In fact, had Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, taken even a small step back, it might not have compelled Old Howard to bring out a Divine Artifact like the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant. But to retreat would be a loss of face and stance. Just as Old Howard was unwilling to be utterly humiliated outside his family's stronghold, Chen Fei had no intention of being intimidated in the West by a mere battered axe! A Divine Artifact? How strong or fearsome it was could only be known after a clash.
"Humph!" Seeing this, Old Howard's expression turned cold, and he no longer wished to speak. With a step forward, the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant in his hands seemed to endow him with the power of a Divine Spirit. A force like a volcanic eruption, akin to the overwhelming Divine Power of a tsunami, emanated from both his body and the blade of the axe. It was invisible to the naked eye yet exceptionally formidable, reminiscent of the weapon of the war god Ares himself; anything that stood before him was doomed to be shattered and destroyed.
Following that, the power of the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant seemed to be unleashed in a frenzy, climbing continuously. It even appeared to gradually suppress the aura being exhibited by Chen Fei, Young Master Chen. This was the terrifying aspect of a Divine Artifact, a pinnacle weapon from the Western Dark World!
"So... so terrifying. Is this a legendary Divine Artifact?" Not far away, Old Brad, Duke Ovilia, and the other members of the Brad Family were utterly shaken to their core. The Brad Family did not possess Holy Artifacts of such a high caliber, which was why they were so deeply staggered.
BOOM! RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE!
In the air, the mere collision of auras between the black sphere formed by the Mystic Stone Mirror and Old Howard wielding his Battle Axe of the Hill Giant seemed about to rip the atmosphere apart. It erupted with a dense, ear-piercing CRACKLE, as if it would burst everyone's eardrums. The ground beneath their feet began to collapse, layer by layer.
At that moment, the formidable, millstone-sized black sphere transformed from the Mystic Stone Mirror had already pressed to within half a meter of Old Howard.
"Do you truly wish for me to kill you?" Old Howard's face darkened to an extreme, and a frosty voice emerged from his lips. Yet, it was evident he also felt immense pressure, as the hand gripping the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant... began to... tremble...
"If you've got the guts, then try it." Chen Fei's eyes, as dark and clear as polished obsidian, flashed with a grim light, filled with madness and ferocity as he glared at Old Howard. This old geezer truly is the Ashford Family's ace in the hole, especially with that battered axe... But I, your Grandpa Fei, am no pushover! Kill me? If you think you can, then give it a try!
By then, his entire aura had reached its peak. The next moment, his eyes turned fierce and the corners of his mouth hooked into a smirk. He suddenly roared, "Smash it! Smash it hard!"
BOOM!
A force as heavy as a mountain erupted from the turmoil ahead!
In an instant, the black sphere formed by the Mystic Stone Mirror descended like a falling meteor, ruthlessly pressing down!
"HISS... HISS..."
Old Howard's eyes immediately reflected a grim intensity. His pupils constricted, and in a flash, his figure sharply retreated. His face remained fiercely cold and he let out a dangerous, eerie bat-like shriek that sent chills crawling up the spine. Then, he lifted the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant in his hand and brought it down in a vicious forward slash.
"Divine Punishment! Shatter it for me!"
Old Howard let out a low roar, colder than any normal man's, and the axe blade struck the black sphere. Space itself seemed to freeze for an instant!
BANG!
A collision as ferocious as a primordial beast erupted violently at the point of contact between the sphere and the axe blade! For a moment, a shockwave as powerful as a nuclear explosion spread out fiercely.
The spectacle was too terrifying for words.
In the next instant, the ground behind the twin black spheres of the Mystic Stone Mirror cracked open with a loud bang, as if cleaved by a giant, invisible axe. The fissure was nearly a hundred meters long and an exaggerated three to four meters wide, filled with an incredibly frightening and violent Divine Power that was extremely terrifying!
On the other side, the ground beneath the twin black spheres of the Mystic Stone Mirror revealed a jaw-dropping sight!
A pit!
A massive, deep pit!
A terrifying crater with a diameter of at least twenty meters and a depth of at least five!
"PFFT!"
At that moment, Chen Fei suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, nearly collapsing. But then he pursed his lips, his expression cold yet tinged with a semblance of a smile. "So this is a so-called Divine Artifact? It is indeed a bit formidable." In the end, he didn't fall; instead, he stood ramrod straight.
Although he had fought a fierce battle with Nemosin and Granny Doya earlier today, and was now clashing head-on with Old Howard wielding a Divine Artifact, he wasn't made of iron. By all rights, he should have been completely exhausted by now... yet for some reason, he was growing more and more excited.
