Chapter 55: The Three Excellencies Fight Again (Part 2)
The valley was already a scene of devastation. The ground looked as if it had been overturned by a giant plow, covered in crisscrossing deep pits and cracks. Charred, shattered, and Holy Light marks intertwined, telling of the intensity of the battle. The collision of the three young Supremes had already surpassed the scope of ordinary Soul Saints or even Soul Douluos, approaching a life-and-death battle at the Titled Douluo level!
Yu Yuanchen's purple-gold Thunder Sacred Dragon True Body stood proudly on the spot, hard-resisting Tang Chen's overbearing and matchless hammer strikes and Qian Daoliu's omnipresent Holy Light feathers. Although he remained as steady as a rock, the thunderous light flowing around him was no longer as harmonious and flawless as at the beginning. Tang Chen's Clear Sky Hammer Concept layered upon itself, and Qian Daoliu's attacks were tricky and swift; the cooperation between the two became increasingly seamless, causing the pressure on him to surge.
"Exhilarating! But the warm-up should end now!" Yu Yuanchen let out a long cry, the thunderous light in his eyes flourishing. He gripped the air with his right hand, and a spear entirely purple-gold and entwined with destructive lightning suddenly condensed! Dragon-shaped patterns coiled around the shaft, and the tip flickered with cold light as if it could pierce through the Void Realm—it was precisely the External Soul Bone, the thunder dragon spear!
Once this spear appeared, Yu Yuanchen's Aura changed again! Previously, he was like a god controlling lightning, suppressing others with power and defeating them with momentum. But now, holding the dragon spear, he possessed an additional sharpness and decisiveness of a battle-hardened general!
Although he hadn't delved deep into spear techniques themselves, this External Soul Bone, born from the same source as him, had an extremely high degree of compatibility. It could not only greatly amplify his close-combat power but also guide and magnify his thunder Martial Soul Abilities as easily as an extension of his own arm, like a thunder staff exclusive to him!
"Take my self-created Soul skills—Five Thunders Orthodox Method!" This was a set of self-created Martial Soul Abilities Yu Yuanchen had summarized from his learning over the past seven months, especially his insights into the five nature transformations, forming a preliminary system that allowed him to handle almost any situation. It used the Ultimate Thunder attribute to perform five nature transformations, making his combat style more flexible and varied. Moreover, the vitality and destructive power formed by the mutual generation and overcoming of the Five Elements was also one of his major killing moves.
The vitality nature could be used for self-healing and regular Body Tempering, while the destructive nature allowed his lightning to possess the same characteristics as the Heavenly Tribulation, thereby triggering a small-scale Heavenly Tribulation. Its lethality to forests was immense; even for a Titled Douluo, if their strength was below Rank 95, they would be almost certain to die once locked on. This was also one of his hidden trump cards. However, because his strength was not yet sufficient to control the Heavenly Tribulation—being able to release it but not retract it—he would not use it in the battle between Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu.
Yu Yuanchen's voice was like startling thunder as he pointed the dragon spear into the distance. The surging Thunder True Essence around him suddenly split, presenting five distinct yet same-sourced Auras!
Geng Metal Divine Thunder! It was incomparably sharp. Although he had cultivated it by comprehending the nature transformation of wind, since it was the Five Thunders Orthodox Method, he might as well follow the formation and call it Geng Metal Divine Thunder. Regardless, he had integrated the characteristics of this lightning, so it possessed both attributes.
This lightning carried the killing intent and penetration of wind, its light condensed like a sword, specialized in breaking defenses. It was the first to transform into a straight golden bolt of electricity, tearing through the air and piercing straight toward Qian Daoliu! This lightning was the fastest and most concentrated, aimed at interrupting Qian Daoliu's annoying long-range harassment and Domain suppression.
Qian Daoliu's expression changed slightly as he folded his six wings, Holy Light condensing into a shield. In a thunderous explosion, the golden lightning burst, actually blasting fine cracks into the light shield he had condensed. His figure was also forced back several steps, a flash of alarm crossing his eyes.
Yi Wood Divine Thunder (although the protagonist uses the vitality characteristic to replace the Wood element, the Thunder Hell Vine is also a plant, and his understanding of the Wood attribute is not low, plus his self-supplementation over these seven months)! It was full of vitality yet contained a strange Binding power. The lightning transformed into a sky-covering net of cyan-green vine electricity. It wasn't a direct attack but rather coiled around Tang Chen like a living thing, restricting his movements and weakening his majestic blood-qi and Soul Power circulation.
