“I see that you have defeated quite a few opponents. You must be pretty strong,” Zhang Xuan said as he glanced at the injured cultivators sprawled all over the dueling ring.
If even the sixth rank Qi Yue was defeated, it meant that the white-robed man on the stage was of an even higher rank, right?
However, that was not important to him. He was not aiming to be at the top of the Board of Potential God Kings anyway. All he wanted was the right to use the Great Displacement Teleportation Formation.
“Yet another fearless fool, eh?”
Seeing how the young man was walking toward him without the slightest hint of fear, Ao Hua burst into laughter. He looked at the young man and asked mockingly, “Do you intend to challenge me to a duel?”
“That’s right. What rank are you on the Board of Potential God Kings? I’m sorry to say this, but I don’t want to waste my time fighting anyone who is beneath thirtieth,” Zhang Xuan replied.
Even though the sixth rank Qi Yue was lying on the ground, he had no way of knowing if it was the doing of the white-robed man. Furthermore, he did not see any God Kings in the area to judge the duel, so he was not too sure whether the battle had caused a reshuffling in ranks.
Thus, it was better for him to verify if the white-robed man on the stage fit the criterion first.
Ao Hua did not expect the newly arrived young man to be even more arrogant than him. His cheeks twitched a little as his eyes turned cold. “I’m ranked ninth.”
“No wonder…” Zhang Xuan nodded in realization.
Most likely, this ninth rank must have stumbled upon some sort of fortuitous encounter that resulted in his fighting prowess becoming far stronger than before, such that even the sixth rank Qi Yue was no match at all.
Seeing how the young man was absorbed in his own thoughts, not paying any heed to him at all, Ao Hua felt a little displeased.
“Do you know who I am? I am…”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. There’s no need for you to go through the trouble of introducing yourself. As long as you are within the top thirty, it makes no difference to me,” Zhang Xuan said with a smile.
Leaping onto the stage, Zhang Xuan beckoned with his hand and said, “Shall we begin?”
“You arrogant little… it seems like you are asking for a beating!”
Ao Hua knew the best way to crush an arrogant person’s ego was to overpower him with his fists. So, without wasting any time, he pushed his feet forcefully against the ground and dashed right toward Zhang Xuan with a speed that was reminiscent of teleportation.
This sight made Zhang Xuan’s eyes light up.
As expected of a high ranked cultivator on the Board of Potential God Kings, his speed was above that of ordinary high-tier Celestial Gods!
Instead of dodging, Zhang Xuan stepped forward to face Ao Hua’s ram.
It just so happened that he wanted to make this battle a duel between their physical prowess, so it could be said that everything went in the direction he wanted it to. His only weakness right now was his soul cultivation.
On the ground, Shentu Feng was shocked to see this young man recklessly facing Ao Hua’s ram directly. Enduring the excruciating pain of his body, he shouted out to warn the young man, “Don’t face his attack straight on!”
Ao Hua was an expert of the Sky of Cloud Dragon, and he specialized in his physical prowess. Facing him in a physical fight was as good as courting death!
Just as everyone thought that Zhang Xuan would be knocked down by Ao Hua, just like the rest of them, the unexpected happened.
Peng!
Ao Hua’s supposedly indestructible rammed squarely into Zhang Xuan’s body, but somehow, the impact of his charge was rebounded back to him instead, causing his body to fly back and crash into the ground.
“What?” Shentu Feng and the others lying on the ground widened their eyes in disbelief.
Ao Hua had used such a move to defeat them previously. They had never expected the fellow who had popped out of nowhere to actually use the same move to defeat him.
To actually triumph over that monster from the Sky of Cloud Dragon in a battle of physical prowess…
This was insane!
Ao Hua was startled by how things turned out as well. He raised his head to assess the opponent before him in disbelief, only to see the latter stretching his neck, as if he was just getting warmed up.
The young man also looked back at him with eyes filled with enthusiasm, saying, “Remarkable! You have really cultivated your physical body well. Come, let’s continue the battle. There’s no need to look at me with such frightened eyes, I’ll remain still and allow you to do whatever you want, alright?”
Since tempering his body, he had not been able to find a suitable weapon that he could use to pierce his skin, so he was not able to verify the effects of those golden threads hidden amid his muscles.
It had not been easy for him to find someone whose physical body was decently strong, so there was no way he would let this golden opportunity to test out the extent of his physical resilience go to waste.
