Chapter 1194 - Barrier of Despair
Yun Che was stuck in a borderless world of yellow sand.
He spread out his spiritual perception, but couldn’t sense any presence or danger at all.
He realized immediately that it was a non-offensive sealing domain!
The only reason Lu Lengchuan would execute a pure sealing domain like this was to evoke the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier.
Yun Che spread his spiritual perception to the max, but he still couldn’t sense anything but rolling yellow sand. Not daring to hesitate any longer, he fired the Golden Crow flames and the power of his heavy sword straight to the space in front of him.
Boom!!
Space itself shook, and yellow sand filled the air. A crack appeared in the distant sky, but it slowly repaired itself over time.
“A World in Sand” could be brought down in one hit if Yun Che could find its core and destroy it, but he had never come into contact with a Shrouding Sky Realm denizen until today, much less fought one. Naturally, he wouldn’t have any idea where or how to find the core of “A World in Sand”. The only thing he could do was to break it down by force.
The Heaven Smiting Sword’s repeated strikes caused the sky to become filled with cracks in the blink of an eye, and the world of flowing sand itself to shudder again and again. However, despite Yun Che firing more than a dozen strikes in a row the world stubbornly remained intact.
Yun Che paused slightly and gathered his flames. It was as if a new sun had suddenly risen in the world of flowing sand.
“Yellow… Spring… Ashes!”
Boom… Boom!!
The floating desert above the Conferred God Stage suddenly exploded in a sea of flames. Even the bits and fragments of power of the desert were engulfed by the flames before they could scatter into the distance.
Yun Che locked onto Lu Lengchuan the second he emerged back onto the Conferred God Stage. Both cultivators’ pupils shrank at once.
Lu Lengchuan was shocked because Yun Che had broken through “A World in Sand” in an unbelievably short amount of time, by force no less.
Yun Che was shocked because a barely discernible layer of profound light had appeared around Lu Lengchuan.
It was the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier!
“Ah. It’s over.” Huo Rulie and Yan Juehai sighed at the same time.
The same sigh came from every corner of the spectator’s stand.
The Golden Crow flames were so powerful that they enabled Yun Che to fight Lu Lengchuan on even ground despite being inferior to his opponent. He was even slowly but surely gaining the upper hand. However, the strength gap between them was still very small, and now that Lu Lengchuan was empowered by the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier...
Everyone could predict what was going to happen.
The Shrouding Sky Realm King knew that Lu Lengchuan had won the moment he successfully evoked the first layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier. However, instead of smiling at Lu Lengchuan’s success, he kept a tight rein over his rioting heart… He hadn’t expected Yun Che to break through “A World in Sand” as quickly as he did without knowing the correct way. He thought it would take him at least two Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barriers layers’ worth of time before he could break through it by force.
In fact, Yun Che didn’t just break “A World in Sand” by force. He utterly annihilated every speck of power that was used to create the domain, just after Lu Lengchuan had successfully evoked the first layer of the barrier!
The Shrouding Sky Realm King couldn’t help but feel both admiration and regret when he thought of Yun Che’s age and cultivation level. Lu Lengchuan would win this match without fail, he knew… but this might also be both the first and last time he could ever beat Yun Che.
This was without mentioning that that Yun Che was more than qualified to replace Lu Lengchuan as one of the God Children.
The scenario he least wanted to come true had happened, and Yun Che’s breathing grew heavier as a result. However, the fire in his eyes also burned brighter than ever.
Lu Lengchuan was reacting the same way. Although he was protected by the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier, he didn’t look relaxed or pleased at all. He continued to inject all of his power into the Skysplitter Spear.
Both combatants burst into movement at the same time their eyes met one another.
Boom boom boom…
Yun Che and Lu Lengchuan growled as they clashed weapons against each other with the speed lightning. The airspace above the Conferred God Stage barely had a moment to breathe before it became filled with fire once more.
Every time Yun Che and Lu Lengchuan clashed weapons, the impact went straight into the people’s hearts. It was a clash of pure strength without any tricks behind the attacks, and it was definitely the first time a clash like this had ever happened in this Conferred God Battle. Even the spectators who had to watch the fight through the star tablets were bristling with passion.
Boom boom boom… BOOM!!
