Chapter 196 - 196: Invincible
Just now, at the scene, Lu Shouhong saw Chen Fei, almost in a devastating manner, defeating Qian Guangji and Money. Lu Shouhong knew that his chances of defeating Chen Fei were very slim.
Because in terms of strength, Lu Shouhong knew that he wasn’t necessarily stronger than Qian Guangji and Money, and he might even be slightly weaker.
But to simply admit defeat, Lu Shouhong felt unwilling. Not only would he have to concede ten thousand contribution points to Chen Fei, but he would also have to give him the spiritual materials he had worked so hard to collect.
This made Lu Shouhong’s heart ache terribly, yet he was helpless. It wasn’t until Lu Shouhong noticed the quiver behind Chen Fei, which had already been depleted of many arrows.
A thought appeared in Lu Shouhong’s mind: keep a distance, take an alternative approach, deplete the arrows in Chen Fei’s quiver, and the opportunity would naturally come.
In this way, Lu Shouhong came onto the martial arts stage and assumed a completely defensive stance.
The result was unexpected. Chen Fei didn’t follow the expected pattern. At this moment, he was actually gathering power. The exaggerated bow and arrow from earlier were now becoming even more powerful.
Is there no justice left in this?
Lu Shouhong watched as Chen Fei slowly drew the bowstring, his aura becoming more and more exaggerated. Lu Shouhong hesitated—whether to charge or not. Judging by the rate at which his aura was increasing, when the arrow was shot, it would undoubtedly be astonishing.
Lu Shouhong doubted whether he, with his agility, could avoid it when the arrow came.
The disciples around him were watching this scene with gleaming eyes, anticipating Lu Shouhong’s response.
“1 concede!”
After much hesitation, Lu Shouhong sighed with a hint of reluctance. There was no need for a desperate struggle anymore. If he didn’t admit defeat now, he might not handle the situation well later and end up with more holes in his body.
Money could be earned again, but if he suffered heavy injuries that affected his future cultivation, that would be a real loss.
“I yield.”
Chen Fei’s face showed a slight smile as he released the bowstring. The arrows on the bow turned into flowing light in an instant, and the next moment, a loud noise shook the entire martial arts stage.
Lu Shouhong’s heart trembled as he stared at the landing spot of the arrow. The formation transformed from an intangible state to a tangible one, shimmering with white light.
Lu Shouhong couldn’t possibly handle this level of power. He might not even be able to dodge it.
Looking at it this way, Lu Shouhong suddenly felt grateful for his earlier decision. The trace of unwillingness vanished along with Chen Fei’s arrow.
“Chen Fei wins, next!”
Ru Lutao’s face carried a smile as he watched Chen Fei with keen interest. This archery skill was surprisingly comprehensive. In the many years of Yuan Chen Sword Sect, no one had mastered the bow and arrow to this extent.
The remaining six challengers below exchanged glances, brows furrowing. Three people in a row had lost earlier, and even Lu Shouhong only allowed Chen Fei to shoot one arrow before the battle ended.
“I concede!” Guan Haiguang hesitated for a moment and then spoke in a deep voice.
There was simply no way to continue this fight. His agility was decent, and he initially thought that he could break through and get close to Chen Fei. After three rounds of battles, it became evident that his agility was not refined enough to get near Chen Fei. Given this, he chose not to embarrass himself any further and admitted defeat directly.
Guan Haiguang remembered the bet he had made yesterday, and his teeth couldn’t help but feel sour.
He had acted recklessly back then. Chen Fei had been so confident and convincing. At that time, he had thought that Chen Fei was overconfident and arrogant. But looking at it now, he realized they had fallen into his trap. He was just afraid they would flee.
So he directly signed the agreement. None of them could escape!
“So cunning!” Guan Haiguang watched Chen Fei from a distance, feeling regretful and frustrated. Yet, there was no way out. He had personally signed and sealed the agreement. He couldn’t escape it.
“I also yield.”
Zeng Zhengxuan looked at Chen Fei and gestured in surrender.
While Zeng Zhengxuan’s heart ached for his contribution points and spiritual materials, he deeply admired the strength Chen Fei had displayed. If he had possessed such strength, his performance in the demonstration yesterday would have been even more excessive than Chen Fei’s.