“You…” Ao Hua was nearly driven mad with anger.
Are you trying to humiliate me by showing me that there is nothing I can do that will hurt you?
Damn it, you son of a b*stard!
How dare you mock a person from the Dragon Tribe like me?
Unforgivable!
Ao Hua pushed his hand against the ground and immediately rose to his feet. With a powerful step, he charged toward Zhang Xuan with a speed as swift as lightning.
Geji! Geji!
Even while he was flitting through the air, layers of scales were already starting to appear on the surface of his body.
This was known as a Partial Transformation to those of the Cloud Dragon Tribe.
It was mainly used as a defensive technique that granted one enhanced protection against physical assaults. The resilience of the scales also made one’s skin impenetrable by swords and spears.
It would be difficult for most cultivators to breach such defense.
Peng!
But as Ao Hua rammed into Zhang Xuan once more, the same excruciating pain that felt as if his entire skeleton was falling apart surged through his body, and he was sent flying again.
“Oh? That was much better than before. Not bad! It seems like you can do it after all if you really try. Come on, let’s go again. As long you can injure me, I don’t mind giving you money or even accepting you as my student!” Zhang Xuan said excitedly.
This was the first time that he had encountered an opponent who had managed to temper his physical body to a level that he thought was decent…
More importantly, the white-robed man was still quite young!
It seemed like the Firmament had quite a lot of hidden experts!
This white-robed man was clearly much more talented than Zhuo Yan, possibly enough to become his student.
“You b*stard… you’re courting death!” Ao Hua was on the verge of exploding.
He had gone there to challenge the Sky of Drifting Specter’s Board of Potential God Kings, and when he defeated the first rank Shentu Feng with ease, he naturally thought that the Celestial Gods there were trash.
Yet, who could have known that he would encounter such a monster right after?
Not only was his physical body so powerful that it felt like there was no way to overcome it, his arrogance was also one-of-a-kind, too!
To say that he would take his opponent in as his student if his opponent could injure him…
The heck, who in the world do you think you are to say such words?
Get your head out of the clouds!
“This…” Shentu Feng and the others felt frenzied as well.
They had thought that Ao Hua was already very conceited, but there was still someone who could top his act…
“It’s him…”
Among the injured cultivators lying all around the dueling ring, there was one person who recognized Zhang Xuan—Qi Yue. He clenched his fists tightly and held his breath, not daring to even breathe loudly in his presence.
While everyone in Royal City might have heard of Zhang Xuan’s name, very few knew of Zhang Xuan’s true identity. However, he was one of the few people who had seen with his own eyes how the old ancestor kneeled in Zhang Xuan’s presence and addressed him as ‘God Monarch’!
How could such a person possibly be defeated by a mere Celestial God from the Sky of Cloud Dragon?
“I’ll kill you!”
This time, Ao Hua decided to go all out.
His palm morphed into the claw of a dragon once more as he swiped it down right toward Zhang Xuan.
“Hmm? You are a transmogrified celestial beast?” Zhang Xuan frowned.
As it was just an ordinary duel, he did not bother using his Eye of Insight and the Library of Heaven’s Path. So, only at this moment did he realize that his opponent’s true form was actually a celestial beast.
“What about it? It’s too late for you to beg for mercy now!”
With a furious roar, Ao Hua’s claw swiped down on Zhang Xuan’s shoulder, and the latter, just as before, did not even bother to move.
Kacha!
The sound of a bone shattering echoed loudly in the air. Zhang Xuan glanced at his shoulder and saw that his robe had been ripped apart, revealing his skin. There was a long white mark on his skin, and it looked like he was just a little bit away from bleeding.
“Wonderful!” Zhang Xuan exclaimed excitedly.
But barely after he said those words, the white mark suddenly vanished, as if it had never appeared before.
It seemed like his regenerative ability was simply too strong. The white mark that was imprinted on his skin was not deep enough to last even a split second, such that he did not have time to test out the effects of the golden threads.
So, he anxiously raised his head and urged Ao Hua to continue. “You did well with your previous attack. Come on, let’s continue. I’ll stand on the spot and allow you to hit me as you please. If I dodge, you can consider it my loss!”
“Argh! I’ll kill you!” Ao Hua clutched his head in madness.
Sou sou sou sou!
