While Geng Zhan and Xiao Daibao looked at Liang Chen with wary and shocked gazes, Liang Chen clenched his fist, looking at his fist. The shimmering gray scales covered both his arms and part of his neck, stopping at his adam's apple. His gray hair and eyes produced a strange charm, causing Liang Chen to give off a dreary feeling, as if he was the inevitable passing of time that turned all life to dust.
Liang Chen felt his entire body brimming with power, far more than he ever felt himself control before. The bloodline of an Origin beast was truly something spectacular. But Liang Chen knew that this was just the start, nothing but the tip of the iceberg.
Back when the Sebettu elder awakened his bloodline, he had only been a small remnant fragment of a soul, his power was limited. That was why he said that he would only slightly awaken Liang Chen's bloodline, he truly didn't have the remaining power to fully awaken it. So Liang Chen's bloodline was still in the process of fully awakening, and once it fully awakened, it wouldn't be just his arms that became covered in scales.
Liang Chen's gaze was lifted and returned to Geng Zhen and Xiao Diabao, who had both taken three steps back and pulled out their weapons. An unexpected situation had arisen, but that did not mean that they were going to flee. Even if things spiraled too far out of control and they died here, they had to at least gather up some information and do their best to send it back to their sects, that way their lives wouldn't have been lost in vain.
Geng Zhen wielded two small double-headed axes, while Xiao Daibao wielded a strange metal staff that had a spearhead on both ends, allowing both ends of the weapon to be used as a spear. There were vein-like grooves etched into the weapon, most likely so that any blood that splashed on the weapon didn't make him lose his grip.
Liang Chen didn't have a weapon of his own, as his weapon shattered as he entered the Storm Wolf sect, and he had yet to buy any new weapons he could use. Since that was the case, he could only raise his fists and take on a battle-ready stance. With both sides taking on their stances, a tense silence descended on the area, even the distant sounds of Yan Ling's battle becoming hushed.
The silence was broken when the earth beneath Liang Chen suddenly changed, turning almost liquid as it started to churn and seethe like waves, destabilizing his foothold. This was when his enemies dashed forward, perfectly exploiting the moment Liang Chen's body was forced to move.
Xiao Daibao was the first to arrive by Liang Chen, moving far faster than Liang Chen ever expected him to. In less than the time it took to blink, he had already arrived behind Liang Chen, stabbing at Liang Chen's spine with his two-sided spear, transparent energy surrounding the tip and drastically increasing its speed.
Time around Liang Chen's head started to speed up, allowing him to glance at the spear tip coming for his back, and then glancing at the approaching Geng Zhen. Geng Zhen was still a short distance away, but he had placed both his axes together, a silver light gathering around them as he charged up what was likely going to be a rather powerful attack.
Liang Chen's eyes narrowed dangerously as he twisted his body, turning around to face Xiao Daibao's stab. A two-layered bubble of energy surrounded the tip of the weapon, slowing down time and decreasing its speed while also speeding up the time of the transparent energy that surrounded it, causing the energy to wither at a faster pace.
Activating his bloodline drastically strengthened his law of time, but it was still very draining to use it on other living beings or pure energy, so there was a limit to how much he could do. With the speed of the attack slowing down, Liang Chen got a bit more time to prepare.
He stomped down on the churning earth beneath him, azure lightning bursting forth from his foot, shattering the semi-liquid earth and sending chunks flying through the air. He stopped time beneath his feet for two seconds, allowing him to stand in thin air and face Xiao Daibao's attack.
He sent out a sideways bunch with his left arm, diverting the path of the spear and having it slide past his waist. He then raised his right knee, aiming it at the middle of the weapon, he also slammed his right elbow down on the handle, aiming for the same spot that his knee was about to hit.
His knee and elbow both hit the weapon at the same time, azure lightning bursting forth and pouring into the weapon. But things didn't go as Liang Chen wished, the weapon showed no signs of breaking or weakening.
His actions were backed by the law of time and the law of lightning, allowing him to perform them incredibly fast, but Xiao Daibao was also able to react incredibly quickly. The moment Liang Chen's attack failed, Xiao Daibao exerted all his strength with his arms, the robe covering them exploding and revealing his thick arms covered in bulging veins.