Tang Chen roared repeatedly, swinging the Clear Sky Hammer like the wind, smashing the cyan lightning vines one by one. However, the shattered lightning would regenerate like a maggot on a bone, greatly delaying his offensive and making it difficult for him to exert his strength, leaving him feeling incredibly stifled.
Gui Water Divine Thunder! It was extremely Yin and cold, nourishing things silently. The lightning flowed like an undercurrent, pervasive, penetrating Tang Chen's Clear Sky Domain and Qian Daoliu's Angelic Domain, constantly eroding and neutralizing their Domain power while faintly interfering with their Spiritual perception. It made the two feel as if they had fallen into a quagmire, their Domain operations no longer so smooth and natural.
Binghuo Divine Lightning! It was explosive and scorching, like heavenly fire burning a city. Wherever the lightning passed, the air was ignited, forming brief seas of thunder and fire that scorched the protective Soul Power of the two, forcing them to distract themselves to resist this continuous area-of-effect damage.
Wu Earth Divine Thunder! It was heavy and steady, specializing in suppression and sealing. Streaks of dark yellow lightning fell from the sky like mountain phantoms. They did not seek ultimate lethality but carried ten thousand catties of gravity, further stacking upon Tang Chen's Clear Sky Domain, making the gravity within the Domain exceptionally terrifying. Even Qian Daoliu's flying speed was significantly affected.
The five thunders circulated, generating and overcoming each other! Holding the thunder dragon spear, Yu Yuanchen switched between the five lightning natures as easily as his own fingers. At times, he used Geng Metal Divine Thunder for powerful point-breaking attacks; at others, he used Yimu and Guishui to trap and harass the enemy, then used Binghuo and Wutu for area suppression. His combat style became incredibly flexible, no longer just clashing head-on, forcing Tang Chen and Qian Daoliu into a frantic state, only able to respond passively, momentarily falling into an absolute disadvantage!
Tang Chen shouted in anger. He possessed peerless divine strength and heaven-shaking hammer techniques, yet he was flustered by the strange Wood and Water lightning, making it difficult to fully display his strength. Qian Daoliu's expression was also grave. Although his holy attribute could purify part of the lightning, the five-element circulation and endless lightning variations were far more exquisite than he had imagined; the purification speed could not keep up with the speed of lightning generation and change.
"We can't hold back anymore!" Qian Daoliu and Tang Chen looked at each other, both seeing decisiveness in the other's eyes. If they continued to hide their skills, they might truly suffer a complete defeat!
"Angel God Descent!"
Qian Daoliu was the first to erupt! He formed an ancient and complex divine seal with both hands in front of his chest, chanting obscure syllables. In an instant, the Seraphim phantom behind him suddenly solidified, and a vast Divine Might far exceeding before descended!
His long golden hair danced wildly without wind, and his eyes turned completely into pure gold, devoid of any emotion, like a Divinity high in the heavens looking down indifferently at all living beings. The color of the holy flames burning around him became deeper, turning into white-gold, and the extreme attribute fluctuations of holiness and fire skyrocketed!
This was the secret of the Qian family of Spirit Hall, a forbidden technique that triggered the residual Divinity of the Angel God in the Bloodline—God Descent! The threshold for this technique was extremely high; it could not be used unless one had a deep understanding of their Martial Soul and pure Bloodline. In the history of the Qian family, very few could use this move.
Under the execution of this move, the user could temporarily borrow a sliver of Divinity, wielding their own power from a higher dimensional perspective. All attributes were greatly enhanced, and the use of Martial Soul Abilities reached the Transcendent state, truly a divine skill! At this moment, Qian Daoliu's Aura had steadily stepped across the threshold of a Titled Douluo, even bringing a sense of threat to Yu Yuanchen!
"Angel, Judgment!" Qian Daoliu's voice was cold as he slashed out with his light sword. A white-gold sword light spanning the sky tore through the firmament. Wherever it passed, even the five-element lightning was forcibly purified and evaporated. Its power was incomparable to before!
On the other side, Tang Chen, facing Yu Yuanchen's endless five-element lightning methods, was also driven to true anger, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes!
"Roar! Break for me!"
He actually didn't dodge or avoid, enduring several Bindings of Yi Wood Divine Thunder. He gripped the Clear Sky Hammer with both hands, his blood-qi erupting like a volcano! Then, a shocking scene occurred—the first six Soul Rings on his body, from the first to the sixth, flashed in succession and then exploded with a boom! The massive Soul Ring energy did not dissipate but was forcibly guided by him in some profound way, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, frantically pouring into that black-and-red seventh Soul Ring! (Note: Personally, I believe Tang Chen knows Soul Ring Fusion, or at least has studied it. After all, in that era, this was the only known method regarding Soul Rings. Tang Chen couldn't have created the Great Sumeru Hammer out of thin air; there had to be a theoretical basis.)
