Chapter 621 - 338: One Strike
"Master..." Su Chen’s physical condition was steadily improving, his breaths tinged with a fiery glow. He suddenly asked, "How many days has it been since Senior Brother Qing Cang left to escort Senior Brother Qin Yun?"
"It should be four days," the Bronze Ancient King calculated, seemingly unsure why Su Chen was asking.
"Four days..." Su Chen murmured thoughtfully. "With your Power, could you still catch up to them?"
The Bronze Ancient King paused, then chuckled in spite of himself.
He understood Su Chen’s intention, of course. He also had a grasp of Su Chen’s strength; with the empowerment of that Holy Profession, it was certainly impressive.
’He can fight a Top-tier Professional who has also gone through the Melting Holy Profession, spanning an entire tier. But the toll that state takes on Su Chen is immense.’
’Even though he seems to be consciously shoring up his weaknesses now, it only increases the duration. His actual strength hasn’t changed.’
’At the Tier Six level, he might be able to trade blows with the Black Tuo projection, but to purify it... he’s still a long way off.’
However, he wouldn’t dampen Su Chen’s enthusiasm. Instead, he replied in a serious tone, "Qing Cang has been gone for four days. If I wanted to catch up, it would probably only take a few hours."
𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
Travel through a Star Gate had its own variations in speed, and an Ancient King could obviously move at the absolute fastest.
"That’s good." Hearing this, Su Chen was greatly relieved. Only then did he walk toward the Fog Ashes.
The Holy Mark stored within him quietly dissipated. A hazy, green phantom gradually took shape on the surface of his body, clinging to him—the ability of the Healing Sage.
Stepping into the Fog Ashes, the scene before him shifted. A gray-white landscape spread out at his feet. Su Chen was already accustomed to this, his gaze immediately landing on the newly manifested Black Tuo.
The Black Tuo projection in the mid-level Fog Ashes was growing more substantial. As the black mist roiled, it even began to faintly resemble the gaseous form of Black Tuo’s true body.
Su Chen had only seen the real Black Tuo once, on Red Thunder Star during the Delirious Words Trial. The memory still made his heart pound with fear.
’Very good. This is a perfect chance to see where my current limits truly lie.’ Su Chen’s gaze hardened, and he activated Immortal Vajra.
A bloody light surged like molten gold beneath his skin, dyeing every inch of his flesh a stunning Red Gold, as if countless tiny blood runes had awakened and were now coursing just beneath the surface.
The phantom form created by the Healing Sage twisted and dimmed on his skin, shattering inch by inch as it was greedily devoured by the roiling blood mist around him.
His heart suddenly felt heavy, as if seized by an invisible giant hand, and nearly stopped beating. A torrent of scalding blood then erupted from his chest, violently surging through his entire body.
CRACKLE! SIZZLE!
Arcs of electricity surged and rolled around him.
’Combined with the Healing Sage’s ability, the power boost from Immortal Vajra is much stronger than before.’
As Su Chen registered the changes in his body, an illusory, Red Gold cauldron materialized over him before abruptly contracting and sinking into his flesh.
He felt his body grow heavy, as if it had become countless times denser. The Heaven-Reaching Form ability had activated. If he could observe himself at a cellular level, he would undoubtedly discover a miniature Red Gold cauldron, shimmering with a glassy luster, embedded within every single one of his cells.
Simultaneously, the Secret Artifacts fused with his body began to intensify, all rising to Tier Seven. His physical strength began to skyrocket.
BOOM!
The aura around him fluctuated violently, the fiery golden lightning almost solidifying. Of course, this was far from his limit. Empowered by the cauldron body, this level of exertion barely made him exhale.
’Next, Tier Eight.’ Su Chen took a deep breath. The Physical Strength stored in his cells flooded out. His body trembled slightly as his muscle fibers tensed and swelled, giving rise to a terrifying power.
His Purple Thunder Great Hammer was already enhanced to Tier Eight. This had been his strongest state before, but thanks to his various improvements, he was now even stronger in the same condition.
Previously, he could only manage a single strike in this state, but now, he was merely a little short of breath.
However, as he was amping up his power, the Black Tuo Illusion wasn’t waiting around. Like a bolt of black lightning compressed to its limit, it tore through the air and charged at him.
The space before it twisted, the air evacuating into a vacuum with a low hum. The black fog around its body boiled and condensed, no longer a drifting haze but an armored, weapon-wielding demon.
Its head was bowed, its twin horns piercing the sky. Black energy coiled around its body like solid, knotted chains. It wielded a giant axe, bringing it down with the force of a mountain splitting apart, tearing a gash of black light through the air.