He forcefully pushed his other arm forward, turning the still ongoing stab into a strong push, the handle of the spear digging into Liang Chen's abdomen and pushing him back, right towards Geng Zhen, who had now arrived right behind him.
Geng Zhen sent out a sideways slash with his axes, still holding them against each other. The silver light around them had almost turned blinding, stretching towards the sky as if it wanted to connect with the unseen moon. Liang Chen swiftly reacted, freezing the time of the air right in front of the axes.
The attack managed to shatter the blockade after only a short second, completely overpowering it, but that short second was enough for Liang Chen to prepare another layer of defense. He took half a step back, just enough to put a few centimeters of distance between himself and the double-sided spear that Xiao Daibao was holding against Liang Chen's stomach.
With the distance created, he grabbed onto Xiao Daibao's wrists and forced the right side of the weapon to tilt slightly upwards, just enough to push it into the path of the incoming axes. But Liang Chen had grossly underestimated the strength of the attack, he had also underestimated the determination of his enemies.
Understanding Liang Chen's intent, Xiao Daibao actually eased up how much strength he had put into his arms, allowing Liang Chen to tilt the weapon into an almost perpendicular position. Once the weapon was in an upright position, Xiao Daibao put strength into his arms again, stabbing one end of the weapon into the ground, forcibly lowering it somewhat. He then stretched out his arm and grabbed onto Liang Chen's robe, pulling him closer, both of them now standing almost right next to the weapon.
The two axes slammed into the spear with full force, the power of the attack causing the weapon to spin. The ground burst open as the lower end of the weapon swung upwards and sliced a wound into Geng Zhen's leg, meanwhile, the top end swung downwards and sliced a wound into Xiao Daibao's cheek.
Both of them had wounded themselves to do it, but they achieved the desired effect. The axes slid along the now horizontal weapon, slamming into the forcibly pulled forward Liang Chen, who could only raise his left arm in defense, his right arm stretching out and attempting to grab onto Geng Zhen's right wrist.
The axes reached his left arm before he was able to grab onto Geng Zhen's wrist, but his fingers were still able to slightly make contact with Geng Zhen's wrist, gently brushing them. The axes smashed into Liang Chen's arm, a shattering sound ringing out as several of the shimmering gray scales were crushed.
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The force was transmitted to the rest of Liang Chen's body, resulting in him being thrown through the air like a cannonball. He smashed into the nearest building, the walls of ice caving in the moment he made contact with them. The entire building was reduced to rubble, large chunks of ice burying Liang Chen's body.
Liang Chen could feel his left arm burning, hot blood pouring out from the places where the scales had shattered. The bones inside his arm were aching, but he was still able to move his arm, so he was sure that it hadn't broken from the attack. His ribs were also aching, his breathing rather rushed and shallow, so he guessed that one or two of his ribs had shattered from the transmitted force, possibly puncturing one of his lungs.
Was this the strength of someone at the late stage of the Heaven's Gate realm? Just a single attack, one which he had done his best to block, and yet it was enough to almost shatter his arm while also breaking several of his ribs.
Liang Chen pushed away the chunks of ice that were covering his body, standing up and tossing away the thoughts. Even if the difference in strength was greater, he would still make sure to hold back both of the enemies while Yan Ling was dealing with the others. And it wasn't like he was completely helpless and unable to retaliate, there were still ways for him to fight.
After standing up, his eyes landed on Geng Zhen and Xiao Daibao, who were both standing a short distance away, their defenses raised. They weren't certain what Liang Chen was capable of, so neither of them were willing to walk up to him while he was buried by the rubble, just in case he launched a sneak attack. Seeing him stand up and gaze at them with narrowed eyes, his pupils having turned into gray slits, their mouths couldn't help but twitch.
"You really did manage to survive that. Is it because of that strange law you used?"
Liang Chen didn't respond, but their words allowed him to ascertain something. If their informant really was someone from the Storm Wolf sect, they didn't have a very high position, they were likely a disciple. The fact that Liang Chen had the law of time wasn't a complete secret in the Storm Wolf sect, Yan Ling and her family knew it, the higher ranked elders like Guanyu knew it, even the guardians of the nine different Supreme Techniques knew it.