"Fuse!"
Tang Chen let out a painful roar, fine blood cracks splitting across his skin, but the madness and Battle Intent in his eyes burned to the extreme! With the energy of the first six Soul Rings poured into it, the crimson color on the seventh Soul Ring suddenly became intense, radiating ten thousand beams of light, finally turning completely into a deep red—a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring!
Although this was only temporary, by using the "Soul Ring Fusion" secret technique and sacrificing the first six Soul Rings through Ring Explosion, he forcibly raised the quality of the seventh Soul Ring to the hundred-thousand-year level for a short time!
This technique was even more violent than normal Soul Ring Fusion techniques, with extremely strong backlash. If not for Tang Chen's inhuman physique and suspected high-quality Soul Bone protection, he would have likely been blown apart by this violent energy instantly! The prototype of the Great Sumeru Hammer's Profound Truth might have originated from his insights into using power in such an extreme state.
The cost was huge, but the harvest was also amazing! With the addition of the hundred-thousand-year Martial Soul True Body, Tang Chen's body expanded again like a giant supporting the heavens. The Clear Sky Hammer in his hand seemed to have transformed into the mountain itself, emitting a suffocating and terrifying pressure! He had lost his first six Martial Soul Abilities, but for him, who had long ago integrated the Clear Sky Hammer techniques into his instincts and reached Major Achievement in the hammer Concept, the lack of Martial Soul Abilities instead allowed him to focus more on the Origin of power. Every strike and form returned to simplicity, yet the power increased geometrically!
"Heaven Breaker!"
Tang Chen hissed, swinging the giant hammer, which seemed to be formed from the fangs of a hundred-thousand-year Soul Beast. Carrying a Concept that could destroy everything, he ignored the coiling Yi Wood Divine Thunder and the suppressing Wu Earth Divine Thunder. With the purest and most overbearing power, he smashed down fiercely toward Yu Yuanchen! The power of this strike had truly reached a level where even a Titled Douluo would have to temporarily avoid its sharpness!
Yu Yuanchen's eyes finally showed an unprecedented look of gravity. Qian Daoliu's God Descent state and Tang Chen's Soul Ring Fusion explosion far exceeded his expectations. The talent and courage of these two close friends were truly world-shaking!
"Well come!"
He shook his long spear, and the five-element lightning around him no longer attacked separately but suddenly retracted, rotating rapidly around him to form a protective canopy of intertwined five-colored lightning, hard-resisting Qian Daoliu's white-gold holy sword and Tang Chen's heaven-collapsing giant hammer!
"BOOM—!!!"
An unprecedentedly terrifying explosion rose in the center of the valley! Blinding light swallowed everything, and a violent energy shockwave spread in all directions like a tsunami, shaving off a layer of the rock walls at the edge of the valley! The entire Savage Beast Hills could feel this terrifying vibration, and countless Soul Beasts fled in terror.
The light dissipated, revealing the scene on the field.
Yu Yuanchen's Thunder Sacred Dragon True Body had dimmed significantly, a trace of purple-gold blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth. The arm holding the spear trembled slightly; he had clearly suffered some shocks in the collision just now. The five-thunder canopy had shattered, but it had ultimately blocked that killing strike.
Qian Daoliu's God Descent state deactivated. His face was pale, his Aura withered, and the light of his six wings was dim. Clearly, performing God Descent had placed a massive burden on him.
Tang Chen was the most miserable, covered in blood and barely standing by leaning on the Clear Sky Hammer. The backlash from the Ring Explosion began to manifest, but the fire of battle in his eyes still burned fiercely.
All three were nearing their limits; their Soul Power, physical strength, and Spiritual energy were all heavily consumed.
A brief dead silence fell over the valley, with only the heavy breathing of the three.
Yu Yuanchen wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. Looking at his two opponents who, though in a sorry state, possessed unyielding Battle Intent, his eyes were full of appreciation and excitement. He slowly raised the thunder dragon spear. At the tip of the spear, the last of the purple-gold Thunder True Essence began to condense. Though weak, it carried a decisiveness that moved forward without turning back.
Qian Daoliu and Tang Chen also mustered their last bit of strength, raising the holy sword and giant hammer once more.
The final showdown, only one strike left!
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