Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Boom! Boom! Boom!
There was a series of explosive sounds. The entire hall kept shaking as the sword light knocked the Sword Emanations Race beings out of the way, reducing them to dust. A layer of dust settled above the ground.
Dao Feng had already been attacking for a full five minutes. At least three or four hundred thousand Sword Emanations Race beings had been destroyed by him, but a mountain of them remained.
Dao Feng secretly kicked himself. He had already said that he wanted to fight this battle alone earlier, and so he could not turn around and ask for help now. In his heart, he cursed Jiang Yi. How many Sword Emanations Race beings did he have? Why did it feel like the more he tried to destroy them, the more there were…?
Jiang Yi, who remained in the middle of the Sword Emanations Race beings, also secretly kicked himself. He had already climbed forty-two steps. There were only six more, but at that moment, his arms were completely drained of energy. All the bones in his body were crying out in pain. Every single muscle was trembling.
The more Power of Heaven and Earth he used, the weaker his body would be later. However, if he did not use as much as he could now, he might not even have the energy to move his finger. If he did not climb up the stage, he would not be safe.
“Crawl!”
Jiang Yi rested for a second, panting. Then, he gritted his teeth and continued climbing upward. His body was almost entirely plastered against the steps. The skin on his hands and knees were broken by the rough surface, and he was bleeding. His black robes were also torn and tattered by now.
However, the more difficult it was to get up, the safer he was. Dao Feng’s physical body was stronger, but it was only a hundred times stronger than Jiang Yi’s at the very most. That meant that even Dao Feng would have to crawl up the steps later. He would then be able to tease him easily.
One step, three steps… five steps!
A full five minutes passed, and yet Jiang Yi only climbed five more stone steps. There was one more left. His entire body pressed down on the step, and he was gasping for breath. He lay there motionless. At this point, the gravity felt two million times stronger than normal. If one did not have a King-Ranked body, they would probably not be able to make it up here.
“Can I get those treasures?”
Thinking about the treasures being three hundred meters above the stage made Jiang Yi smile bitterly. Him aside, even Dao Feng might not be able to jump that high on that stage. If that was the case, who would be able to get those treasures?
“Hehe, look at the situation I’m in. Let me think about keeping my life first. It doesn’t matter whether I get those treasures or not.”
Jiang Yi sighed, casting aside all his worries about everything going on outside. As he was sprawled on the step, he entered the State of the Union of Heaven and Man and activated his Nameless Divine Art so that his heavenly powers surged throughout his body. He felt an intense pain in his muscles and bones.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Below, Dao Feng continued attacking the Sword Emanations Race beings. He had already destroyed almost a million of them. Jiang Yi was no longer summoning Sword Emanations Race beings. There were not many left in his Wintry Pearl. He had already used so many back in the valley, and he still needed to reserve some for the stage.
“Alright!”
Jiang Yi had been resting for five minutes. More than half of the Sword Emanations Race beings below had already been destroyed. Suddenly, Jiang Yi shouted out through gritted teeth. The heavenly powers in his hands worked so that he could slap the step he was on several times. Both his legs twitched, and he made use of the momentum to climb the last step. He gripped onto the top of the stage and used the remaining strength in both his arms to roll up the final step up. He finally made it onto the stage.
Hoo-Hoo!
As he lay on the stone stage, Jiang Yi finally heaved a huge sigh of relief. He steered his Power of Heaven and Earth back into his ninth star sphere. Immediately, his body became much weaker.
The terrifying gravity pressed him down so much that he could not even lift a single finger. All the bones in his body were crying out. At that moment, he felt like a ten-kilometer-tall mountain was standing on top of his body. He could barely breathe, and he felt like he was going to pass out at any moment.
“Don’t pass out! Hang in there!”
Immediately, Jiang Yi entered the State of the Union of Heaven and Man and regulated his breathing. Under this kind of gravitational force, his techniques and skills also worked several times slower. Jiang Yi felt like his veins were about to burst open. At once, he slowed down the recuperation process. He could only try to focus on regulating his breathing so that his body could feel stronger. Dao Feng still needed time to get up the stage. Jiang Yi needed to use this time to tide over this period of weakness.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ten minutes later, all the Sword Emanations Race beings were destroyed. There was a thick layer of red dust on the ground. Dao Feng stopped attacking and gazed at Jiang Yi who was lying motionless on the stage. He laughed mirthlessly and said, “I told you not to struggle. What’s the point of climbing up there? Can you even move?”
