Chapter 182 - 171: Did I Let You Leave?

"Kill him! Work together and kill him!" Ji Chenhai screamed, scared out of his mind.

The other five finally reacted. Tossing aside the Demon-Breaking Arrow, they moved into a formation, surrounding Shen Lang. Then, wielding their Spiritual Artifacts, they prepared to attack at once.

On the other side, two people from Evil Wind Valley were frantically helping Yi Hongchen stop his bleeding, while the others stood guard.

They seemed to have great confidence in Shen Lang’s Cultivation, so they didn’t move forward to help him.

CRACKLE!

A Trident crackling with Thunder Power was the first to strike, approaching from Shen Lang’s right with astonishing momentum.

’A Thunder Element Technique? A bit rare...’ Shen Lang smiled faintly. Though his feet hadn’t moved at all, his body strangely shifted back just enough to let the Trident slip past him.

The man holding the Trident, whose gaze had been cold and sinister, now showed a look of utter horror. He tried to immediately swing the Trident around for a horizontal sweep.

But how could Shen Lang let him continue?

In an instant, Shen Lang’s right hand clamped down on the electricity-wreathed Trident. With a light tremor, he channeled an incomparably ferocious stream of Thunder Power into it, which instantly blasted from the Trident into the man’s body!

Shen Lang had already gone through the Refinement of the Nine Heavens Thunder Pure Thunder Power, a feat he’d accomplished by risking his life. How could an ordinary Qi Martial Realm Sixth Heaven Martial Artist possibly withstand such violent Thunder Power?

The sound of a thunderclap erupted from within the man’s body. With a blood-curdling scream, the Trident’s owner was sent flying high into the air.

Almost simultaneously, the Trident in Shen Lang’s right hand shot forward with explosive speed. Its path shifted slightly, leaving behind an afterimage as it, carrying ferocious Thunder Power, cleverly and precisely pierced the chest of the Martial Artist to Shen Lang’s left rear.

It was as if the Trident in Shen Lang’s hand had been waiting there all along, and the man had simply run himself into it!

The Longsword in the Martial Artist’s hand was less than a foot from Shen Lang’s neck, but it could not move a single inch closer.

His whole body trembled as he struggled to lower his head. He stared in disbelief at the Trident embedded in his chest, blood pouring from his mouth.

Shen Lang raised the Trident, blocking the attacks of a saber and a sword from the two men in front of him with two sharp CLANGS. A tremor ran through the Trident, and the immense force instantly knocked both men back.

Then, Shen Lang twisted his waist sharply and whipped his right leg backward like a lash. It cut through the air with a piercing whistle, like a whip cracking. It moved so fast that the spectators from Evil Wind Valley couldn’t even see the leg’s trajectory!

"UWAAH!"

A pained cry came from behind. The man’s Copper Hammer was still in mid-swing when Shen Lang’s kick landed on his head. Spitting blood, he flew through the air and crashed hard onto the ground, shattering the stones beneath him.

It was clear he was not going to survive.

’How is this possible!’

Fear filled the eyes of the man with the sword in front. Without a second thought, he tossed his Longsword aside and pulled out a black Giant Shield, which enveloped him in a pale cyan halo of light.

Then, the man turned and fled, his speed double what it had been when he was attacking!

Having witnessed Shen Lang kill a man with every move—without even drawing his own weapon—the man was scared out of his wits and didn’t dare to linger any longer.

"Trying to run now? It’s too late!"

Shen Lang pushed off his back foot and shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring. In the blink of an eye, he covered more than fifteen meters and caught up to the man protecting himself with the shield.

He planted his foot, his movement a whirlwind, his fist a clap of thunder. With unstoppable momentum, he smashed his fist straight into the Giant Shield!

At this display of unparalleled might and immense explosive power, everyone present, including the group from Evil Wind Valley, turned pale.

BOOM!

It was like a sky-shattering thunderclap, the force of it sending booming echoes reverberating throughout the canyon, making the eardrums of the Evil Wind Valley members ache.

