Immortality Cultivation

Chapter 218: Winning the Challenge Again

Half an hour is neither long nor short.

Fang Hao sat cross-legged there, eyes focused on his nose, nose focused on his heart, fully operating the Chaos Derivation Art, absorbing the rich Spiritual Qi around him, and refining the Medicinal Pill.

His injuries were not too severe, mainly consisting of Spiritual Qi overdraft and Divine Soul exhaustion.

Chaos Qi seemed to have miraculous effects in healing and recovery, and coupled with the fact that the medicinal power of the "yin yang harmony pill" he had taken earlier had not completely dissipated, it was now being stimulated, and his recovery speed was even faster than he had expected.

The surrounding commotion seemed to have faded away, and all his attention was focused on the slowly reviving power within his body.

Although the seven-colored Golden Core in his Dantian was still a bit dim, its rotation speed had returned to normal, and wisps of pure Spiritual Qi were regenerating, flowing through his parched Meridians.

The stinging pain in his Sea of Consciousness had also subsided by more than half, becoming clear and stable once again.

"I’ve recovered about sixty percent." Fang Hao estimated inwardly.

His Spiritual Qi had recovered by sixty percent, his Divine Soul by seventy percent, and his injuries were eighty to ninety percent healed.

In this state, facing Zhou Shitong, that Late Golden Core Stage Cultivator who had obviously reached his level by popping pills, should... not be a big problem.

His greatest reliance was not the amount of Spiritual Qi, but the quality of the Chaos Derivation Art, the formidable Physical Body from the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art, and his precise grasp of the battle situation and rich combat experience.

When the time was up, without waiting for Zhou Shitong to urge him, Fang Hao opened his eyes himself and stood up.

"Fellow Daoist Ning, how is it? Have you recovered?" Mu Fenghua asked with concern.

Although she had confidence in Fang Hao, after all, he had just finished a tough fight, so she couldn’t help but feel a little worried.

"It’s fine, I can fight." Fang Hao nodded at her, gave her a reassuring look, and then stepped forward, walking toward the arena again.

Seeing him get up, the originally somewhat noisy square quieted down quite a bit again, and everyone’s gaze focused on him.

The heat of the previous battle had not yet passed, and now another one was coming, and it was a response to a provocation, so everyone wanted to see just how far this Loose Cultivator named Fang Hao could go.

Zhou Shitong also stood up, a trace of arrogance and complacency on his face, as if victory were already in his grasp.

With a flash of his figure, he took the lead and landed on the arena, looking down at Fang Hao who was walking slowly toward him.

"Fang Hao, this young prince is giving you a chance to recover because I think highly of you. I hope that later, you won’t lose too ugly and disgrace the Ninth Princess." Zhou Shitong’s voice carried sarcasm.

Fang Hao walked onto the arena without even looking at him; he just nodded slightly to a royal retainer acting as the referee, and then turned to Zhou Shitong, saying calmly, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, please."

"Hmph! Take this!" Zhou Shitong seemed to be angered by Fang Hao’s dismissive attitude and stopped talking nonsense.

With a wave of his hands, two crimson flame whips condensed out of thin air, carrying scorching heat, like venomous snakes emerging from their den, lashing out at Fang Hao from left and right!

He was actually Cultivating a fire-type Cultivation Technique!

The temperature of these flame whips was extremely high, and wherever they passed, the air distorted, and their power looked quite impressive.

Fang Hao’s eyes narrowed, the Divine Spirit Steps unfurled, and his figure became erratic, dodging the first wave of lashes.

He could feel that the power of this fire was indeed less agile and varied than Sun Tianqi’s lightning technique, but it was more violent and direct, and it seemed to carry a certain adhesiveness; once touched, it would likely be difficult to shake off.

"Dodging? Let’s see how long you can dodge! Fire Rain Meteor!"

Zhou Shitong sneered, clapped his hands together, and then suddenly opened them!

In mid-air, dozens of scorching fireballs the size of washbasins instantly condensed, like a meteor shower, covering and bombarding the area where Fang Hao was!

