Chapter Sixty-Five: Clash

Chapter Sixty-Five: The Clash

Soon, everyone regained their composure. The desperate flight had left a shadow over everyone’s hearts. Although they had escaped the beast tide, Chu Jie felt they were still far from safe.

After recovering, he noticed the number of demon beasts in the vicinity was steadily increasing. This meant the beasts from the seventh terrace had most likely all poured into the eighth.

Du Xuan said, “Just now, we have to thank you and your companions for having our backs. If not, we would’ve lost even more people.”

The others all chimed in to express their gratitude to Chu Jie.

“Yes, with you behind us, we felt so much safer.”

“If you hadn’t been there to hold the line, I would’ve been dragged off and torn apart by that black giant ape for sure.”

“It was nothing—what I should do,” Chu Jie replied.

He helped these people mostly to help himself. If it came down to fighting the monsters head-on and there weren’t enough people, neither he nor Duan Kun could hold them off alone.

“We don’t have much time; let’s hurry on to the ninth terrace!” Du Xuan suggested.

The ninth terrace was the deepest level of the Abyss of Gods and Demons; all the upheavals had started from there. Chu Jie was intensely curious as to what had happened in the abyss to trigger such drastic changes.

Zhou Jie said, “Let’s just hope certain people don’t hold us back at the bottom.”

As he spoke, his eyes swept disdainfully over Chu Jie, the strange brilliance of his forehead guard flickering.

Du Xuan shot Chu Jie an apologetic look. Although what had just happened had made Chu Jie and his companion part of the group, everyone could see that Chu Jie and Duan Kun seemed ready to leave at any time. Moreover, the conflict between Chu Jie and Zhou Jie was still simmering, like a ticking time bomb.

Chu Jie stood, a cold killing intent radiating from him. Once again, he entertained the notion of eliminating Zhou Jie. Perhaps now was the perfect opportunity—fresh from escaping the beast horde, the loss of a single team member would go unnoticed.

“Why don’t we have a little contest to see who the real dead weight is?” Chu Jie stared Zhou Jie down.

Zhou Jie returned his gaze, “I couldn’t ask for more. Let me show you—even with your precious artifact, I can still finish you off.” An imposing aura surged from Zhou Jie.

Duan Kun wanted to intervene, but Chu Jie refused his help. He wanted to fight alone, to make Zhou Jie admit defeat wholeheartedly.

The scroll of Samsara within Chu Jie spun rapidly, spiritual energy surging in his core. He prepared to strike with his most powerful move—the Nine Suns Heaven-Cracking Claw.

At the same moment, Zhou Jie transformed into a streak of light, sword slashing at Chu Jie’s throat. Sword flashes crisscrossed the air, but Chu Jie’s nimble dodges left him untouched.

Both had pushed their speed to the limit; to onlookers, only two blurs clashed again and again.

Du Xuan’s face changed dramatically. He wanted to stop them, but it was already too late—their battle was too swift. All that remained was to await the outcome.

Chu Jie’s scroll of Samsara gathered enough spiritual energy. He unleashed his strongest attack: the Nine Suns Heaven-Cracking Claw.

Above Zhou Jie’s head, a tremendous force suddenly materialized. No matter how he dodged, it locked onto him unerringly.

In the next instant, a golden dragon claw appeared above his head, descending with a thunderous imprint. If it struck true, Zhou Jie would be flayed alive if not killed outright.

Zhou Jie’s face twisted with rage, his eyes blazing. He felt the crushing pressure above, yet he didn’t seem particularly fazed—he simply slashed upward with his sword.

Sword and golden dragon claw collided, ringing out like metal on stone. The sword shattered, inch by inch. Chu Jie’s technique was overwhelmingly fierce; how could an ordinary sword withstand it?

The golden claw, unstoppable, crashed down on Zhou Jie’s head. But the expected sight of a skull splitting open did not come to pass.

Instead, the forehead guard atop Zhou Jie’s head blazed with radiance. Relying on this artifact, he actually withstood Chu Jie’s Nine Suns Heaven-Cracking Claw!

“What, surprised?” Zhou Jie laughed wildly. “You’re not alone—many have died in just such surprise before! Thanks to my artifact, my defense is unmatched. If you want to break through, you’d better go back and train a few more years!”

With that, Zhou Jie’s expression shifted, and he shot toward Chu Jie in a beam of light.

“Nether God Fist of Heaven and Earth!”

Dark shadows wreathed his hands, even more potent than the shadow Duan Kun could form with his legs.

