Translator: Zen Translations Editor: Zen Translations
Those were after all powerful longbows, and both sides were less than fifty yards apart. At such a distance, even a lower ranked Heavenly Jewel Master might not be able to dodge such arrows, let alone ordinary soldiers. Furthermore, there wasn’t much space in the entire camp for them to dodge. If the Peerless Battalion soldiers fired, it would undoubtedly be a slaughter. Instantly, the Sixteenth Regiment soldiers froze in place, not daring to move a muscle. It was clear that the previous salvo of arrows was a warning, and if they dared move past that row of arrows, those ruffians of the Peerless Battalion would not hesitate to actually fire.
Zhou Weiqing could clearly sense which direction Shen Bu was attempting to wheel around and charge from. His right hand was still holding on to the Heavy Cavalry Battalion Commander, while his left hand struck out towards Shen Bu, a brilliant green light emitting from his palm. Once again, he did not use his Stored Skills, making use of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts to mimic a Skill again.
In the flash of green light, Shen Bu found that she was suddenly unable to move. It was the Fetters of Wind, the Control Skill of the Wind Attribute! The Fetters of Wind had been unleashed using his Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts.
Ever since he had seen his teacher use that Skill months ago, Zhou Weiqing had spent a lot of time over the past six months in mimicking that Skill. At this point, he was already able to continuously unleash it, given sufficient Heavenly Energy, without any cooldown at all. This was the true essence and power of the Six Ultimate Skill Manipulation Arts!
The Fetters of Wind was after all a Seven Star rated Skill, and its drain on Heavenly Energy was not inconsiderable. However, do not forget that Zhou Weiqing was currently not fully using his own personal Heavenly Energy, as he was still in the midst of Devouring that Heavy Cavalry Battalion Commander’s Heavenly Energy. It could be said that he was completely using his opponent’s Heavenly Energy, converting it into his own Wind Attribute Heavenly Energy to power a continuous series of Fetters of Wind to restrict Shen Bu.
When she was first hit by one Fetters of Wind, Shen Bu did not make much of it. After all, she had fought with Zhou Weiqing before and knew that he had such a Skill. The Heavenly Energy gap between the two of them was still pretty considerable, and she was confident that if she used all her strength to break free, she could only be restricted for a second.
However, she soon realised that something was very wrong, as Zhou Weiqing’s second Fetters of Wind soon fell on her almost instantly as she broke free of the first, as if almost before she had even broken free. Once again, her body froze in place, unable to move.
At that point, Zhou Weiqing was already very close to Shen Bu, and a disdainful smirk crossed his lips as he said passively: “Regiment Commander Shen Bu, you were no match for me previously, and the result will be no different now. Do you really think that my previous win over you was just luck?”
As he was speaking, Zhou Weiqing had already used his fifth Fetters of Wind. With an abrupt strike out of his left palm, he dis-compassionately released a Lightning Explosive Palm.
Another huge explosion, and Shen Bu’s body was sent flying back by his blow. With Shen Bu’s cultivation level, such a blow was not sufficient to actually injure her seriously, but having her entire body numbed was definitely not a good feeling. Furthermore, she had been sent flying so easily in front of so many people.
At this point, her rage had already reached a boiling point, and by now she had already dismissed all her previous qualms and misgivings. As soon as she landed on the ground, she charged forward once more, all of her Consolidated Equipment releasing out at once, the Flame Blade in her hands glowing brilliantly. In that moment, she looked as if she was ready to pit her life against Zhou Weiqing.
However, without warning, a huge man intercepted her, looking like a mountain range towering over her.
A massive, heavy shield blocked her Flame Blade with a loud slamming sound, insurmountable natural chasm.
*PENG* Shen Bu felt as if she had struck an immovable rock, the sheer shock wave from the backlash causing her to stagger back a few steps before she regained her balance.
At last, she could see that man clearly. A tall, muscular man dressed in simple army uniform. His features were simple and plain, looking to be about thirty years of age, and his tough, stout face was clearly lined in the bright sun. Standing there, his aura was strong and stable, almost unfathomable like a deep chasm or a tall mountain, that seemed to even surpass Zhou Weiqing’s. Six Heavenly Jewels spun around his wrists, and that massive shield was held at an angle in front of his body. The sheer size of the shield could fully cover even that huge body of his. On the shield, the obvious six sockets inlying it almost shocked Shen Bu as the visage entered her eyes.
“Get lost!” Shen Bu howled in rage as she charged forward abruptly again, the Flame Blade in her hands striking out in a flurry of angry blows.
Without question, the person blocking her was Lin TianAo. As soon as Zhou Weiqing took action, how could he be any slower, and he had rushed forward immediately, just in time to block Shen Bu’s crazed attack.
Lin TianAo’s Six-Jewel Assembly Set Shield was not something that Shen Bu could easily break. Previously, when they were facing the Heavenly King Stage powerhouse Han Tianyou, Lin TianAo was still able to block him for a short time, and that was more than enough to speak for his capabilities. Lin TianAo’s offensive capabilities were indeed severely lacking, but in terms of defense, he was far beyond any Heavenly Jewel Master of the same level, even those powerhouses from the Great Saint Lands. After all, his personal Ultimate Defense Attributes was highly complemented by the six-Jewel Assembly Set Shield.
Lin TianAo’s shield only moved in extremely small movements, and his steps did not seem fast at all. However, every time he moved at all, he seemed to be able to easily block Shen Bu’s movement, not any direct block, but in an angle that she was unable to use her strength in.