Lu Lengchuan was finally knocked back a step after Yun Che threw a dozen or so strikes at him, but this time he simply allowed the Golden Crow flames to wash over him. His expression was calm, and his body wasn’t burned in the slightest. All foreign power and energy shockwaves were held at bay by the half visible Glowing Dragon’s Sacred Barrier, so no harm came to Lu Lengchuan at all.
Yun Che frowned deeply and slowed his attacks a little. Suddenly, his body erupted with power like a volcano before he swung the Heaven Smiting Sword straight at Lu Lengchuan’s chest with unparalleled might.
Lu Lengchuan’s dragon wrapped spear moved straight forwards to meet it… but instead of sticking out his spear at the first available opportunity, the young man suddenly slowed his attack for some reason.
Yun Che immediately understood what he was trying to do, but not only did he not withdraw his strength, he charged Lu Lengchuan faster than ever before… He had to break through Lu Lengchuan’s barrier by force even at the cost of an injury! He couldn’t afford to drag out this fight! This was his only choice—perhaps even the perfect chance Lu Lengchuan had delivered right into his hands!
Boom!!
Burning with an extreme amount of Golden Crow flames, the Heaven Smiting Sword slammed fiercely into Lu Lengchuan’s chest. At the same time, Lu Lengchuan finally stabbed his spear forwards and struck Yun Che perfectly in the left ribs.
There was one loud, combined bang as two terrific explosions erupted at the same time. A depression appeared on Lu Lengchuan’s Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier, and blood poured out of Yun Che’s left ribs as he was thrown back wildly by the impact.
Lu Lengchuan remained perfectly unharmed even as he stepped backwards three times in a row. However, the result of the clash had shocked him deeply.
The Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier was deeply dented. A scarlet golden mark could be seen burning incessantly on the barrier. But what shocked him even more was the overall effect of his spear strike.
Technically speaking, even if the spear strike might not be enough to penetrate a cultivator in full, the spear strike still should’ve been powerful enough to crush both muscles and bones. However, when his spear penetrated Yun Che’s profound energy defense and struck his body, it felt less like hitting flesh and bone, but more like an unbelievably sturdy profound steel. He didn’t even break a rib with the stab.
Yun Che staggered backwards a dozen steps or so, his white clothes drenched in blood. However, like a loosed arrow he pounced straight towards Lu Lengchuan again without even checking his wound. His aura hadn’t diminished in the slightest.
Yun Che was in fact as shocked as Lu Lengchuan was. Lu Lengchuan was only covered by a single Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier, and he already knew from the battle between Lu Lengchuan and Luo Changsheng that the first layer of the barrier was the weakest of the three.
But not only did the barrier manage to block his full power slash entirely, he didn’t even succeed in tearing a hole through the barrier!
Lu Lengchuan’s eyes blazed brightly as he held the Skysplitter Spear horizontally before him, actually taking a fully defensive stance.
Boom boom boom boom…
Yun Che charged at Lu Lengchuan using Moon Splitting Cascade and swung his burning sword at his opponent from seven different positions. However, Lu Lengchuan successfully blocked all his attacks. By the time Yun Che swung his sword for the seventh time, the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier had already healed itself back to full.
Yun Che left behind yet another icy afterimage and appeared behind Lu Lengchuan, swinging his sword for the eighth time towards the back of Lu Lengchuan’s heart. However, his opponent suddenly switched from defense to offense by transforming the profound light around his spear into a roaring dragon and performing a reverse wide sweep. He ignored Yun Che’s attack entirely during the process.
Boom!!
Crack!!
The full throttle attacks landed on their intended targets at nearly the same time.
Red and yellow erupted, and Lu Lengchuan was thrown a dozen or so steps away from the point of impact. However, once again he was perfectly unscathed, except that the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier had depressed yet again.
Yun Che’s right arm took the full brunt of Lu Lengchuan’s sweep. A loud snap and a dull grunt later, Yun Che was thrown nearly a hundred meters away from the point of impact before he crashed heavily on the floor.
“Yun Che!” Mu Bingyun shouted in shock and fright.
“His right arm has to be a goner after that hit.” Everyone had heard the snap as clear as day.
“This battle has ended since the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier appeared.”
“Yun Che’s performance is so unbelievable it’s practically a miracle. Sigh, what a shame.”
Yun Che slowly climbed back to his feet under everyone’s pitying gazes.
Blood dripped down the corner of his lips, and his face was contorted with pain. However, his eyes remained as dark and fierce as ever.
