Chapter 31: Divine Departure
The swamp completely stagnated, and the green flame serpent dissipated in mid-air.
Chen Yu slowly pulled his legs out of the mud.
"Ace" vibrated slightly in his hand; it was absorbing Chen Yu's Haki. It was also testing Chen Yu.
Chen Yu looked at "Ace," curling his lip like a Dragon King. "Well? Satisfied yet?"
"If it's not enough..."
As his voice fell, the Conqueror's Haki around Chen Yu surged again, venting recklessly without restraint. The surrounding space seemed to be distorted by a giant hand.
"Ace," originally wrapped in jet-black Armament Haki, was gradually coated with a touch of dark red.
A fierce cold light flashed on the blade's edge, and the surrounding air seemed to be forcibly torn apart, emitting a sharp zzzt sound.
Zzzzztzzzzt
Black arcs of lightning danced along the blade.
Inside the dojo, most people hadn't awakened Haki. Haki was invisible; in their eyes, the space around Chen Yu twisted, and an indescribable aura shrouded the area.
"This is... what exactly is this?!"
"I... I can't breathe..."
"Scarier than a ferocious beast..."
Wei Tianyi, who had been disturbed from his seclusion by Zhao Hongbin, finally arrived. When he saw the aura on Chen Yu, his Sword Heart palpitated again.
He saw Chen Yu make no superfluous movements, just raising his arm slightly. "Divine Departure!"
The rusty sword slashed horizontally into the air in front of him.
There was no earth-shattering roar, only a condensed-to-the-limit black blade light breaking through the air. Red-black lightning arcs wrapped around it.
Like a meteor tearing through the night curtain, it shot out explosively, skimming the ground.
Everything in its path was passed through without hindrance, like a hot knife through butter. It continued into the distance.
The entire dojo fell into silence.
Looking from the outside of the dojo, one would be shocked to discover that the outer wall of the entire building had been slashed open at the waist by a single sword strike!
The wooden beams cracked with a snap. The gap was as straight as a line, and one could even see the sky outside the dojo.
The residual power of the blade energy didn't dissipate. It skimmed along the ground past Chen Chen's feet, cleaving a crack several inches deep in the wall behind him.
"This... this sword..." Zhou Mingxuan's mouth fell open. He sat paralyzed on the ground, unable to speak a complete sentence for a long time.
The onlookers were dead silent.
The crowd that had been discussing animatedly just moments ago was now only making sounds of inhaling cold air.
Their gazes toward Chen Yu had long changed from awe to extreme terror.
"It's this! It's this!" Wei Tianyi looked at the straight sword mark in astonishment.
He could also achieve this kind of slash, but Chen Yu was only at the mid-tier of the Beginner Stage! The point was this technique of elevating the slash!
Ever since Chen Yu explained the function of Haki last time, Wei Tianyi had been pondering.
However, he had gained nothing these past few days. Until seeing this slash, he was absolutely certain this was the key to breaking through his bottleneck!
Wei Tianyi fell into ecstasy, momentarily forgetting to ask Chen Yu to pay for damages.
After a long while.
Zhou Mingxuan finally recovered. He rushed excitedly to the center of the arena, hugging Chen Yu's arm and shouting, "Badass!"
"Worthy of being my brother! That move just now was too cool!"
Chen Yu's lips were a bit pale. Sheathing Ace, he felt the weakness coming from his body and couldn't help but smile bitterly to himself.
'Other people's basic attack is currently my ultimate move.'
This single "Divine Departure" had almost drained all the Conqueror's Haki in his body. With his current Haki intensity, he could use "Divine Departure" one more time.
Perhaps three times if he pushed it, but he would likely lose combat capability afterward, and the recovery time would be long.
At this moment, Chen Chen, upon seeing the dojo split open by a single sword, felt his pupils dilate violently and slumped to the ground.
'If that had hit me...'
Seeing Chen Yu approach, he shook like a sieve.
Chen Yu glanced at his crotch. "Tsk tsk tsk, I told you to buy diapers last time, didn't I?"
Chen Chen froze. He looked down at his pant leg. A stain was slowly flowing down, pooling into a small puddle on the ground.