That seemingly ordinary fist pierced straight through the Giant Shield as if shattering glass and slammed into the center of the Martial Artist’s back.

SPLAT!

Blood sprayed everywhere. A Qi Martial Realm Sixth Heaven Martial Artist was killed just like that, with a single, simple punch.

Even the Spirit Light on the Giant Shield completely vanished, the artifact rendered useless by that one punch.

"There was no Spirit Light on his fist. The Powerful Qi was so condensed, it didn’t dissipate at all. It’s like... it’s like he didn’t use any Spiritual Power..." Luo Fengling said in horror.

The others from Evil Wind Valley shuddered, finding it hard to believe.

Without Spiritual Power, there was no enhancement from Spiritual Power, nor was there any activation of a Cultivation Technique.

This Ghost-faced Person had relied solely on his physical strength to punch through a high-grade Spiritual Artifact and kill a Qi Martial Realm Sixth Heaven Martial Artist on the spot?

Just how much power would that take?

Just by touching the Trident, he had electrocuted an expert who cultivated a Thunder Element Technique to death.

He then used that same Trident to kill another expert, followed by a kick that crippled a third, and finally, a single, unadorned punch that annihilated a fourth who was trying to flee behind a Giant Shield...

In the blink of an eye, four of the five men from the Holy Light Sect were dead.

This was a complete one-sided slaughter!

Ji Chenhai looked like he was going insane, shaking his head like a rattle-drum and muttering, "Impossible! Impossible!"

The last Martial Artist, the one who used a saber, was now the farthest from Shen Lang. As he watched all this unfold, an unprecedented chill rose from the bottom of his heart.

’Run!’

The Martial Artist’s heart trembled. He lifted his head slightly, just in time to see Shen Lang smiling at him.

’What a terrifying man. No wonder he could silently annihilate a whole group of our martial brothers...’

That smile from Shen Lang sent a chill down the man’s spine, making him feel as if he were being targeted by a Fierce Beast from the Primordial Chaos.

A sense of despair and helplessness washed over him. The hand gripping his saber began to tremble violently. Though his mind screamed at him to flee, his legs felt as if they were filled with lead, utterly unable to move.

In the space of just one or two breaths, sweat had already soaked through his clothes!

CLANG!

He planted his long saber on the ground, and the Martial Artist actually dropped to one knee. In a trembling voice, he said, "I am an insignificant nobody. Killing me would be as easy as crushing an ant. But if I live, I can do much more for you. Please, milord, spare my life! I will go through fire and water for you without hesitation!"

The people from Evil Wind Valley were speechless. They thought to themselves that this guy was certainly direct; instead of trying to run, he had gone straight to begging for mercy...

But undeniably, under these circumstances, it was the best possible option.

The members of Evil Wind Valley, at least, had to admit they couldn’t have come up with such a method to save their own lives.

Shen Lang gave him an indifferent glance without any reaction, then turned to face Ji Chenhai, who had quietly retreated more than ten meters away.

"Nether Fire Silk!"

Ji Chenhai roared, and three ribbons burning with black flames flew from his hands, sweeping toward Shen Lang in horrifying clusters of fire.

"Star Divine Fork!"

A small Trident shot out like a meteor, trailing a brilliant streak of light as it flew from Ji Chenhai’s sleeve, aimed straight for Shen Lang’s face.

"Eight-Treasure Electric Light Hammer!"

The already enormous, fiery-red hammer, crackling with electricity, suddenly swelled to dozens of times its size in mid-air. Then, with immense wind pressure, it descended to smash down on Shen Lang.

"Nine Netherworld Ghost Claw!"

But he wasn’t finished. Ji Chenhai then unleashed a giant, ink-black claw. Like the hand of a Demon, it descended from the void to grab Shen Lang.

The massive Nine Netherworld Ghost Claw looked as if it could tear the very earth apart. The tremendous sound of it ripping through the air made the approaching members of Evil Wind Valley cry out in alarm!