His right arm was currently twisted backwards in an exaggerated fashion. Yun Che inhaled deeply, grabbed it with his left arm and pulled it back into position abruptly.
Crack! His dislocated arm returned to its original position. Yun Che didn’t groan out in pain even once throughout the process. The only things that changed were the color of his face and the sweat beads pouring off his forehead.
“Wha… his arm was only dislocated?” It was such stunning revelation that no one could believe their own eyes for a time.
Lu Lengchuan’s full throttle attack was so deadly that Yun Che was swept nearly a hundred meters away from the point of impact. Even the reverberation of the attack was powerful enough to scare some cultivators already.
But that powerful attack… only succeeded in dislocating Yun Che’s arm!?
“...Hmm?” Even the god emperors looked surprised by this.
“It has nothing to do with profound energy,” Eternal Heaven God Emperor said, “He was planning to destroy the the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier, so he didn’t saved any energy for defense at all. His body… is extraordinarily tough.”
“...” The Dragon Monarch’s eyebrows twitched indiscernibly for an instant.
Meanwhile, Yun Che forced himself to grip the Heaven Smiting Sword once more despite the fact that his right arm was screaming in intense pain. However, his pupils contracted yet again when he looked at Lu Lengchuan.
A new, faint yellowish barrier that was more visible than the first barrier had encased Lu Lengchuan before he knew it.
His opponent had successfully evoked the second Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier!
“...” Yun Che clenched his teeth tightly.
Yun Che obviously had no hope of winning, but Lu Lengchuan didn’t conserve his strength at all. After evoking the second Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier in a nearly cruel fashion, he suddenly charged towards Yun Che like wild thunder. He swept his spear in front of him and fired a dozen or so spear auras straight towards Yun Che.
He had just fixed his right arm from a very severe dislocation, and it was hurting so much that he couldn’t quite move the limb as he wanted to. At this point, Yun Che dared not suffer Lu Lengchuan’s attacks head on. He backed off in a burst of speed, but Lu Lengchuan threw down a dragon image from the sky.
“Demon Dragon Seal!”
Yun Che stopped himself and stared at the dragon image. He cut down the stone dragon image with Golden Annihilation, but Lu Lengchuan was already charging towards him. His spear was brimming with draconic power.
Yun Che’s right arm was working slowly, so his counter attack was just slow enough that he was knocked back by the enemy’s spear. Suddenly, Yun Che jumped into the air and summoned aura that surpassed his limits.
The sudden, unbelievable power gave Lu Lengchuan pause.
“Destroying... Sky... Decimating... Earth!!”
Ignoring the intense pain in his right arm, Yun Che summoned every ounce of strength in his body to commence this ultimate strike. The Golden Crow flames had actually turned a pure golden color at some point.
Lu Lengchuan looked at him seriously and raised his spear right in front of him. His entire body was enveloped in yellow light. The attack hadn’t even come down on him yet, but its sheer might had nailed him to the ground.
“Haah!!!!”
Destroying Sky Decimating Earth took a lot out of Yun Che, but it was also his strongest attack. The moment he swung the Heaven Smiting Sword at Lu Lengchuan, the air within a radius of tens of kilometers was pushed away completely.
Everyone in the spectator’s stands opened their eyes wide. However, Lu Lengchuan remained calm in the face the mighty attack. He didn’t try to dodge out of the way. He hadn’t even raised his Skysplitter Spear higher to block the attack.
Boom—————
There was a terrible explosion that shook space itself. Destroying Sky Decimating Earth landed perfectly on the second layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier. However, Yun Che’s expression abruptly changed drastically.
The moment the Heaven Smiting Sword touched the second layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier and caused it to distort, a large portion of its explosive power suddenly vanished as if it had sunk into water, while the rest was completely repelled… This time, he wasn’t able to cause even a scratch on the barrier.
Lu Lengchuan’s counter attack abruptly came.
The moment after Destroying Sky Decimating Earth was unleashed was also Yun Che’s weakest moment. Lu Lengchuan had been waiting for this moment to fling Yun Che into the sky. He jumped into the air, his three meter long spear transforming into a True Dragon whose soul shaking roar reached nearly every corner of Eternal Heaven Realm.
“Dragon… Crush… Strike!!”
The words sounded like both Lu Lengchuan’s voice and the mighty roar of a True Dragon. A power as strong as Yun Che’s Destroying Sky Decimating Earth gathered inside the dragon that was the Skysplitter Spear before it fell mercilessly on Yun Che’s back.