This area-of-effect attack, combined with the previous flame whips, was clearly intended to seal off Fang Hao’s evasion space.

Many people under the stage nodded; although Zhou Shitong was arrogant, this fire technique was indeed impressive in power, and the connection was tight; he had some skills.

Facing these overwhelming fireballs, Fang Hao no longer just dodged.

He took a deep breath, the Spiritual Qi that had recovered by more than half surged within his body, and with a light grip of his right hand, the modified, unremarkable-looking yitian sword appeared in his hand.

Although its spirituality was damaged, its sharpness remained.

"Starfall — Fireflies!"

He gave a low shout, flicked his wrist, and the yitian sword transformed into a brilliant curtain of starlight sword light, welcoming the falling fireballs!

This time, he did not use Sword Intent (the consumption was too great), but only pushed the Moves of the Starfall Sword Art to the limit.

The sword light was condensed, like countless fireflies streaking across the night sky, precisely striking the weakest core of each fireball!

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

A series of muffled explosions!

Those seemingly mighty fireballs, under Fang Hao’s exquisite sword technique, actually exploded in mid-air one after another, turning into sparks all over the sky, failing to hurt him in the slightest!

And he parried the lashes of the flame whips using only his movement technique and sword technique, appearing relaxed and at ease.

"What an exquisite sword technique! Every sword strike hits the vital point!"

"This Fang Hao’s control of Spiritual Qi and grasp of timing are simply miraculous!"

"Although Zhou Shitong’s fire technique is fierce, it seems... he can’t hit anyone?"

Exclamations rang out from under the stage.

Fang Hao’s performance once again exceeded many people’s expectations.

He did not use any flashy or incredibly powerful Moves; relying solely on pure sword technique and extraordinary movement technique, he easily resolved Zhou Shitong’s seemingly ferocious offensive with ease.

Zhou Shitong’s face darkened.

He had thought that with his Late Golden Core Stage cultivation and fierce fire technique, it would be enough to suppress the under-performing Fang Hao, but he hadn’t expected the opponent to be so difficult to deal with.

A flash of ruthlessness crossed his eyes, and he suddenly bit the tip of his tongue, spraying a mouthful of essence blood onto his hands!

"Blazing Flames Burning Heaven!"

Boom—!

His Aura surged, and the fire Spiritual Qi surged crazily, condensing a three-zhang-tall, faceless flame giant phantom behind him!

The giant roared, clenching its fists, and with the terrifying might of burning mountains and boiling seas, it smashed down fiercely at Fang Hao!

At the same time, Zhou Shitong himself turned into a line of fire, holding a flame long blade, and slashed at Fang Hao from the side!

This was his trump card, an attack combining his Dharma form and his main body, with power sufficient to threaten a Peak Late Golden Core Stage Cultivator!

He was clearly pushed to the limit and wanted a quick victory!

"He’s using a secret technique! Zhou Shitong is desperate!"

"This flame giant... is not easy to take on!"

Fang Hao’s eyes narrowed, feeling the threat.

The power contained in this flame giant phantom was indeed astonishing.

He no longer held back; the Hundred Refinements Golden Body Art was instantly activated, a faint bronze luster appeared beneath his skin, and his Physical Body strength skyrocketed!

At the same time, the black tortoise spirit shield that he had been holding in his left hand was activated again; although its light was much dimmer than before, it should be no problem to protect his vital points.

Facing the giant fist smashed down by the flame giant and the flame long blade slashing from the side, Fang Hao made a Move that made everyone gasp!

He did not dodge or avoid; the Divine Spirit Steps burst to the limit, his figure like a ghost, passing through the gap in the flame giant’s fist, narrowly avoiding this fatal strike!

At the same time, he switched the yitian sword from his right hand to his left, using the scabbard to hard-block the flame long blade slashing from the side!

Clang—!!

Sparks flew everywhere!

Fang Hao’s arm was numbed by the shock, and he retreated three steps, but he ultimately blocked the blade!

