Chapter 83: Prisoner in Chains

Battles between masters are contests not only of strength but also of will. The greatest taboo is to give in to anger; once anger arises, one's focus inevitably falters. And with a moment's distraction, a gap appears in one's defense, granting the adversary an opportunity to strike.

Although Chu Feng was not a grandmaster, he fully understood this principle of duels between true experts. The small trick he played just now stemmed from this very insight.

As the crowd roared like a drumbeat, the cries had no effect on the Thunder King Beast, but they stoked Liu Shenghua's fury, made his mind restless and agitated. With a single lapse in concentration, he was struck by the beast's lightning power.

"Look! Liu Shenghua was hit by the Thunder King Beast's lightning!"

"I wonder if he'll be alright?"

"Liu Shenghua is at the eighth stage of the Body Tempering Realm, with internal energy to protect his body. He should be able to withstand a couple of lightning strikes!"

Indeed, as the disciples surmised, while Liu Shenghua had been struck, his internal energy shield absorbed most of the lightning's force, leaving him largely unharmed. Nevertheless, his reserves of internal energy in his dantian had been heavily depleted.

He could only endure a few more such blows relying on internal energy for defense. If his strength was drained too far, and his internal energy failed, then his protective aura would be useless, and his life would hang by a thread.

Suppressing the pain in his chest from the lightning, Liu Shenghua's footwork grew more disordered, while the Thunder King Beast became all the more frenzied, relentlessly pursuing and battering him with a ceaseless, deadly onslaught.

"Liu Shenghua is doomed! Liu Shenghua is doomed!"

"Liu Shenghua, surrender! Surrender, Liu Shenghua!"

The thunderous shouts of the thousand disciples in the grand hall never ceased for a moment.

Liu Shenghua was filled with frustration. The Thunder King Beast's power was overwhelming—it could endure his attacks and unleash its own devastating strikes.

Many discerning masters among the crowd recognized, even if they did not know the beast's precise strength, that the Thunder King Beast was a being composed of pure energy—a living reservoir.

Within its body, vast stores of wind and lightning energy served as a formidable power source, granting the Thunder King Beast an unbeatable advantage.

Though Liu Shenghua was a first-rate warrior at the eighth stage of Body Tempering, he was still made of flesh and blood. His dantian's internal energy, compared to the Thunder King Beast's reserves, was like the faint light of a firefly against the sun and moon—utterly incomparable.

As time passed, Liu Shenghua's stamina diminished rapidly, his footwork grew increasingly erratic, and the pressure from the Thunder King Beast's assaults weighed upon him like a mountain.

In the martial arts world, the more powerful the technique, the more it drains the practitioner's strength or internal energy. Liu Shenghua's subtle footwork relied heavily on this inner strength; without it, the technique could not be executed. The longer he maintained it, the greater the drain on his reserves.

Suddenly—a flash! Another bolt of lightning shot from the Thunder King Beast's mouth, striking Liu Shenghua's right leg directly.

"Ah!" Liu Shenghua cried out in pain.

The beast let out a low, excited hum, its wings beating as it sent forth two enormous funnel-shaped whirlwinds, blocking Liu Shenghua's escape.

In the blink of an eye, the beast spat four more bolts of lightning in rapid succession.

The Thunder King Beast's speed was astonishing—dozens of times faster than a cobra spitting venom. Many martial artists could not even see what happened; all they saw was Liu Shenghua standing stunned and unmoving, while his clothes burst into flames.

"Look, what's happened to Liu Shenghua? Is he dead?"

"His clothes are on fire from the lightning strike—he must be gravely injured!"

"Even if he's not dead, he probably can't move. Those heavy blows have broken through his internal energy shield!"

While the disciples speculated noisily, a flash of crimson light streaked by. Chu Feng's sharp spearhead pressed against Liu Shenghua's throat.

The Thunder King Beast lumbered to Chu Feng's side, pointing a small forepaw at Liu Shenghua and growling with excitement.

The beast's expression seemed to mock the pitiful fool who had dared to challenge it.

Chu Feng smiled, knowing Liu Shenghua was utterly spent—beaten half to death by the beast's lightning-fast assault.

At this moment, Liu Shenghua's arms, legs, and dantian were all wracked by serpentine currents of lightning. His clothes burned, and the air was filled with the scent of smoke, fire, and scorched flesh.

"Master Chu, how is Liu Shenghua?" Hall Master Wang asked immediately.

"He’s paralyzed from the Thunder King Beast’s lightning, his mind stunned for now—but he’s not dead. Tie him up, quickly!" Chu Feng replied.

"Understood!"

Hall Master Wang immediately took a black Dragon-Tiger Rope from his storage pouch. The Dragon-Tiger Rope, crafted from Tiger Mountain Vines, was designed to bind internal masters, severing the flow between dantian and meridians. Unable to channel energy, a martial artist thus bound was rendered powerless.

Soon enough, Liu Shenghua was securely tied by Hall Master Wang and Hall Master Wu. It took some effort, for Liu Shenghua’s body, numbed by the lightning, was as stiff as a stone statue; once bound, he could only stand rigidly in place.

"Master Chu, what next? Wait for him to wake on his own?" Hall Master Wang asked.

"No need!" Chu Feng shook his head, then patted the Thunder King Beast's shoulder and made a simple gesture.

With a roar, the beast shook its head and opened its mouth wide—a bolt of lightning struck Liu Shenghua squarely in the chest.

"Ah!" With a heart-rending scream, Liu Shenghua awoke.

Paralyzed and unconscious from one lightning strike, then jolted awake by another—only Liu Shenghua himself could know the agony of such torment.

"You—!"

Seeing himself tightly bound by the Dragon-Tiger Rope, Liu Shenghua finally realized what had happened, but could only utter two words before falling silent.

Defeated and captured, all that remained was to bare his neck for the blade; empty threats were meaningless now.

At this moment, Liu Shenghua felt profound despair. His own cleverness had been his downfall. What he thought a sure path to the headmaster’s seat had turned into nothing but empty effort, and he had ended up a captive, his fate in Chu Feng’s hands.

"Liu Shenghua, what are you thinking? Have you learned your lesson?" Chu Feng smiled at him. "Let me ask you: do you wish to live, or to die?"

"What do you mean?" Liu Shenghua frowned.

"If you want to live, hand over the antidote for the Dissolving Force Powder. If you want to die, the Thunder King Beast will oblige you," Chu Feng said coldly.

"No!" Liu Shenghua shook his head at once. "Chu Feng, if I give you the antidote, you must let me go immediately! As long as you agree to this, the antidote is yours!"

"You think you can bargain with me? Believe me, I have a hundred ways to make you give up the antidote," Chu Feng replied icily.

"If you don’t accept my terms, I’d rather die than hand it over!" Liu Shenghua gritted his teeth.

"If he won’t give it, I will!"

At this moment, a middle-aged man’s voice rang out. The crowd turned to see none other than Wen Lie, one of Liu Shenghua’s accomplices.