Shen Pojun looked up. Gu Lianhun’s aura signature was telling him that the other man was dozens of kilometers higher up in the sky. He, too, disappeared a moment later to the same place where Gu Lianhun was.
A place everyone knew—the realm above the Ninth Heaven!
Gu Lianhun wanted to do battle with Shen Pojun within chaotic space!
Chaotic energy wasn’t new to Shen Pojun. Having trained for years deep within the earth, Shen Pojun was able to gather and harness chaotic energy to potent levels despite not reaching Sainthood. He wouldn’t be hurt by the raw chaotic energy above the Ninth Heavens, but his fighting capabilities would definitely be hindered in a battle there.
There were, however, limits to his understanding of chaotic energy. Drawing elemental fire from chaotic energy would be very difficult for him, and that was definitely not ideal considering who his opponent was!
But he hadn’t any other choice. Fighting anywhere else but here would mean catastrophic damages to everyone else, and that was something neither of the two could allow.
“Brother…”
Chu Yintian muttered as he looked up to where Gu Lianhun had disappeared off to. Hesitantly, he looked to Shen Pojun.
“It cannot be helped, this is a battle that must be fought. Don’t worry, there is still a chance for victory.”
Shen Pojun replied. He gave one last look to the students of the Crafting School gathered around him before disappearing from sight.
“I will destroy Gu Lianhun’s avatar even if I must sacrifice myself. Take this moment to rest up. Should the enemy not fight, then wait for my return and I will handle the rest. I am confident in your victory and the continued existence of our school…the Crafting School will be under your protection in the future. Take care…”
Though Shen Pojun was gone, Chu Yintian could still hear the voice of his senior brother in his mind.
“Brother…”
Again, Chu Yintian whispered the same words as before. But this time, these words were spoken not with hesitation, but with despair. He didn’t show it on his face, but his words were far more than enough to convey the intense sorrow he felt. Shen Pojun was clearly speaking as if his death was already determined. In other words, Shen Pojun was planning for the worst-case-scenario in which he’d sacrifice himself to take out the enemy!
It wasn’t an even fight. Gu Lianhun’s avatar might’ve been on the verge of fading away, but that didn’t mean Shen Pojun was on equal footing with him. His own foot wasn’t even beyond the line to Sainthood, meaning the difference between the two was as vast as an ocean. To say Shen Pojun had a chance at victory was to say a very generous statement.
It was, in fact, a way for Shen Pojun to inspire confidence in himself and others. To say otherwise would be to give the students more pressure than he’d like. He didn’t even consider his own wellbeing important anymore.
Chu Yintian knew. Shen Pojun’s lifespan was drastically larger than his, and given a dozen or two more years, Shen Pojun would definitely ascend to Sainthood and become one of the greatest elites. But him coming out to protect the Crafting School in its time of need would mean that Sainthood was no longer possible…
Reluctance. Humiliation. Sorrow. Hatred…
The emotions swimming inside Chu Yintian’s heart was crushed with a surge of soulforce. Spurring his injuries in rejuvenating even faster, he sent a glowering glare to the enemies in front of him.
Like Shen Pojun, Chu Yintian was ready to lay down his life for the Crafting School. Its enemies would have to pay a terrible price if they wanted to destroy his precious school. Not even that Dong Wanlei would be able to return to his school untouched!
“……”
The rest of the battlefield was deathly silent. Everyone had been quiet when Shen Pojun and Gu Lianhun entered, and they were still quiet now that the two were gone.
“Boom boom boom boom boom boom…”
A series of explosions could be heard from far above, shocking many at how loud the explosions were.
Neither of the two fighters could be seen, but the explosions and occasional flashes of light could be witnessed and heard even from far beneath the Ninth Heaven.
“Chaotic space…they’re fighting in that place!!”
Several of the slower combatants cried out the moment they realized what was going on.
That didn’t change much for any of them. Even if they knew where the two were fighting, it didn’t mean they could do anything about it but watch from where they were. A battle involving Saints was not a battle they could ever hope to step foot in,
Chu Yintian and Dong Wanlei were no exceptions. They had no confidence in even stepping foot in the chaotic space, let alone fight.
