossible to distinguish which was Pill King Zhen and which was the mysterious large man.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The savage sound of impact scorched the surrounding air. The void itself seemed to burn, emitting a piercing, grating noise — a testament to the brutality of the battle.
"Who would have thought that the normally refined and cultured Pill King Zhen possessed such formidable close-combat abilities — that he could fight an opponent who clearly specialized in body cultivation techniques to a virtual standstill. Impressive!"
"Heh heh, that just shows your ignorance. Remember how Pill King Zhen served as a judge at the last Pill Tower competition and then generously taught everyone how to refine a body-tempering pill? What does that tell you?"
"What?"
"Isn't it obvious? It means Pill King Zhen himself is an expert in body cultivation techniques. Otherwise, why would he have been so interested in that body-tempering pill?"
The last time Jiang Chen had generously shared the formula for the Hundred-Turn Marrow-Refining Pill, it had caused quite a stir. So now, everyone quickly arrived at numerous speculations.
Within a ten-zhang radius around the arena, all the participating martial artists had already retreated beyond that boundary. Clearly, the devastating scope of the battle was too great — even standing beneath the platform, those with slightly weaker cultivation would find it hard to bear.
"Pill King Zhen, I have to say, your close-combat ability is far more formidable than I anticipated. I'll admit, you're an interesting opponent. But if your cultivation is limited to this level, then from here on out, you'd best be prepared to lose your life at any moment!"
The large man wielded his arms — forged of copper and cast of iron — to their absolute limit. His aura surged like a dragon, sometimes like ten thousand galloping horses, sometimes like mountains crumbling and the earth splitting apart. Accompanying this was the man's lion-like roar, and had Jiang Chen's spiritual consciousness not been sufficiently powerful, his martial will not sufficiently resolute, he would likely have suffered a collapse of consciousness under such overwhelming pressure — defeated without even fighting.
For an ordinary martial artist, under such a crushing aura combined with that thunderous roar, the slightest lapse in focus would mean death on the spot.
But such tactics left Jiang Chen entirely unmoved.
Forget this large man — Jiang Chen had faced opponents even more savage and situations even more dire than this. He was hardly going to be cowed by his opponent's intimidation.
He let out a cold laugh. "If arena combat were decided by who could talk the loudest, perhaps you could sweep aside all challengers."
As if Jiang Chen wouldn't see through such crude psychological warfare?
"Heh heh, kid — now take my three punches!"
The large man clawed at the air, then threw a devastating fist wreathed in finger-thick arcs of lightning, hurtling it madly toward Jiang Chen's face.