A blazing sun appeared on Chu Jie’s fist—the Great Sun Heavenfire Fist, his fastest technique.

But Zhou Jie’s onslaught was relentless, countless spectral fists raining down. His Nether King Fist was tyrannical, which explained his arrogance.

The suns orbiting Chu Jie’s body did their utmost to block the onslaught.

Chu Jie realized Zhou Jie’s attack power, defense, and spiritual energy recovery were all formidable—no wonder he was so brazen.

But Chu Jie did not fear him.

Since Zhou Jie was using an artifact, Chu Jie would as well. Now it was a contest of who had the greater arsenal.

A glimmer leapt from Chu Jie’s fist: the Heaven and Earth Treasure Wheel, usually worn as a gauntlet, now flew forth as a streak of light toward Zhou Jie.

Zhou Jie’s glow intensified, spiritual energy and his forehead guard surging to the utmost. Violent waves rippled outward from him.

“What’s wrong, can’t take it anymore?” Chu Jie taunted, directing the Treasure Wheel to strike precisely at the forehead guard. If he could break the defense, the rest would follow.

But shattering such a defense was easier said than done.

“Courting death!” Zhou Jie shouted.

Light burst from his forehead, his artifact pushed to the limit. Concentric ripples spread in the air.

The Treasure Wheel struck.

With a thunderous crash, Zhou Jie was sent flying. Yet when he landed, he’d only suffered minor injuries. His forehead guard had once again proven its worth.

“Heh, this thing’s defense is incredible. In fact, even the one who sold it to me had no idea just how powerful it was. What else can you throw at me? Why not kneel and kowtow three times—I might just spare your life,” Zhou Jie sneered.

Zhou Jie’s strength came from his forehead guard. If it could be broken, victory might still be possible.

Everyone watched Zhou Jie. He was simply too formidable—Chu Jie’s attacks struck like thunder, but every time, Zhou Jie’s guard absorbed most of the force, leaving the remainder negligible.

Chu Jie’s expression was grim. This situation was intolerable. He racked his brain for a solution. Finally, he decided: he would unleash all his techniques and artifacts in a single, concentrated assault.

“Why bother wasting your energy?” Zhou Jie laughed, his tone turning cruel. “I’ll make sure you remember this.”

With that, Zhou Jie lunged at Chu Jie again.

The two blurred together in a flurry of collisions. Zhou Jie tried every trick to bring Chu Jie down. His Nether King Fist, though tyrannical, was useless against the Great Sun Heavenfire Fist.

This time, Zhou Jie focused most of his spiritual power into his fist, conjuring a shadow around it.

“Let me show you the difference between us, so you’ll know just how shallow your skills are,” Zhou Jie said coldly, his fist striking with such speed it landed squarely on Chu Jie.

Chu Jie’s body stiffened as an overwhelming force invaded his body. With his current cultivation, all he could do was grit his teeth and endure. Fortunately, his Nine Tribulations Sacred Body was abnormally strong, so even as Zhou Jie’s power surged into him, Chu Jie did not panic.

“Hmph. My Nether King Force is inside your body now; it will destroy you from within and turn you into a real corpse!” Zhou Jie sent the last trace of his force into Chu Jie’s body.

For an instant, Chu Jie’s body seemed to swell—but quickly settled down.

He had thought he couldn’t withstand the blow, but he bore it completely. The Nether King Force entered his body, but failed to take effect, eventually dissipating altogether, leaving him unharmed.

Unhurt, Chu Jie began to plot his counterattack.

He stepped forward, the scroll of Samsara in his core spinning violently. He would use the Nine Suns Heaven-Cracking Claw to open the way, then deploy all his other techniques and artifacts against Zhou Jie.

Having missed his strike, Zhou Jie’s face turned utterly cold. “You may have survived this time, but the next round won’t be so easy.”

A layer of black flames suddenly cloaked his body, as if he were burning alive.

Chu Jie’s scroll of Samsara spun even faster, draining vast amounts of spiritual energy. He held some back to channel into the Heaven and Earth Treasure Wheel, and prepared to combine it with the Great Sun Heavenfire Fist.

His previous scattered attacks had been neutralized; now, he would focus everything into a single, overwhelming strike.

The black flames around Zhou Jie grew fiercer, black whirlwinds beginning to howl around him.

The rest of the team looked on with alarm and uncertainty. Zhou Jie’s display of power left their minds blank, unable to process everything at once.

As Zhou Jie was engulfed in black fire, he felt his eyes turn blood-red—a rage rising within him, an urge to tear apart everything before him.