Chapter 82: Contest of Strength and Will

Chu Feng’s victory over the five hall masters was, of course, largely thanks to the aid of the Thunderclasp King Beast. Without its help, he would have stood no chance fighting five opponents at once. In a one-on-one duel, however, none of the five could match him; even taking on two at once, Chu Feng would not necessarily have been at a disadvantage.

Though Chu Feng’s cultivation was only at the fifth level of the Body Refinement stage, his combat ability surpassed the sixth level. In addition to the Overlord Shadow-Pursuit Spear and his protective soft armor, he possessed the profound and powerful Gale Steps, which aided both offense and defense. If the concealed weapon, the Moon-Piercing Bead, was also counted, his actual fighting power was even greater.

As for the sixth level of the Body Refinement stage—the Qi Induction realm—martial artists at this stage were not much sturdier in body than those at the Iron Bone stage. They had only just begun the practice of “internal cultivation of a single breath,” guiding inner energy into their dantian for the most basic training; they were still far from the realm of using inner energy to protect the body.

Back at the Heaven’s Secret Mu Family, when Chu Feng killed Ding Wanchong, who was at the sixth level, it had cost him great effort—at that time, he was only at the fourth level, and his physique had not reached the Iron Bone stage. It was a case of soft meeting hard, naturally a difficult task. Now, however, Chu Feng’s body had achieved the Iron Bone realm, making him physically comparable to the five hall masters, lacking only the cluster of inner energy in his dantian. Thus, it was a contest of strength on equal footing, and killing them was not difficult.

Gazing at the blood and corpses before him, at the utter devastation of defeat, Liu Shenghua had no choice but to snap out of his grief over his son’s death.

"Chu Feng! You have enraged me!" Liu Shenghua roared, his face shrouded in murderous intent.

“Hmph.” Chu Feng snorted coldly, fixing him with a sidelong glare. “Not only do I intend to enrage you, but I mean to eliminate you!”

With a dark expression, Liu Shenghua loudly addressed his subordinates standing to his right. “You and I are all on the same boat! Today there is only advance, no retreat; life, not death! Everyone, attack together—eliminate this man and his beast, and I shall reward you according to your merit!”

Though his words were full of bravado, no one answered Liu Shenghua’s call—nor did anyone step forth to attack Chu Feng.

“Heh.” Chu Feng gave a chilly chuckle. “Listen to me, everyone! Liu Shenghua, this despicable man, must have threatened or bribed you into standing with him. Now I offer you a chance to amend your ways: if you renounce darkness for the light, and cease your wrongdoing, I shall execute only the chief villain for his betrayal and show leniency to the rest of you!”

At these words, countless disciples of the Thunder Sect who had defected to the Wind Sect were instantly moved.

A Thunder Sect hall master spoke up, “Young Master Chu, if you say you’ll be lenient, can your word be trusted?”

“Of course! At the very least, I can plead your case with Hall Master Lei and urge him to deal with you mercifully. On the other hand, if you persist in your error, you have seen what I am capable of—when I intend to kill, I show no mercy!” Chu Feng declared loudly.

“I was wrong—I want to come over to the right side!”

“I was wrong as well. I never wanted to betray Hall Master Lei; I only feared Liu Shenghua would harm my family, so I had no choice but to stand with him.”

“I feel the same. I wish to return to the light!”

No sooner had Chu Feng finished speaking than several hall masters immediately expressed their willingness to leave the Wind Sect and return to their original positions.

With the hall masters gone, their disciples naturally followed. In the blink of an eye, not only did all the defected Thunder Sect members return, but even the Wind Sect’s own forces began to scatter.

Such dispersal was a clear response to Liu Shenghua: we do not stand firmly with you!

Liu Shenghua, shrewd as he was, saw the unfavorable turn of events. He knew that further commands would be futile; his only option was to eliminate Chu Feng. As long as Chu Feng was killed and the threat here neutralized, the troops of both sects could be brought back under control, and the situation stabilized.

Fixing his gaze on Chu Feng, Liu Shenghua shouted, “Chu Feng! If you truly fancy yourself a hero, if you believe yourself so remarkable, then put away your Thunderclasp King Beast and fight me man to man! If you lack the courage, I won’t mock you—go home, train for another twenty years, and when your cultivation matches mine, come challenge me again!”

Hearing this, Chu Feng couldn’t help but laugh. “Liu Shenghua, you truly are heroic, to say such a thing! You’re at the eighth level of Body Refinement, yet you want me—a fifth level cultivator—to match you in strength? Fine—if you cripple your own limbs, I’ll agree!”

