Chapter 463: The Flood Dragon’s Present
This frost Qi was clearly supposed to be bone-chilling. However, it made Xiao Chen feel a certain warmth. He fell deep in thought. Aside from the benefits of this Frost Qi, he thought of some other things too.
This Frost Qi could hurt some but help others. Xiao Chen wondered if this principle applied to the other attributes as well. The wind had a berserk side to it but also had a cool and gentle aspect that could make one feel warmth.
The heat of fire can kill, but it can also aid in cooking; it was ultimately something necessary.
So, if Xiao Chen managed to apply this principle to his state, his comprehension of state would increase by another level.
However, this principle was still too profound for Xiao Chen. Thus, he collected his thoughts and stopped thinking about it temporarily. Instead, he focused on absorbing the Frost Qi.
After about seven minutes, Xiao Chen opened eyes. He felt a certain warmth and incomparable numbness in his body. All of the turbid Qi gathered at his abdomen.
Xiao Chen flicked his finger and a drop of black blood shot out.
The instant the black blood left his body, Xiao Chen felt his entire body relax.
“What powerful Frost Qi. Unexpectedly, it managed to heal all the hidden damage that I have not noticed before,” Xiao Chen said in astonishment as he stretched himself. He still could not understand why that Rank 10 Frost Flood Dragon helped him.
“Dong! Dong! Dong!”
At that moment, someone knocked on the door, interrupting Xiao Chen’s thoughts.
Xiao Chen opened the door and saw an ordinary person in grey robes with three golden lines embroidered on the collar. He was standing outside holding a letter.
“Might I ask if this Young Hero has the surname Xiao?” the person said in a respectful tone as he cupped his hands.
Xiao Chen nodded to confirm.
The other party smiled and said, “In that case, I have found the right person. This letter is for you. I will take my leave then!”
The other party held out the envelope, but Xiao Chen did not take it immediately. The person delivering the letter had an very ordinary attitude.
He did not show the kind of fear and respect one would show when meeting a high ranked cultivator. Furthermore, using letters to poison the receiver was something commonly seen.
It was better to be cautious. Xiao Chen gently waved his hands and a strand of Essence shot out. A hole immediately appeared in the envelope and revealed the letter inside.
The letter unfolded itself and floated in the air. After Xiao Chen read it, he sent out a strand of purple flames and burnt it to ashes.
“Strange...why is the Beast Taming Abode’s Zuo Mo gathering everyone?”
Zuo Mo was Pei Shaoxuan’s First Senior Brother. He was the strongest third generation disciple in the Beast Taming Abode.
He was very strong and managed to rank in the top twenty in the previous Five Nation Youth Competition.
He was one of the few that could withstand the pressure and enter the top twenty despite not being from the Great Jin nation. It would not be exaggerated to say that he was the number one expert of the Great Tang Nation.
The contents of the letter were very simple. It simply invited Xiao Chen to attend a gathering that was taking place five days later.
It seemed like Zuo Mo intended in gather all the people participating in the second round in order to get to know each other.
Xiao Chen said softly, “That is fine as well. If everyone comes, it would give me the opportunity to check out the situation beforehand.”
Xiao Chen kept this matter in mind. Then, he took out the peak Superior Grade Earth Ranked Fist Technique—the Dragon Claw Fist—and read it carefully.
The Dragon Claw Fist was a Fist Technique that perfectly merged Fist Techniques and Claw Techniques. The sudden change between claw and fist caused one’s opponents to be caught off guard.
According to the introduction of the secret manual, once it was practiced to Great Perfection, there was no longer a difference between fist or claw.
When one attacked, it would contain both the might of a Fist and the sharpness of a claw.
The Fist Technique had a total of seven moves. The first three moves were the foundation and did not have any name. They merely served to allow the cultivator to switch between fist and claw freely.
Starting from the fourth move, it became very overbearing. Each move was stronger than the one before it, and every move was a killing move.
Furthemore, each move had two methods of execution—using a fist or a claw. Depending on what was used, they became completely new moves. Thus, knowing these four moves was equivalent to knowing eight moves.
The four moves were: Berserk Dragon, Burning the Heavens, Breaking the Top, and Seizing the Heart.
After reading the secret manual, Xiao Chen started to carefully comprehend it with his eyes closed. After a long time, he slowly opened his eyes. A light flashed in them.
He put away the secret manual and followed the method listed in it to circulate his Vital Qi.
“Boom! Boom!”
The Vital Qi circulated around Xiao Chen’s chest, and when it moved to his right arm, it was struck by pain; it felt like his flesh was about to explode.
Together with the pain, Xiao Chen felt an incredibly strong energy pouring into his arm.
What a tyrannical energy. No wonder that the middle-aged person said that a person whose physical body is weak absolutely cannot practice this Fist Technique.
Xiao Chen knew that he was a little over his head. He had actually used all his Vital Qi the first time he tried the technique. Thus, he quickly reduced the amount of Vital Qi by half.
The painful sensation immediately vanished and his Vital Qi flowed very smoothly. Soon, it flowed into his palm.
“Pa!”
Xiao Chen punched and his force exploded out in the air. The explosion was followed by a strong gust of wind that made countless leaves fly into the air.
Its might did not diminish as Xiao Chen continued to follow the methods listed in the Dragon Claw Fist, turning his fist into a claw. The energy that had been scattered into the air earlier was all absorbed back.
Then, it merged together with Xiao Chen’s remaining Vital Qi. When he slashed out with his claw, a strong wind blew in the air, leaving five deep marks on the ground. Only after flying for a long time, did the energy finally scatter.