And his right hand, the moment he passed through the gap in the flame giant’s fist, formed a sword finger, and the Star Shattering Finger condensed again.

However, this time, he did not fuse Sword Intent, but compressed the recovered Spiritual Qi, Physical Body strength, and a trace of Chaos Qi all into his fingertip, turning it into a point of black light condensed to the extreme, like a dormant venomous dragon, silently pointing at Zhou Shitong himself—three inches to the left of his Dantian in his lower abdomen, where his Aura was slightly chaotic due to the secret technique and his protective Spiritual Qi was relatively weak!

That was a secondary hub for the Spiritual Qi circulation of most fire-type Cultivation Techniques!

All this happened in a flash!

Zhou Shitong’s attention was still on the flame giant and the repelled Fang Hao; he never expected that Fang Hao could make such a precise and ruthless counterattack in that situation!

Pfft!

The black light at his fingertip, like a red-hot iron rod inserted into butter, easily penetrated the protective fire shield that Zhou Shitong had hastily condensed and struck his lower abdomen!

"Argh—!" Zhou Shitong let out a shrill, miserable scream!

He felt a sharp, overbearing force, carrying a strange devouring power, instantly invade his body and slam into his Spiritual Qi circulation hub!

The Spiritual Qi circulation in his entire lower body was instantly chaotic and reversed!

The flame giant phantom behind him let out a roar of unwillingness and dissipated with a bang!

He himself was like a punctured balloon, his Aura plummeted, he sprayed blood wildly, and his whole body flew backward like a broken sack, crashing heavily under the arena, collapsing a table, and passed out.

A blood hole in his lower abdomen was sizzling with charred smoke eroded by the Chaos Qi.

The whole place was silent again.

He... he won again?

And, it seemed to be easier... more... ruthless than the last match?

This time, even those who had originally held some contempt for Fang Hao completely put away their disdain.

This Fang Hao was not only strong in strength, but his methods were also decisive and ruthless, focusing on vital points, defeating the enemy with one strike!

He was definitely not a soft persimmon that could be squeezed at will!

Fang Hao slowly retracted his finger and stood on the stage, panting slightly.

That strike just now looked simple, but it actually condensed most of his recovered Spiritual Qi and a perfect grasp of timing; the consumption was not small.

He looked at the unconscious Zhou Shitong under the stage, his eyes calm and waveless.

Since you want to step on me to rise, you must have the awareness of being stepped on in return.

This Heavenly Capital is not a place to be polite.

The referee quickly announced the result.

Someone immediately stepped forward to carry the unconscious Zhou Shitong down for treatment.

Fang Hao looked under the stage again, his gaze sweeping over the powerhouses who had not yet played or had already rested, including Li Xuanfeng, Wang Zhong, and others.

Finally, his gaze landed on the high platform, on the Crown Prince Mu Yuankang.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, this Junior has won two consecutive matches and the consumption is quite heavy. I request a temporary rest and will no longer accept challenges." Fang Hao cupped his hands and said.

He knew that it was best to quit while ahead; he had already made enough of a splash today.

If he continued to fight, he would likely become the target of everyone.

Crown Prince Mu Yuankang looked at him deeply and nodded: "Granted. Fellow Daoist Fang Hao has defeated strong enemies in succession; you may step down to rest and wait for the final ranking of the ’dragon ranking’."

Fang Hao breathed a sigh of relief and, under the gaze of countless eyes with unclear meanings, walked down the arena again.

This time, he felt that the gazes falling on his back were a few degrees heavier than before.

He knew that after these two battles, the name Fang Hao had completely made a name for itself among the younger generation in this Heavenly Capital.

The days ahead would probably not be very peaceful.

But, so what?

The path of Cultivating is originally a struggle against the heavens to fight for one’s fate; fighting with the heavens, fighting with people, the joy is infinite!

He sat back in his seat and closed his eyes to adjust his breath again.

And the Azure Dragon Society was still continuing, but in everyone’s hearts, they had inevitably engraved that figure who was wearing a green robe, had a calm face, but whose attacks were as sharp as a sword.