Regardless, everyone’s eyes were glued to the heavens above them. But only one of them had eyes for something else….
Bai Yunfei had only just returned to Tang Xinyun’s side a moment ago. He didn’t even see Shen Pojun’s face clearly in time before they left. Only when the fight begun was he able to think about the situation at hand.
“Xinyun, take the Core Stone, I’m going to meditate for a moment!”
Quickly handing the Core Stone to Tang Xinyun, Bai Yunfei disappeared into the Core World before she could even respond.
“Yunfei…”
A response died out on Tang Xinyun’s lips as she stood there. She stared suspiciously at the Core Stone as it floated down to her hand. Something about Bai Yunfei was strange.
For some reason, Tang Xinyun felt as though Bai Yunfei was…excited?
……
Inside the Core World.
Bai Yunfei appeared on top of a mountain peak. Without further ado, he waved his hand and summoned a white ball of light in front of him. Inside the ball of light was Dongfang Ming.
“What’s the situation like, Sealer?”
He asked. Though without being said, Bai Yunfei could tell that half of Dongfang Ming’s scorched body was already close to being back to normal.
“Nothing critical aside from the wounds healing. Should his arm and legs grow back, Dongfang Ming won’t be able to use them. They’ll be nothing more than empty shells without enough energy to help him break free.”
Sealer appeared just beyond the white ball of light in the form of a small white tiger. Floating in midair, the tiger waved a dismissive claw as if uninterested about Dongfang Ming.
“That’s good…” Bai Yunfei sighed in relief, “keep him sealed for now. Let me know right away if anything chances.”
He waved his hand, and just like that, Dongfang Ming was gone.
In his place, a small golden bell appeared for Bai Yunfei to take into his hand. Tossing it up, Bai Yunfei watched as the bell expanded in size before falling back down around him with a loud ‘gong’.
The King Caging Bell!
In its interior, Bai Yunfei sat down on the ground and withdrew a light-green pill. He tossed it into his mouth and began to meditate with the Dual Flame Arte.
While injured as a result of his battle with Dongfang Ming, the +13 additional effect of the Soul Sentinel Scarf had helped him reverse a great amount of damage. But there was still some damage to be healed from, especially since he had used Soul Ignition in his battle with both Dongfang Ming and Gui Nu. His current physical state wasn’t the best it could be.
Using Soul Ignition now would’ve saw to Bai Yunfei regaining his strength and being battle-ready once again, but he didn’t dare do that. The battle between Gu Lianhun and Shen Pojun wouldn’t end that quickly, so it was better for him to take this downtime to heal up as much as he could ‘naturally’.
By this point, his physical body and soul were in fine condition, it was just his soulforce that required time to recover. But with a high-level pill, the Dual Flame Arte, the Core World, his equipment, and the King Caging Bell, Bai Yunfei was confident it’d take no time for him to recover.
+10 Additional Effect: Recover 30 soulpoints per second if used upon oneself. Cooldown of 24 hours.
……
Ten minutes, comparatively speaking, was not a very long amount of time. But to the people of the Crafting and Soul Refining Schools, ten minutes felt like an eternity. Their heads were raised ever so high in the air as they listened to the sounds of battle with ever-increasing anxiety.
Not all were anxious, however. Dong Wanlei looked at ease with the situation, as if he was confident that their supreme trump card, Gu Lianhun, would be able to defeat Shen Pojun and then finish off the rest of the opposition.
“Whoosh!”
A figure appeared out of thin air beside Tang Xinyun, scaring everyone else around them.
“Yunfei! What are you—” Li Chengfeng cried out.
Everyone had been so captivated by Shen Pojun and Gu Lianhun’s battle that they didn’t even notice the ripples of energy that erupted from the Core Stone when Bai Yunfei reappeared.
They were all surprised to see how refreshed and energetic Bai Yunfei seemed. His aura was bright and as sharp as ever, as if he never fought to begin with.
But everyone could tell from his expression that he was ready to fight once again.
Bai Yunfei nodded to everyone before turning his gaze upward. Before anyone could say anything, he skyrocketed up into the air with one last remark to them all:
“I’m going to help!!”