“Just using half of my Vital Qi is already able to produce such might. I wonder how powerful it would be when using all of my Vital Qi,” Xiao Chen said, revealing a joyful smile.
Xiao Chen had not used the Azure Dragon Qi in his arm in this move yet. If he merged his Dragon Qi and Vital Qi together, it was likely that the power unleashed would be ridiculous.
“This peak Superior Grade Earth Ranked Fist Technique is worthy of its rank. It was worth me spending so many Spirit Stones on it.” Xiao Chen laughed happily.
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Two days later, Xiao Chen had already achieved the basic level in the first three moves of the Dragon Claw Fist—the switching between fist and claw.
He had just reached Small Perfection, but was still far from being able to switch as he pleased. However, that was something that came with time.
It was not a problem of Xiao Chen’s comprehension; it was just a matter of time.
“Fist!” Xiao Chen shouted loudly in the courtyard. All his Vital Qi circulated once in his abdomen before pouring into his right arm.
After two days of practicing, Xiao Chen’s physical body could now handle this Vital Qi. Furthermore, he did not feel pain anymore.
When the Vital Qi flowed through the meridians in Xiao Chen’s arm, the Azure Dragon tattoo started to move slowly. Dragon Qi slowly infused into the Vital Qi.
The energy flowing through Xiao Chen’s arm increased by at least twenty percent. When he clenched his fist, he could feel it surging. He punched.
“Boom!”
A visible azure energy exploded out. A strong wind blew in the courtyard, ripping out a few small trees.
As the energy surged out, the small trees were immediately shattered into countless pieces.
“Claw!” Xiao Chen shouted again. He turned his fist into a claw. The surrounding azure energy gathered back and merged with the remaining energy in his arm.
“Pu ci!”
Five azure streams of energy tore through the air, and five cuts clearly appeared in each of the leaves flying around him.
“Fist!”
Xiao Chen’s lower body sank down and the instant he withdrew the claw, he pushed it forward. Suddenly, his aura changed, turned into a fist, and pounced forth.
Xiao Chen switched between the fist and claw several times before he came to a stop. After thinking for a while, he said softly, “The fist looks powerful but it is too scattered. I have to find a way to focus it.”
Following that, Xiao Chen started to practice the fist. He tried to make the force of the fist explode out at one point and not let it disperse to other places.
Time slowly went by. After another two days, Xiao Chen managed to gain a firm grasp of the three foundational moves on the Dragon Claw Fist
As for the problem of the fist force dispersing, Xiao Chen found a pretty good solution to it. After all, it was not a particularly profound technique.
He could already do it in the past. Now, by only making a minor change to the Dragon Claw Fist, he made it more suitable for himself.
“It is time to practice the true moves of the Dragon Claw Fist. The Berserk Dragon can be split into the Berserk Dragon Fist and Berserk Dragon Claw. It is clearly one move yet there are two ways to execute it. I have to think this over carefully.” Xiao Chen said with a resolute gaze as he took a deep breath.
---
In the west of Desolate City stood a large courtyard. The entire place had already been reserved by the Beast Taming Abode’s Zuo Mo.
The tables and chairs in the courtyard were arranged in an orderly fashion. The two hundred odd people from the various nation who qualified for the second round were currently gathering there.
The people from the Great Tang Nation sat together and those from the Great Chu Nation sat together as well. After all, the people they were the most familiar with were the ones from the same country.
It was hard to avoid conflicts between geniuses. Thus, when the geniuses from the same nation gathered, it was like allying with each other.
There were close to three hundred outstanding talents from various places here. The group of the Great Qin Nation was very small. Aside from Duanmu Qing, Hua Yunfei, Mucheng Xue, and Ji Changkong, there were also some other outstanding talents from the Imperial Capital. The whole group only consistent of slightly more than ten people.
Compared to the other nations, which had tens of people, the difference was obvious. Even adding Xiao Chen and Chu Chaoyun, who had not arrived yet, their number did not exceed twenty.
When the surrounding outstanding talents from the other nations glanced towards Hua Yunfei and the others, contempt flashed in their eyes.
Occasionally, they discussed about them in soft whispers. This made the people from the Great Qin Nation feel very embarrassed.
In reality, the Spiritual Energy in the Great Qin Nation was very sparse. They had been at the bottom of the Five Great Nations for a very long time already. In the past Five Nation Youth Competition, they did not even have anyone who entered the top one hundred.
Unfortunately, the Five Nation Youth Competition had a rule that the disciples from the Royal Clan could not participate. Otherwise, with Ying Yue’s strength, she would have certainly been able to climb to the top twenty.
The Royal Clans of the various nations were in a group of their own. According to the rumors, they could communicate directly with the upper realm. They all had their own paradise for cultivating.
Thus, just like with the Five Nation Youth Competition, the Royal Clans of the various nations would not receive an invitation for the Ancient Desolate Tower.
“Liu Yong, we have not met for three years already. Given this rare meeting, I wonder if your sword can still defeat me?” A cultivator called Zhou Wei from the Great Xia Nation said to a cultivator of the Great Tang Nation as he released his aura.
In the end, behind all these facades, the gathering was a chance for everyone to check out their opponents before the arena battles.
There were countless people who were familiar with each other. They wanted to know how much the other party had improved by. Then, they could make an estimation of how big their chances were of obtaining one of the twenty spots.
Many people showed up. Half of it was due to the respect for Zuo Mo and the other half was because of the twenty spots.
The Great Tang Nation’s Liu Yong got up and said, “I was thinking of challenging you as well as well. I could defeat you in the past and I will be able to defeat you in the future.”
“Xiu!”
When the two spoke, the whispers immediately stopped. Everyone looked over.