Unfortunately, Zeng Zhengxuan’s own abilities weren’t that formidable, and he couldn’t match Chen Fei’s level of skill.
So, the reason he couldn’t obtain the five iron tokens in the mystic realm was that his strength was lacking!
“I concede!” Wei Zaosheng’s voice was somewhat low. After uttering these words, he left the martial arts stage directly.
He wasn’t interested in who ultimately won or lost. He just wanted to return and continue his cultivation.
With no hope for inheriting the true inheritance, he would strive to break through the Aperture Tempering realm through his own efforts. When the time came, he would challenge Chen Fei once more to determine the winner.
The current Wei Zaosheng recognized that he was far from being on par with Chen Fei.
Three consecutive surrenders made the inner disciples around them a bit noisy, but most of them could understand. Given the strength Chen Fei had just demonstrated, those lacking in agility should avoid risking themselves.
If Chen Fei didn’t control his power properly, he might cause people to end up with extra holes in their bodies. That would be terrifying.
“Next!” Ru Lutao yawned in boredom.
As soon as he spoke, a figure appeared on the martial arts stage. The spirits of the people around were shaken, relieved that the cycle of surrenders had stopped.
They had assumed that after witnessing Chen Fei’s strength, the remaining participants would keep conceding until the end.
“Junior Brother Chen, please!” Tian Yijie looked at Chen Fei and spoke with a solemn tone.
“Please!” Chen Fei nodded.
Tian Yijie took a step back with his right foot and charged toward Chen Fei. After three steps, his figure suddenly vanished from the martial arts stage.
The previously noisy scene grew quiet. Everyone’s eyes widened. Tian Yijie had actually disappeared? Or was it more accurate to say he had turned invisible?
Ru Lutao’s eyebrows lifted slightly. He glanced at the martial arts stage, and a smile formed on his face. It was indeed the Elusive Body Technique, though not exactly the same as the true Elusive Body Technique.
A person wouldn’t be able to cultivate the real Elusive Body Technique due to a conflict with the powerful blood energy. However, Tian Yijie’s version only possessed some of the Elusive Body Techniques’ characteristics. At this moment, he couldn’t be seen because of a special half-spiritual tool he was using.
Chen Fei stood in place, showing a touch of surprise in his expression. A subtle sense of strangeness suddenly enveloped his surroundings. This sensation made him recall the Resisting Evil lineage of Si Yuanhai.
The people below were holding their breaths, their eyes darting around, some even checking the dust on the ground for changes. Yet, on the martial arts stage, it seemed that only Chen Fei remained.
The jade pendant in Chen Fei’s embrace vibrated slightly. A faint glint appeared in his eyes as he activated the Thousand Origin Technique. The world around him momentarily paused as his mental power spread in all directions. His gaze fixed on the right side.
“Be careful!”
Chen Fei spoke as he drew and shot an arrow, completing the action in an instant. The arrow transformed into flowing light and vanished from Chen Fei’s hand.
“Good perception, good insight!”
Ru Lutao’s eyes lit up slightly as he watched Chen Fei’s actions. When Chen Fei had seen through Qian Guangji’s Light Splitting Sword earlier, Ru Lutao had suspected that Chen Fei’s mental power should far exceed that of ordinary practitioners of the Visceral Tempering realm.
Now, seeing Chen Fei locate Tian Yijie’s position instantly, he was finally certain.
“Bang!”
A muffled sound echoed as the arrow advanced, and a figure seemed to be pulled out of thin air. It took several steps on the ground before stabilizing its form.
Tian Yijie looked at Chen Fei in disbelief. Flis stealth had been broken so easily.
In the mystic realm, even when he got extremely close to a demonic beast, the beast only sensed something was amiss. However, discovering his precise location had proven difficult.
If he hadn’t become overly reliant on his stealth and been severely injured by a mutated spiritual material later, causing him to lack enough tokens, he might not have been in this situation.
Now, he hadn’t even approached Chen Fei, and yet his position had been revealed. This left Tian Yijie utterly shocked.
“It’s impossible!”
Tian Yijie muttered under his breath, full of unwillingness. He leaped backward while still in midair, disappearing from everyone’s sight.
“Bang!”
Another roar sounded, and before Tian Yijie had moved tens of meters, an arrow struck him. The impact’s force caused him to stagger several steps.