BOOM————
The space within tens of kilometers was filled with dragonstone power in an instant.
Yun Che spat out a mouthful of blood and crashed onto the stage like a falling meteor. The entire Conferred God Stage shook intensely as a result.
“Ah… ah!!”
“His back! His back… he must have broken his back… Hsss…” a profound cultivator gasped in response. It was clear to everyone that the absolutely destructive attack had landed squarely on Yun Che’s back. An injury like this was so serious that even a divine way profound cultivator must spend a long time in recuperation, much less get back into the fight.
Members of the Snow Song Realm and the Flame God Realm looked like they could faint. Mu Bingyun slowly rose to her feet with slightly pale cheeks. “Yun… Che…”
Yun Che lay immobile on the ground for a very long time. Honorable Qu Hui studied Yun Che with his spiritual perception to see if the young man had fainted entirely, but to his surprise… Yun Che slowly sat back up on his own.
Although his movements were painful and difficult, it was a sight that stunned everyone once more.
“He could sit up? Does that mean that the attack… failed to break his spine?”
“But he was struck dead on by Lu Lengchuan’s Dragon Burst Spear! This is impossible!”
“...Sigh. What does it matter? Look at Lu Lengchuan, you all.”
Roar!!
A dull sounding dragon’s roar suddenly entered everyone’s ears.
The spectators turned their gaze towards Lu Lengchuan, only to find that the image of a yellow dragon slowly swimming around the profound cultivator. Its aura was as towering as a hundred thousand meter tall mountain.
The third and final layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier had formed!
Hah… hah… hah…
Right now, Yun Che could only hear his own panting, his absolutely heavy panting.
Lu Lengchuan’s Dragon Burst Spear was so powerful that his spine would’ve been shattered into bits if he didn’t have bones as tough as refined steel and the dragon god marrow. However, he still suffered severe internal injuries from the attack. He staggered back to his feet using the Heaven Smiting Sword, but the moment he stood still his aura fell into disorder, prompting him to cough out three full mouthfuls of blood.
Every time he coughed, he was coughing blood and bits of flesh out of his mouth.
He had a vague idea that nearly forty percent of his internal organs were crushed by the impact.
At the same time, he noticed that Lu Lengchuan’s aura had changed massively yet again. When he looked up, he was immediately greeted by the sight of a dragon swimming around his opponent.
The Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier… the absolute barrier of despair… was complete.
Before Lu Lengchuan had evoked the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier, he was able to gain an increasing amount of advantage with the Golden Crow flames over time.
However, from the moment Lu Lengchuan had evoked the barrier’s first layer, the fight had become completely one sided.
Lu Lengchuan had even evoked the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier all the way to the third layer.
He didn’t think that Lu Lengchuan’s Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier was all that impressive when he saw how easily Luo Changsheng had torn it apart… but after facing down the barrier himself, Yun Che finally realized just how scary this ultimate technique of the Shrouding Sky Realm truly was.
Lu Lengchuan hadn’t broken his promise and gone easy against Yun Che. Despite wielding the absolute advantage, he still evoked the third layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier without hesitation.
Yun Che had already lost when Lu Lengchuan successfully evoked the first layer of the Glowing Dragon's Sacred Barrier. After that, he was seriously wounded after Lu Lengchuan had evoked the second layer. Now...
He had been defeated by his opponent completely and utterly. There was no longer even a trace of a chance for Yun Che to overturn this outcome.
That was what everyone thought at least.
However, they didn’t think that Yun Che’s defeat was shameful in the slightest. Considering his age, cultivation level, and his ability to suppress Lu Lengchuan at the beginning, it was an honorable defeat to say the least.
Lu Lengchuan slowly stepped towards the blood drenched Yun Che while holding the Skysplitter Spear. He could’ve advised Yun Che to surrender the fight, but he refrained from doing so because of Yun Che’s ferocious gaze. He knew that his opponent would fight to the last second even if he was destined to lose this fight. Telling him to surrender would only serve to insult that resolve.
Lu Lengchuan’s heavy footsteps approached closer and closer. Yun Che’s right arm continued to cling onto the Heaven Smiting Sword as he panted heavily.
He did something strange with his left arm, however. He lifted it into the air with the palm facing up to the sky.