But none of the disciples knew this piece of information, the various elders who knew about it helping Liang Chen keep it hidden, allowing it to serve as a trump card should he ever face people from the other sects who had ties with spies inside the Storm Wolf sect.
Seeing that they weren't going to get a response from Liang Chen, Geng Zhen and Xiao Daibao prepared to resume combat. But as they were raising their weapons, Geng Zhen's right arm suddenly trembled fiercely, an intense pain shooting up his entire arm. His right hand involuntarily loosened its grip, letting go of the axe it was holding.
In shock, he swiftly tore away the clothing that covered his right arm, revealing his arm. A yellow mark in the shape of a small spider had appeared on his wrist, in the location that Liang Chen's fingers had brushed past earlier. The veins on his right arm were bulging and wriggling, a faint yellow liquid visible in them even through his skin. His expression couldn't help but twist, uttering a shocked and confused exclamation.
"Poison from a Yellow-veined Birdeater? But how?!"
A Yellow-veined Birdeater was a type of Demonic beast, a weak spider-type monster who's only notable feature was the fact that it had a slow working poison that could corrode not only flesh and blood, but also Qi. But the poison truly was slow working, sometimes taking several weeks or even months before taking effect and starting its corroding.
Looking at the poison, which was rapidly corroding his right arm, Geng Zhen and Xiao Daibao couldn't help but be shocked. Yellow-veined Birdeater's couldn't live in this cold environment, and they hadn't entered a place where such a weak type of Demonic beast lived for several years already. So just how had the poison entered Geng Zhen's body, and how was it working so rapidly?
Their eyes quickly landed on Liang Chen, the only explanation they could think of. Their information only said that he could use lightning, even able to use the azure heavenly lightning, it had never mentioned anything about poison. But what other explanation was there for such a strange situation?
Their guess was spot on. A yellow-veined Birdeater was among the Demonic beasts that Liang Chen had first killed when he started cultivating, when he bathed in his first ever Demonic beast blood. The Qi corroding effect of this poison was exactly what he was after now, looking to weaken Geng Zhen. It was slow working, but with his law of time, it was easy to speed up the time of the poison, allowing it to work far faster than normal.
Liang Chen didn't ease up after poisoning Geng Zhen's arm, he suddenly dashed forward. Time all around his body sped up, azure lightning crackling around him as his speed reached its peak. In the blink of an eye, he arrived in front of Geng Zhen, who hurriedly did his best to jump back. Xiao Daibao stabbed at Liang Chen with his double-sided spear, buying time for Geng Zhen.
But Liang Chen's target had never been Geng Zhen, his target was the axe that he had dropped. Liang Chen crouched down and picked up the axe with his right arm, stretching out his left to block the incoming spear. The spear stabbed into Liang Chen's left hand, the transparent energy around it allowing it to pierce through his scales and arm as if they were butter. The spear continued onward, piercing through Liang Chen's left shoulder.
But Liang Chen didn't even reach to his hand and shoulder getting pierced, having already numbed his sense of pain. Instead, he used his pierced hand to grab onto the spear, pulling Xiao Daibao closer. As Xia Daibao was forced to take a step forward, Liang Chen burst forth with all his strength, slashing out with the axe in his hand, a soft voice sounding out within his heart.
"Second step splits the waterfall."
Liang Chen instantly used his strongest attack, the Dragon Lord's Three Steps. He had gotten more accustomed to the technique, so he no longer had to do the actual steps before unleashing the attack, allowing him to burst forth with all his might in a split second.
The axe he was holding disintegrated from the energy produced by the attack, the bones within his fingers shattering as his body was still unable to properly contain the energy of the second step. But the attack was still delivered, the earth in a 50-meter circle around Liang Chen and Xiao Daibao shattering and blown apart. An earth-shattering explosion rang out as the sound of thunder silenced everything else, a blinding azure light drowning out everything else, obscuring Liang Chen and Xiao Daibao from sight.