Jiang Yi was still resting his body. His body had become vulnerable because of the use of the Power of Heaven and Earth. All his muscles were trembling, and he felt like he would pass out at any moment. Of course, he did not have the energy to quarrel with Dao Feng.
Dao Feng waited for a couple of seconds and then took big strides forward. His body was extremely strong indeed. He managed to sprint the entire time. It was only when he got close to the stone steps that his body bent over. Jiang Yi, on the other hand, was already on his hands and knees when he came within a hundred meters of the stone steps.
“He!”
Dao Feng shouted, his eyes glinting. With his body slightly bent over, he struck the ground harshly with his battle sword. He wanted to use the momentum to climb up the steps as quickly as he could.
Five steps, ten steps… fifteen steps!
Dao Feng was too strong. In a single breath, he climbed up fifteen steps. Finally, he was bowing down. He leaned over his sword, which held him up from the steps. Dao Feng was panting. The gravity here was making it impossible for him to continue leaping up the stairs.
“He!”
After resting for five minutes, Dao Feng once again struck the ground of the steps. His body used the power from that strike to climb upwards. This time, he climbed up ten steps before he paused again. Still, he did not kneel down. Although the hand that was leaning against the sword was trembling uncontrollably and his legs were turning to jelly, he did not kneel down.
More than twenty people were standing around and watching him. These young masters and young mistresses cared a lot about outer appearances. Did they expect him to crawl up? He could not bring himself to stoop to such a level.
He rested for another five minutes and then turned around to look at the King-Ranked martial artist from the Dao Clan. The martial artist took a close look at Jiang Yi and nodded to let Dao Feng know that he was still not moving. Dao Feng shouted again and continued to climb upward.
Bang!
This time, he climbed eight steps before he was stopped by the strong gravity. His body was swaying, and his left leg finally gave way as he fell onto his knee. His physical body was strong, but rushing up the steps like this meant that his body had to cope with huge changes in gravitational force. If Jiang Yi had tried to do this earlier, he would have rolled down the stairs.
“Alright!”
“Young Master Feng, you’re such a man!”
“A true man…”
“Go on, Young Master Feng!”
The young masters and young mistresses watched as Dao Feng propped himself up with his sword and fell down onto one knee. Still, he tried to keep his posture upright; and his head held high. Immediately, they started cheering him on.
They did not know how strong the gravity there was. However, if Jiang Yi—who had a body as strong as a King-Ranked martial artist—had to crawl up, they could only imagine that it was terrifying. If they had tried, they were sure they would only be able to crawl up. Dao Feng, on the other hand, was charging up. Everyone admired him for being brave and wanted to encourage him.
Dao Feng remained expressionless as he heard the cheers from the young masters and young mistresses. In his heart, he laughed bitterly. He could not hang on for much longer. He wanted to crawl like Jiang Yi did. However, how could he do that with these people here watching him?
He felt like a mute man eating durian: he could not cry out about the bitterness he was suffering.
“He!”
After resting for five minutes, he looked up at the stone steps in front of him. There were only more than ten left.
Gritting his teeth, he turned back again to look at the formidable martial artist from his own clan. Once he was sure that Jiang Yi was still lying there like a dead man, his body lit up with a bright light. His battle sword was also flashing nonstop. Again, he struck the ground and bounced up with a single leg. His body shot forward like a dart. As he leaped, he kept striking the ground with his sword. Using the momentum, he flew straight up.
“Alright!”
Countless young masters watched Dao Feng’s unparalleled aggression and could not help but cheer. They could not wait for Dao Feng to reach the top of the stage. They wanted to see him cut Jiang Yi’s head off.
“Oh, no, be careful, Young Master.”
After Dao Feng struck the ground more than ten times, he bounded up ten steps and found himself only four steps from the top. At that moment, the formidable martial artist from the Dao Clan suddenly shouted at him.
This was because Jiang Yi—who had been lying motionless up till then—had suddenly opened his eyes.