Blocking out. A high level positioning technique that Lin TianAo had trained in with years of battle experience behind his belt, extremely powerful no matter against humans or Heavenly Beasts. He had trained and cultivated for so many years, the majority of which had been studying, analysing and researching on how to best improve his defense in any possible way. Not just through taking blows, but also movement, blocking out techniques, and his own personal defenses. It could be said that all of that was already ingrained into his muscle memory, and using it in varied combat situations was as easy as breathing for him. Shen Bu was attacking with all her might, but in front of Lin TianAo, she felt as if all her strength was useless in front of him, being unable to actually use any of her power properly. Lin TianAo did not even retaliate, just using his shield to constantly block all her movement and attacks, and she felt as if she were stuck in a muck, not able to reach Zhou Weiqing despite her best efforts. Lin TianAo was like a castle wall, no matter how hard she tried to batter him down, he stood tall and strong.”
“Stop!” All of a sudden, Zhou Weiqing shouted out loud.
Lin TianAo’s six-Jeweled Assembly Shield Set suddenly changed, a brilliant yellow light shooting forth, and a powerful shock wave shoved Shen Bu back. Clearly, he had been holding back in the fight again Shen Bu.
Shen Bu panted hard as she turned to look at Zhou Weiqing, who had currently thrown the Heavy Cavalry Battalion Commander to the ground and had his foot on him. On the side of the Sixteenth Regiment, they all had angry looks on their faces upon seeing that. However, on the side of the Peerless Battalion, more and more of the soldiers were coming out of their tents. To their shock, all of the Peerless Battalion soldiers were dressed in the same full mail, with fine longbows drawn and arrows pointed at them.
Looking at the Peerless Battalion soldiers whose eyes were filled with killing intent, as well as the chilling light from the rows of arrows, none of the Sixteenth Regiment soldiers dared make a move. Unless they could somehow call for reinforcements, they knew they would be of no match at all.
Zhou Weiqing glared coldly at Shen Bu and said: “Regiment Commander Shen Bu, I’ll give you one last chance. Hand over those two who critically injured my brother here, and all of you cut off a finger. Otherwise, all of you can forget about leaving.”
After attacking for so long, Shen Bu had already vented much of her anger, and she was steadily growing calmer. This was the first time she had seen Lin TianAo, but his sheer power had definitely giving her a deep impression. She could sense that even if her Senior Brother Shen Ji was here, even he might not be able to break this man’s defenses.
Furthermore, the Peerless Battalion soldiers were all arrayed in neat formations, their bows drawn and their killing intent clear. If they all released their arrows at the same time, casualties would definitely number in the hundreds. “Zhou Weiqing, you dare to fire on your allies? Aren’t you afraid of being charged in military court?” Shen Bu threatened in an angry cry.
Zhou Weiqing gave a disdainful humph. “Don’t talk to me about military court. Hmph. I’m afraid the first one to be court martialed will be you. Let me ask you, whose camp is this? This is our Peerless Battalion’s camp. It is your Sixteenth Regiment soldiers who have come here to cause trouble, and we are just defending ourselves legitimately. As for death? Do you think only your men dying is considered as death? My brother dying here is not considered? Furthermore, who is the one who started it all? Who left all the rubbish here? My words will not change, I will give you a minute to decide, and if you think I am joking, don’t blame me for being vicious.” As he spoke, he began to exert more pressure on his leg, and the Heavy Cavalry Battalion Commander grunted in pain, his armour already changing shape from the sheer pressure.
“You…” Shen Bu was so angry that her entire body was trembling. However, she was at a total loss about what to do. If she were to give in now, how would she command the Sixteenth Regiment in the future? It would be tantamount to the entire Sixteenth Regiment bowing down to a mere Ruffian Battalion, and they would never be able to hold their heads up high any longer. Yet, if she did not give in, if this continued progressing onwards, let alone being on the upper hand, it was likely she would not have any good ending. That Zhou Weiqing had the Heaven’s Expanse Palace background, even the northern army command might not be able to actually deal with them.
At this point, Shen Bu was starting to regret her actions, regret that she did not listen to her Senior Brother’s words. Shen Ji had warned her long ago not to provoke Zhou Weiqing. After all, they were from the Heaven’s Expanse Palace, and such a background was not something they could take on. Alas, the two sisters Shen Bu and Shen Yi just could not suppress the anger within them.
Who knew, things would reach such a stage, and it was almost impossible for them to back down in a good way now.
All of a sudden, a loud, drunken sounding voice rang out. “What are all of you doing? It’s so early in the morning, and you all are already making so much noise?”
Hearing that voice, Zhou Weiqing’s killing intent lessened slightly, the anger in his face subsiding as he turned around.
The one who spoke, and just arrived, was his teacher, the Six Ultimate Heavenly Emperor Long Shiya. Furthermore, right beside him was another teacher of his… Mu En.
Mu En glanced towards Zhou Weiqing, a sly look on his face. The two of them had walked in linked shoulder to shoulder, swaying side to side as they did so. The two looked totally like a pair of old drunks who had too much to drink the night before. From appearance, Mu En looked even older than Long Shiya.
“Teacher.” Zhou Weiqing bowed slightly to the pair.
Long Shiya gave him a hard look, saying exasperatedly: “Early in the morning and you’re disrupting our beauty sleep, how irritating. However, Weiqing, you really do have a good master! No wonder you turned out into such a sly little brat.” As he said that, he clapped Mu En on the shoulder. From the look of it, the two of them seemed like old friends who had not seen each other for years.