In the face of such a crude provocation, Chu Feng had no intention of acting rashly. The reason he had stepped up to turn the tide was precisely because of the Thunderclasp King Beast’s power. To put the beast away now would be like a brave man crippling himself and inviting death.

“Seeking death!” Liu Shenghua, seeing that Chu Feng was unmoved and even angered him further, ceased speaking and launched himself from the high platform with a thunderous leap.

Boom! Boom!

Even as he soared through the air, Liu Shenghua unleashed four palm strikes toward Chu Feng, each sounding like crackling flames, roaring as they descended.

“Young Master Chu, be careful!” Hall Master Wang called out from nearby.

Chu Feng, unhurried, deployed the Gale Steps—one press, one stride, one turn—and appeared at an unexpected angle.

Roar!

The Thunderclasp King Beast roared mightily, charging straight at Liu Shenghua.

By shifting position in time, Chu Feng ensured the King Beast stood between him and Liu Shenghua, bearing the brunt of the assault so that he could respond at his leisure.

Chu Feng was no fool—just over a hundred days remained until his life-and-death duel with the Xiong Clan of Terror Gate. During this period, he could not afford injury or any setback to his martial progress.

If he were to be hurt now, suffering broken bones or even grave internal damage, it would be a disastrous loss.

In truth, Chu Feng had no desire to risk his life meddling in others’ affairs. He did so for two reasons: to avenge Liu Run, and to earn the friendship of Wind and Thunder Martial Hall.

Should Chu Feng save the day, Lei Yingfeng and the others, regaining control of their sect, would be deeply grateful to him—no less than the gratitude of the Heaven’s Secret Mu Family.

Great opportunity always comes with great risk. By the same token, if Chu Feng were to fall, the consequences would be dire—death on the spot, with no hope of rescue.

Chu Feng calculated carefully, aiming for certain victory while avoiding injury.

At that moment, the enraged Thunderclasp King Beast launched a fierce assault, its winged arms whipping up gales while it breathed thunder and lightning, its attacks relentless.

Liu Shenghua, wielding the Wind Sect’s signature footwork, dodged left and right, leaving afterimages as he flitted about like a butterfly through flowers.

As the sect leader, Liu Shenghua's movement skills were far superior to Liu Run’s. Back in the Wind and Thunder Caverns, even Liu Run had barely managed to evade the King Beast’s attacks; Liu Shenghua, naturally, could do the same.

But where Liu Run had only tried to flee, Liu Shenghua now sought to kill Chu Feng. Thus, facing the King Beast’s frontal assault, he was under immense pressure.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

One after another, funnel-shaped whirlwinds, each over three meters high, howled toward Liu Shenghua, some even curving in pursuit, locking onto him with uncanny accuracy.

At the same time, torrents of thunder surged at him—some bolts as thick as a child’s arm, others fine as ox-hair, weaving a vast net of lightning with no gaps.

Dodging wind and thunder, Liu Shenghua repeatedly struck at Chu Feng, who remained protected by the Thunderclasp King Beast. Each blow was intercepted by the beast’s attacks.

Chu Feng knew the King Beast was formidable enough to defeat Liu Shenghua, but he did not wish to exhaust its energy unnecessarily. An idea flashed in his mind.

“Liu Shenghua, your son Liu Run is dead, and your subordinates have lost faith in you—few are willing to support you now. How long will you persist in this futile struggle? If you surrender now, I might spare your life!”

Chu Feng called out loudly from the side.

“Nonsense! You—” Liu Shenghua managed only a retort before the King Beast’s onslaught forced him to focus on defending.

“Let me tell you the truth, Liu Shenghua—my Thunderclasp King Beast is an immortal being, unharmed by heaven’s thunder or lightning. Do you really think you can defeat it? You are doomed!” Chu Feng shouted. “Brothers, Liu Shenghua is sure to lose—am I right?”

“Liu Shenghua is doomed! He’s doomed!”

“Liu Shenghua, surrender! Surrender!”

With Chu Feng’s rally, countless disciples joined in, their shouts of surrender surging like waves, deafening in their intensity.

Even the Wind Sect disciples, seeing Liu Shenghua’s clear disadvantage, began shouting for his surrender—hoping to clear themselves of guilt by association.

Soon, cries of “Liu Shenghua, surrender!” rang out from all sides, leaving him isolated and utterly crushed in spirit.

“You wretches!” Liu Shenghua raged. The overwhelming chorus felt as if countless voices were cursing him to an early grave.

Zzzt!

In that instant, distracted for a moment, Liu Shenghua’s footwork faltered—and a bolt of lightning from the Thunderclasp King Beast struck his chest with a searing crackle.

“Ah!” Liu Shenghua screamed, his cry thick with pain.