Two claws struck Zhang Xuan relentlessly with a nice rhythm. Every strike he threw out harnessed his full strength, causing Zhang Xuan’s clothes to be ripped to shreds.
White marks appeared one after another on his body, but he still did not bleed. Furthermore, those white marks disappeared moments after they appeared, almost as if Ao Hua was scratching his itch.
Kacha! Kacha!
A few moments later, Ao Hua finally stopped in despair. He looked at Zhang Xuan’s completely unharmed body before examining his own claws, and he began wailing sorrowfully.
Zhang Xuan’s body was like a freakishly hard stone that simply would not dent no matter how hard he struck it. Swiping his claws relentlessly on such a surface had caused his nails to tear off and his scales to drop off. It looked as if he was the one who had been ravaged.
And when he raised his head to look at the young man before him once more, the latter looked more excited than ever, “Hurry up, let’s continue. You just need to put in a little bit more force. You nearly got me bleeding, you know!”
Ao Hua staggered. Can’t you tell that I’m trying to kill you? Can you stop saying such suggestive words that make it seem as if we are flirting with one another?
Even dragons have our pride!
“You have truly angered me this time around.”
With an imposing roar that caused the whole dueling ring to tremor, Ao Hua’s clothes ripped apart as his body morphed instantaneously into a massive dragon of several hundred meters long. He coiled around the sky of the Netherworld Palace, almost as if a deity gazing down on the world.
“Wait a moment, you are a Pureblooded Dragon?” Zhang Xuan was stunned.
He had honestly thought that the other party was just an ordinary celestial beast, making him slightly stronger than the average cultivator. It did not even cross his mind for a moment that the other party was a member of the Dragon Tribe!
He had heard about the Dragon Tribe ever since his time on the Master Teacher Continent, but most of those that he encountered were just crossbreeds with impure bloodlines. Even in the Azure, he had only encountered a Pseudo Dragon.
Given how the opponent was able to transmogrify into such a powerful and imposing beast, it was clear that he was a Pureblooded Dragon!
“Indeed. Do you understand what you have done? You have humiliated a Pureblooded Dragon today. Prepare to face the rage of the Dragon Tribe!” Ao Hua bellowed furiously as he unleashed his flame breath upon the Netherworld Palace.
An inferno swiftly spread all over the room, causing everything to be set alight.
“We’re doomed…”
Shentu Feng, Qi Yue, and the others paled in fright.
Dragon Breath was the strongest offensive move of the Dragon Tribe, its might surpassing even that of their claws. The Dragon Breath of a high-tier Celestial God Pureblooded Dragon held sufficient might to even overpower a God King temporarily!
Zhang Xuan had really gone too far taunting Ao Hua.
He should have shown some restraint, but he ended up provoking Ao Hua to reveal his true form and trump card. How were they supposed to face something like that?
Even the strongest Celestial God could not possibly stand against something of this caliber!
“Young Master Zhang?” Qi Ling-er muttered in fright.
Before she could make sense of what was happening on the dueling ring, somehow, Zhang Xuan had started fighting with the young man on the stage. She had been a little apprehensive at first, but seeing how Zhang Xuan had managed to claim the upper hand, she had decided to leave things be.
But the instant that the white-robed man morphed into a dragon, she had realized that they were in deep sh*t.
Pureblooded Dragons were known to be the strongest lifeforms in the world, and Ao Hua was a Pureblooded Dragon who managed to be ranked in the ninth place among all his peers, making him a truly fearsome force to behold.
Everyone was shocked beyond words, but Zhang Xuan did not show the slightest nervousness when faced with such an overpowering existence. Instead, he stroked his chin contemplatively as an idea emerged in his head.
It is said that the Eight Notes of Heavenly Dragon are effective on all beings possessing the Dragon Bloodline… I wonder if it’ll be effective on a Pureblooded Dragon too… Well, I should probably just give it a try. It won’t take too much of my time…
With this thought in mind, Zhang Xuan raised his head and…
“Mou! Moo!”
Boom!
The massive dragon in the sky who was busy unleashing his breath to kill everyone suddenly seemed to have been struck by something, causing his face to pale. He crashed helplessly to the ground, and his long body twitched nonstop.
He looked like a reptile that had just been electrocuted.
“Huh?”
The surroundings suddenly fell utterly silent.
Shentu Feng, Qi Yue, and the others were stupefied. They did not even realize that they were tearing out clumps of their hair.