“Whoosh!”
An arrow whizzed by Tian Yijie’s ear, the sharp pain as if it were cutting into his ear. He couldn’t help but shiver, a trace of blood sliding down from his ear.
It was a warning. If he didn’t show restraint, the next arrow might hit a different target.
Tian Yijie swallowed nervously, gazed at Chen Fei, and eventually sighed. He gestured with a hand and walked off the martial arts stage in resignation.
“I concede!
Just as Tian Yijie left the stage, Fu Ancai bowed to Chen Fei and then left the martial arts stage.
What was the point of fighting against this? Tian Yijie, who had the ability to go invisible and stealthy, was unable to even muster a bit of temper. If Fu Ancai were to step up, he would likely withstand just a couple of arrows.
It would be utterly pointless.
All eyes in the audience turned to Lan Yunfeng. Among the challengers, only Lan Yunfeng remained.
Since Chen Fei took on challengers until now, not even an hour had passed. Yet, Chen Fei seemed as if he had just warmed up.
The contrast in strength between the two sides had overturned everyone’s previous speculations.
“I can’t just concede without fighting. I can’t bring myself to do that.”
Amid the gaze of the crowd, Lan Yunfeng leaped onto the martial arts stage, facing Chen Fei from a distance.
“Junior Brother Chen, you’re very strong. Your archery is truly remarkable!”
Lan Yunfeng gazed at Chen Fei, his eyes filled with strong competitiveness. “But 1 will become even stronger!”
As Lan Yunfeng’s words fell, he didn’t charge forward. Instead, he walked step by step toward Chen Fei.
Chen Fei’s eyebrows twitched slightly. He didn’t speak but shot an arrow at Lan Yunfeng.
Lan Yunfeng didn’t dodge; he held a broadsword in his hand and positioned it in front of him.
“Bang!”
A muffled sound resounded. A stream of light passed over Lan Yunfeng’s body, and he completely absorbed the arrow’s force. Moreover, it seemed as if he had gained an extra burst of energy. His momentum surged slightly.
“What a powerful semi-spiritual tool!”
Chen Fei was somewhat surprised that the semi-spiritual tool on Lan Yunfeng’s body could absorb the force of the arrow and even enhance Lan Yunfeng’s strength, allowing him to grow stronger with each battle.
Looking at Lan Yunfeng’s expression, Chen Fei realized that Lan Yunfeng hadn’t been part of the group that entered the mystic realm. If he had such a half-spiritual tool, his chances of success in the trial would have been quite high.
However, Chen Fei didn’t dwell on this issue. Arrows flew one after another toward Lan Yunfeng, and Lan Yunfeng’s momentum continued to rise. But Chen Fei knew that the half-spiritual tool on Lan Yunfeng’s body was nearing its limit.
“Take this!”
As the fifth arrow flew, Lan Yunfeng no longer dared to advance calmly and composedly as he had done before. He began to charge. Due to the force of return, Lan Yunfeng’s speed increased significantly. In the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of Chen Fei.
“Boom!”
The broadsword in Lan Yunfeng’s hand swung at Chen Fei, but it only struck a phantom image. The blade hit the ground, creating a loud noise.
Lan Yunfeng’s momentum suddenly weakened.
Chen Fei shook his head slightly. As expected, it was only a half-spiritual tool. Its effect was strong, but it seemed to possess only the power of a single strike. After that one strike, the force of return began to fade.
As Lan Yunfeng attempted to continue his attack, a flash of sword light appeared before his eyes. Alarmed, he instinctively held his broadsword in front of him.
A long sword appeared in Chen Fei’s hand and tapped against Lan Yunfeng’s broadsword.
“Boom!”
A flash of light swept through, but it shattered after a brief shimmer, and Chen Fei’s sword blade drove straight in. It pierced Lan Yunfeng’s shoulder blade.
Blood splattered, and Lan Yunfeng’s body was propelled by the immense force, flying dozens of meters before crashing heavily onto the ground. He stared at Chen Fei with wide eyes, then finally collapsed onto the ground, devoid of any fighting spirit.
Chen Fei angled his sword, and a droplet of blood slid down the blade, landing on the ground like a blooming rose.
A one-on-nine challenge wasn’t actually that difficult, was it?