No one answered his words. Everyone present was silent, staring dumbfounded at the battlefield, at that scene... Could this really be the work of a human!?
"I..." Prince Jamate suddenly shrank back, a hint of regret and fear flashing in his eyes. Why did I have to get into a verbal conflict with that madman, that monster!
THUD, THUD, THUD...
Just then, Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, resumed his stride, stopping in front of Brad. His eyes, playful yet filled with a chilling intent, were so cold that Brad felt he was about to break down completely. He started babbling incoherently, tears and snot streaming down his face, "Please, please don't kill me! I... I'll maim myself... SNAP!" It seemed he was genuinely terrified this time, as he snapped his own two wings with his hands, instantly plummeting from the Duke Realm!
"The Jade Compass?" Yet Chen Fei, Young Master Chen's indifferent tone remained unchanged as he spoke slowly. I certainly can't afford to fall short at the final hurdle.
"It's... It's in the castle!" Brad said, enduring the excruciating pain.
"Duke Ovilia, would you mind fetching that Jade Compass for me?" Chen Fei said.
"...Yes, I'll go right away." At these words, Duke Ovilia's entire body jolted. He lowered his head and glanced at Prince Jamate and Old Howard. Seeing no reaction from either, he immediately spread his wings and flew toward the castle at top speed.
By now, after personally witnessing the two previous 'horrifying scenes,' how could he dare to treat any command from Chen Fei with negligence?
Seeing this, Chen Fei squinted his eyes and said nothing. Old Howard, too, remained surprisingly silent, standing perfectly still. This left Prince Jamate feeling immensely conflicted and restless, but this time he truly didn't dare to speak first... Soon after, Duke Ovilia returned, carrying a large red box.
"Mr. Chen, this is what you were looking for," Duke Ovilia said, flying quickly to Chen Fei and offering the box.
"Mm."
Chen Fei nodded, a look of anticipation in his eyes. He took the box, took a deep breath, and finally opened the lid. Immediately, a pleasant aroma wafted out, causing the Jade Ring on his finger and the Jade Pendant on his neck to tremble slightly.
"That's right, this is it. I've finally found all three items." Delight and excitement lit up Young Master Chen's eyes. After all that work, it was finally time to reap the rewards.
"Let's go, Old Brad," he said with a smile, after closing the lid and stowing the box away.
Throughout this entire process, he didn't even glance in Old Howard's direction, treating them as if they were nothing but air.
Moments later, a fleet of Rolls-Royce cars drove out from the castle's parking area and departed. Only after witnessing that monster truly leave did Prince Jamate finally let his restless anxiety show. He turned to Old Howard and asked urgently, "Old man, that clash just now... who actually won?"
"Who won?"
After a long silence, Old Howard finally spoke, but he shook his head with a complex expression. "To be honest, even I don't know... who exactly won just now."
"You don't know... Hiss!" Prince Jamate was taken aback and started to ask more, but he swallowed his words halfway. As he was speaking, Prince Old Howard had suddenly raised his wrist for him to see.
There, on his wrist, was a very conspicuous, bloody wound!
"What's this?" Prince Jamate licked his lips, which had gone dry.
"It was shattered by the recoil," Old Howard replied, a look of immense awe and solemnity finally dawning in his eyes. The Battle Axe of the Hill Giant was a top-tier Divine Artifact, one of the greatest Holy Artifacts of the Western Dark World! And yet the force of the impact had been enough to shatter his wrist. What did that imply?
It meant one of two things: either the mirror in his opponent's hand was a top-tier Holy Artifact on par with the Battle Axe of the Hill Giant, or the Eastern lad's own strength had reached a level where he could compensate for the gap between his mirror and a Divine Artifact. Either scenario was absolutely astonishing!
Meanwhile, in one of the Rolls-Royce cars several kilometers away, Chen Fei, Young Master Chen, sat in the back seat. He took out his Mystic Stone Mirror again and touched a faint crack on its surface. His face immediately soured as he muttered in frustration, "Fuck you! That damn axe was really something, managing to leave a crack on this. I really overdid the showboating this time, sigh..."
Evidently, he had come out at a slight disadvantage in the previous clash, with his Mystic Stone Mirror even getting chipped by that damn axe. Fortunately, the Magic Artifact's core was not too severely damaged. A crack of this extent only required him to return and carefully refine and nurture it for a month or so to restore it completely.
So, it wasn't a major problem. But even so, he couldn't help but feel the sting of it.