These few Spiritual Artifacts were released with almost no interval between them, at the pinnacle of speed.

Only then did the people from Evil Wind Valley realize that Ji Chenhai had been hiding his true Cultivation all along and possessed quite a few powerful Magical Treasures!

If he had fought this desperately earlier, Yi Hongchen would probably have died several times over!

...

With a crazed expression, Ji Chenhai unleashed all of his Spiritual Artifacts.

He didn’t care whether the Spiritual Artifacts could actually handle Shen Lang. He immediately dashed three steps forward and to the right. Then, a pair of light wings unfurled behind him, and with a WHOOSH, Ji Chenhai shot into the sky!

"Be careful!"

Luo Fengling and the others who were rushing over from behind cried out.

"Did I say you could leave?"

Shen Lang’s voice was like something from the Nine Netherworld Prison, sending a chill through everyone’s bodies.

The next second, a flash of blade light seemed to tear through the Azure Vault. The blade strike’s momentum was like a rainbow, its sound like rolling thunder. It directly sliced through the several attacking Spiritual Artifacts, and then, with its momentum undiminished, it instantly struck Ji Chenhai, who was already in the air.

SHIIIIICK!

A crisp sound rang out as Ji Chenhai’s body was split in two. A rain of blood showered down from the sky.

THUD. THUD. The two halves of his body fell to the ground.

Seeing this scene, the few members of Evil Wind Valley who had just been hating Ji Chenhai to the bone all turned their heads and began to vomit violently.

As they vomited, a cold chill ran through them.

They knew this mysterious Ghost-faced Person was extremely powerful, but they had never imagined he would be powerful to this extent!

With just a single, simple slash, he had not only sent several powerful Spiritual Artifacts flying but had also sliced the desperately fleeing Ji Chenhai in two while he was mid-air!

He was already freakishly strong without using a blade. But once he drew one, his strike was enough to startle gods and demons!

The slash was so fast that the people from Evil Wind Valley hadn’t even seen him draw his blade!

The slash was so fast that it caught up to Ji Chenhai, who was escaping with a Flying Spiritual Artifact!

Keep in mind, they were already more than ten meters apart, and Ji Chenhai had even dashed a bit further before shooting into the sky!

To be able to release Sword Qi over such a great distance and at such a speed... his level of Cultivation was truly unimaginable...

The people from Evil Wind Valley were panting heavily, all of them stunned into silence.

"Senior, I beg you, please save Hongchen!"

While the others were still stunned, Luo Fengling suddenly dropped to one knee before Shen Lang.

The rest of the Evil Wind Valley members finally snapped out of it and immediately followed her, kneeling on one knee.

Shen Lang glanced at Yi Hongchen and said dispassionately, "This fellow has a fierce and courageous streak in his bones. He’s a character, unlike the young masters from certain Sects... Don’t worry, he won’t die."

As he spoke, he tapped several points on Yi Hongchen’s body, sending a few Spirit Techniques into him.

Then, Shen Lang lightly slapped Yi Hongchen’s left shoulder. With a THWIP, the broken-off piece of the Silver Spear shot out like an arrow and embedded itself in a block of bluestone.

Strangely, when the spear tip left Yi Hongchen’s body, not a drop of blood sprayed from the large, gaping wound.

After that, he pulled out the Demon-Breaking Arrow as well.

Only then did Shen Lang place a translucent, jade-like Elixir Pill into Yi Hongchen’s mouth, before abruptly slapping him on the back.

"Ghk... ghk..."

A strange gurgling sound came from Yi Hongchen’s throat. Immediately after, his eyes shot open, startling the members of Evil Wind Valley.

Turning his head with some difficulty, Yi Hongchen immediately saw the Evil Ghost Mask on Shen Lang’s face.

"Hah!"

In a purely subconscious reaction, Yi Hongchen clenched his right hand into a fist and threw a punch at Shen Lang.

"Don’t!" Luo Fengling cried out in alarm.