Su Chen didn’t know what Profession this was supposed to be. His gaze hardened as he simply raised a hand.
CLANG!
Lightning flared. The giant axe, powerful enough to cleave a mountain, was stopped dead by his palm, sending out a rapidly expanding ripple of Energy.
The Giant Strength slammed into him. Su Chen’s body shuddered slightly, but he remained motionless, the axe blade vibrating wildly in his palm.
’As expected. At this level, I can trade blows with it, but I can’t win.’ Su Chen’s expression twitched as he stared at the Black Tuo Illusion. ’But this is just the beginning.’
Outside the Fog Ashes, the Bronze Ancient King held his palm just a step away from the mid-level Fog Ashes. A massive torrent of data flowed into the mist and then back to him.
The intensity of this mid-level Fog Ashes was so high that even he had to expend considerable effort just to probe Su Chen’s physical condition.
’He’s activated his Holy Profession, and that ability that trades flesh and blood for power and defense...’
"Hm?" The Bronze Ancient King seemed surprised. ’His strength in this state seems to have increased again. I have no idea what the deal is with this kid’s Holy Profession... its power is off the charts...’
He could access all the information in the Bronze Sect, including the challenge system. He knew Su Chen’s capabilities like the back of his hand and had even studied them in detail.
’If this is the case...’ He hadn’t held out much hope initially, but upon sensing the changes in Su Chen’s body, an idea began to form in the Bronze Ancient King’s mind. ’Perhaps... there’s a chance. It all depends on how long he can last...’
Even though he already had high hopes for Su Chen, believing he would one day purify the mid-level Fog Ashes—if not at Tier Seven, then at Tier Eight.
But the Bronze Ancient King had never expected the boy to grow this fast. ’If he can hold out a while longer, and try a few more times to get used to the intensity, he might just be able to purify these mid-level Fog Ashes before the Flame Fire begins...’
"Hm?"
Abruptly, his expression changed. ’What is happening? His physical strength is surging again, far surpassing his previous peak state... by several times... no, tens of times!’
Inside the Fog Ashes, Su Chen gripped the axe’s edge, his gaze icy. ’Now, all of you—strengthen to Tier Eight!’
Fist-sized arcs of Red Gold electricity erupted around him in a torrential surge. Even with the support of Heaven-Reaching Form, the terrifying cost of strengthening all his Secret Artifacts to Tier Eight drained his body like a burst dam.
But he could still withstand it. In just a few moments, all of his Control Secret Artifacts had ascended to the Tier Eight level.
Su Chen’s pupils contracted. Veins pulsed beneath his skin as his muscles knotted and swelled, his physical strength reaching an unbelievable level.
He tightened his grip. Pale golden sparks sputtered from between his fingers. The axe blade, caught in his palm, emitted a cringe-worthy groan.
Spiderweb cracks spread across the surface where the axe blade met his palm. Fine metal fragments trickled down like beads of blood.
The next moment, a sharp K-CRACK! echoed out. A three-inch-long fissure burst open from the base of the axe blade.
"My turn." A grin split Su Chen’s lips. A wave of bloody energy erupted from his body, instantly dyeing the entire area red. He became a crimson bolt of lightning—no flashy attacks, just a fist charged to its absolute limit.
BOOM—!
As the punch descended, the entire Fog Ashes space seemed to freeze as if time had stopped. The blood-gold electric arcs coiling around Su Chen’s fist suddenly exploded outward, no longer mere threads, but roaring pythons of red thunder.
Before the blow even landed, the Black Tuo projection instantly dissolved into a misty state. But it was useless. Under the force of this absolute power, even the surrounding black mist began to shatter like glass. K-K-KRAK!
Even though the Black Tuo was no longer a physical entity, the blow forced it back into a physical form, only to utterly shatter it.
Outside, the Bronze Ancient King faintly heard a deep roar. The Fog Ashes before him, wreathed in Flame Fire, trembled violently. The black mist within seemed to collapse into fine dust before rapidly receding.
"This...!" His pupils swirled and then constricted. He knew exactly what this scene meant.
The Flame Fire above could no longer be contained. It erupted into a pillar that pierced the heavens, shooting straight into the sky. The deepest, most central core of the Fog Ashes churned and roiled, but it was powerless to resist.
Beneath the Flame Fire, Su Chen’s figure gradually emerged. Blood mist billowed around him, and arcs of Red Gold electricity shot out, creating an image of absolute ferocity.