The Fall of Gong Lingfeng

“And who did I think you were? Merely a stray dog, forced to flee in disarray.”

Chi Qiu had never anticipated that the protective grand formation could be pierced by a single arrow from Su Hanxing. Despite the Gong family cultivators’ desperate attempts to mend the breach, Su Hanxing still forced his way in. This turn of events was something Gong Lingfeng found utterly unacceptable.

“I’ve heard that Gong Lingfeng of the Gong family has always favored bullying the few with many, and the weak with the strong. Today, I’ve truly witnessed it firsthand.” Su Hanxing was already inside the arena. Even if time ran out, Gong Lingfeng couldn’t claim the stone platform, so Su Hanxing felt no urgency.

“I merely wonder, Brother Gong, after all these years you’ve lived longer than I, what exactly is the extent of your power?” Su Hanxing waved a hand, and in an instant, dozens of magic treasures materialized out of thin air, hovering behind him.

“You’ll know if you try…” Gong Lingfeng spoke with a sinister undertone. He rose to his feet, summoning a long staff and pointing it at Su Hanxing.

Su Hanxing wasted no more words. The numerous magic treasures behind him soared forth simultaneously. Some launched lethal attacks, others coiled around their target, while still others created diversions, besieging Gong Lingfeng so thoroughly that not even a drop of water could escape.

This was the combat style Su Hanxing had always been most adept at. Earlier, when Chi Qiu had rescued him, he had lost eighty percent of his magic treasures, making this method impossible to employ. Now, having journeyed far and slain many cultivators, Su Hanxing had finally amassed dozens of magic treasures once more, allowing him to utilize this technique again.

“Why is your divine soul so formidable?” Gong Lingfeng, holding a shuttle in his right hand, conjured a mountain of true qi with his left to intercept the incoming magic treasures. He turned to see Su Hanxing’s face, utterly composed, without the slightest hint of fatigue. Immediately, he roared in fury.

Controlling magic treasures for long-range attacks was an extremely taxing method for one’s mental energy. Yet, Su Hanxing was simultaneously manipulating so many treasures from afar, displaying not an ounce of weariness. This left Gong Lingfeng utterly bewildered.

“Can’t you do it?” Su Hanxing scoffed coldly. Then, he unslung the precious bow from his back, drew the string, nocked an arrow, and prepared to strike Gong Lingfeng down.

“Though numerous, their quality is negligible. Mere petty tricks.” Gong Lingfeng repelled several magic treasures with a forceful tremor. Then, he gathered his true qi, leaned down, and pressed his hand against the ground.

Whoosh…

A phantom image of a great river suddenly emerged within the arena. This vast river, approximately a thousand zhang long, completely enveloped the entire platform. As the great river encompassed the magic treasures, Su Hanxing instantly felt as though they were submerged in a quagmire, becoming incredibly difficult to control.

“Mountain Shift—”

With the magic treasures surrounding him now restricted by the great river, a look of delight spread across Gong Lingfeng’s face. He spread his hands, activating a divine ability. True qi surged wildly within him, drawing upon the power of the grand formation outside the arena, as a colossal peak, a thousand zhang tall, slowly began to take shape.

“So it’s come to this? On this arena, you still need to borrow your family’s power… Truly, you’re as timid as a mouse.” Seeing Gong Lingfeng leverage the power of the grand formation, Su Hanxing’s face twisted into a sneer, and he laughed mockingly.

“Mere impotent rage.” Upon seeing Su Hanxing’s mocking expression, Gong Lingfeng remained entirely unperturbed. He embraced a corner of the mountain peak, then pushed off with his feet. Veins bulged across his body as true qi and divine soul energy poured forth, allowing him to lift the entire thousand-zhang-tall peak. With a flicker of movement, he then carried the colossal mountain and flew directly above Su Hanxing’s head.

Gong Lingfeng hoisted the massive peak high, its immense form casting a shadow that blotted out the sky, and hurled it directly down at Su Hanxing.

Su Hanxing paid no heed. His hand loosened, and another long, blue-purple rainbow shot forth, directly targeting Gong Lingfeng. After firing the arrow, Su Hanxing ascended, intending to confront the colossal peak head-on.

Gong Lingfeng released the massive peak, allowing it to plummet. He watched the piercing rainbow streaking towards him, then activated his techniques, circulating true qi for defense.

Wielding his spear, Su Hanxing pushed the divine ability “Intertwined Gold” to its absolute limit. Strands of illusory golden qi flowed from his body onto the spear, adorning it with several golden patterns. Following this, Su Hanxing activated the divine ability “Thunderclap” once more. Several bolts of Violet Heaven Divine Thunder coalesced, enveloping the weapon.

The spear, now imbued with the might of two divine abilities and containing the power of two distinct elements, possessed an aura no less formidable than the colossal peak itself. This was Su Hanxing’s strongest attack.

Boom!

The colossal peak collided with the spear. In that instant, heaven and earth trembled, and the entirety of Dragon’s Rest Island quaked. Even the Dragon Transformation Pool, which had been utterly still, now rippled with waves.

Chi Qiu, naturally, had been observing Su Hanxing’s battle intently. When she saw him not evade the mountain but instead face the danger head-on, her eyebrows furrowed tightly, and a look of worry crossed her face.

The spearhead, the illusory golden qi, and the Violet Heaven Divine Thunder erupted simultaneously. They were further infused with Su Hanxing’s incomparably ferocious physical strength and the Tianyan Qi, cultivated through the Tianyan Method, which appeared gentle yet harbored deadly intent.