The fear originating from his soul just now had actually made him wet his pants directly.
He wanted to run, but he couldn't. The gazes of the surrounding people were like knives stabbing into his self-esteem.
His legs felt as heavy as lead. He could only watch helplessly as Chen Yu walked toward him step by step.
His throat made ho-ho whimpering sounds; he couldn't even utter a word of begging.
Chen Yu looked down at him from above. "You should thank the Alliance for being a civilized society, or I'd really chop your head off."
"You... you..." Chen Chen's lips trembled.
"You lost. I won the bet."
"I... I..." Chen Chen wanted to deny it, but he met Chen Yu's cold eyes.
There was no anger in those eyes, only a near-indifferent certainty. If he dared to say "no," the next thing split open wouldn't be the dojo, but him.
"What? Want to go back on your word?"
Chen Chen gritted his teeth, finding courage from somewhere. "Chen Yu, you and I are both from the Chen family. Do you have to be so ruthless?! Leave a way out for people..."
"Aiya." Chen Yu interrupted Chen Chen impatiently. "Why do you villains always say this kind of stuff when you lose?"
"Acting like your Chen family didn't try to kill me ruthlessly. Take a guess..." Chen Yu raised an eyebrow slightly, holding the sword against Chen Chen's neck.
"When that b*tch Zhang Li sent people to kill me, did she ever think that today, my sword would be against her son's neck?"
Hearing this, Chen Chen froze.
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm telling you, don't slander my mother... She is the Chen family matriarch, and your biological mother!"
Chen Yu rolled his eyes, having no interest in arguing with him.
"You f*cking lost, so hurry up and fulfill the bet. Need me to review it for you? Kowtow, call me Daddy, and admit your Chen family's dirty schemes!"
Chen Chen's face was dark.
He had intended to use this to prove himself, but unexpectedly, he capsized in the gutter.
Right now, his mood was as bad as if he had eaten a fly.
But kowtowing was impossible. Admitting the Chen family plotted against Chen Yu was even more impossible; it concerned the Chen family's reputation.
"Tsk." Chen Yu suddenly grabbed Chen Chen by the hair. "I knew you were a sore loser."
Before his voice fell.
Bang!!!
Chen Yu slammed his head into the floor.
Bang bang bang!!
He smashed it several times in a row. When he looked again, Chen Chen's face was unrecognizable and bloody..
Suddenly.
Chen Yu's Observation Haki sent a frantic warning. A figure arrived in front of him instantly. The opponent's fist expanded to the size of a washbasin in a flash.
'This is?!'
Although warned early, Chen Yu's speed was far inferior to the opponent's. He couldn't dodge in time.
In the nick of time, a wooden sword appeared horizontally in front of Chen Yu. It was Wei Tianyi. His aura shook as he blocked the strike.
Thud.
A muffled sound came, the shockwave from the collision radiating outward. The powerful wind pressure made the crowd unable to stand straight.
When vision returned, the person who had suddenly appeared was originally of normal height.
But seeing his blood and Qi surging, his bones cracking, his body swelled visibly. In the blink of an eye, he turned into a giant nearly three meters tall.
His arms were as thick as an old scholar tree, his skin glowing with a bronze luster. The giant fist still carried the wind of breaking air as it retracted.
His gaze fell on Chen Chen, who was pressed on the ground, face covered in blood.
"Stop!"
"Giant Stone Kid, huh? Aren't you from the Awakener's Association Patrol Team?" Wei Tianyi narrowed his eyes, recognizing the newcomer.
"Why aren't you staying at the Association? What are you doing here?"
"Elder Wei..." Shi Meng's face looked ugly, but he responded, "Before the military training, I am Chen Chen's Guardian."
Hearing this, everyone was shocked.
"I knew Chen Chen was valued by the
Association, but I didn't expect them to value him this much!"
"Shi Meng is a Tier-6 Awakener with the A-Rank Talent Giant Bloodline."
"And he's a member of the Hunting Team that hunts outside the war zones year-round. He's completely different from those aristocratic family heads who pump themselves up with drugs."
"He actually came to guard Chen Chen?!"
(To be Continued)