As these forces exploded in an instant, the colossal peak began to vanish into thin air, as if dissolving like ice and snow. Meanwhile, Gong Lingfeng was utterly exhausted dealing with the piercing rainbow, with no time at all to spare for the massive peak.

“You have no right to stand here.”

Su Hanxing had directly shattered the colossal peak. A star-like gleam flashed beneath his feet, and he instantly appeared before Gong Lingfeng, then raised his fist and slammed it down.

Bang!

Gong Lingfeng barely managed to react, raising his staff to block, but he was knocked directly out of the sky by a single punch, crashing onto the arena floor. This arena had been forged by the Yinglong himself, naturally making it incomparably sturdy. Despite Gong Lingfeng’s harsh fall, not a single crack appeared on its surface.

“You…” Gong Lingfeng struggled to push himself up. Blood oozed from his seven orifices, and his aura was weak and dispirited, utterly devoid of the vibrant spirit he had shown when repelling the Gate of Wonders earlier.

“Truly, you are nothing but a waste who only knows how to bully others through power and influence. In a one-on-one fight, you’re utterly pathetic.”

Su Hanxing descended from the sky. He flicked his wide sleeve, then slowly approached Gong Lingfeng, who was still attempting to rise.

“I… I surrender.” Though countless unwilling thoughts surged within Gong Lingfeng’s heart, they were forcefully suppressed when he saw Su Hanxing, whose killing intent seemed to overflow from his very being. He immediately conceded, and a golden light enveloped him, teleporting him off the arena.

Seeing Gong Lingfeng’s crushing defeat and surrender, Chi Qiu, who had been watching from afar, felt all her worries vanish. A smile unconsciously bloomed on her face. Su Hanxing surveyed his surroundings, finally spotting Chi Qiu by the edge of the Dragon Transformation Pool. He saw her small face flushed with excitement, her joy overflowing and clearly visible.

Su Hanxing shed his cold expression, his lips curving upwards. He waved towards Chi Qiu, who, in turn, jumped up and waved back.

After Gong Lingfeng was teleported out of the grand formation, the Gong family cultivators swarmed forward to catch him. Gong Lingfeng’s eyes were fixed on Su Hanxing in the arena, yet Su Hanxing completely ignored him, instead exchanging greetings with Chi Qiu in the distance. At this, Gong Lingfeng pointed a finger at Su Hanxing, his lips trembling, but no sound escaped him. Overcome with fury, he promptly fainted.

The three members of the Qi clan, also observing the battle from afar, witnessed Su Hanxing’s formidable strength. Even with the grand formation’s power bolstering Gong Lingfeng, he had suffered a crushing defeat. This sight only intensified their regret for their previous actions. Yet, regret was useless now. Since Su Hanxing would form an alliance with Chi Qiu after entering the Dragon Transformation Pool, their combined strength would be immense. If they decided to act against the Qi clan, it would likely be impossible to resist them. Qi Feng’s expression was exceedingly grim.

Splash…

Just as Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing were waving to each other, a rush of water echoed from the Dragon Transformation Pool. The Yinglong, who had vanished earlier, now slowly emerged from its depths.

“The time has come. The six of you may ascend the platforms.” The Yinglong waved a hand, and six beams of golden light shot forth, enveloping the six individuals seated on the arena.

Whether by the Yinglong’s design or not, the three members of the Qi clan were assigned to three adjacent stone platforms, while Su Hanxing was teleported to the platform beside Chi Qiu.

“Are you hurt?” Chi Qiu knew all too well that Su Hanxing had challenged and defeated Gong Lingfeng to avenge her. Thus, when she saw him teleported to the stone platform beside her, she quickly leaned closer, asking with a hint of concern.

“Don’t worry, Little Chi. That Gong Lingfeng was nothing more than a silver spear and a wax candle; he couldn’t possibly harm me.” Seeing Chi Qiu actively draw closer, Su Hanxing’s face broke into a wide smile. He patted his chest, signaling that he was in excellent condition.

“Your strength truly is formidable. I am no match for you.” Hearing Su Hanxing say he wasn’t injured, Chi Qiu relaxed. She nodded, acknowledging his power.

“I would never be your enemy, Little Chi, so you can rest assured.” Su Hanxing was naturally very pleased to hear Chi Qiu acknowledge his strength. “Moreover, Gong Lingfeng’s strength was indeed far less than I anticipated.”

Su Hanxing did not grow arrogant because of this. He had initially believed Gong Lingfeng’s power to be truly exceptional, but after their clash, he found it fell far short of his expectations.

“It’s hard to say…” Chi Qiu shook her head. She wasn’t confident she could have withstood that colossal peak attack.

Before the two could exchange many more words, the Yinglong clapped his hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

“This Dragon Transformation Pool is ten thousand chi deep and fraught with peril. These stone platforms, besides protecting your physical bodies from being crushed, also conceal a small formation. Touching it with true qi will teleport you back to Dragon’s Rest Island.” After gathering everyone’s attention, the Yinglong spoke slowly about the Dragon Transformation Pool and the stone platforms.

“Once the formation is triggered, the stone platform will shatter. Therefore, each of you has only one chance. Do you understand?”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Since you now understand, enter the pool.” The Yinglong nodded, then swept his sleeve. The nine stone platforms, along with the cultivators upon them, sank together into the Dragon Transformation Pool.

The Dragon Transformation Pool rippled briefly, then quickly returned to its serene calm.