Chapter 138: Chapter 39: Why Does Everyone Have a Second Form?
A gale howled, the raging winds surging skyward with the piercing arrow.
And just as Su Zhou had said, the National Preceptor, having cast Thunder Strike too many times in succession, was temporarily unable to divert the volley of Rigid Shot Arrows. It swung its Magic Sword, and the one powerful arrow aimed straight for its body was deflected by a magnetic field.
But the price was its Spirit Beast. The Yang Flame Cicada beneath its feet was blown to smithereens by the Rigid Shooting Technique, exploding into a shower of wooden splinters!
Left with no choice, the National Preceptor activated its Qinggong and descended slowly to the ground. It showed no surprise, however, its gaze fixed on Su Zhou, burning with intensity.
"The Soul-Seeing Eye, and it can even block my Spiritual Vision... Combined with that Dragon’s Roar from earlier, you’re of the Dragon Race?"
Before Su Zhou could answer, it chuckled. "I’ve never refined a pill using one of the Dragon Race before."
Now, on the snowy plains, the two Grandmasters, the National Preceptor and Su Zhou, faced each other from a distance. They were on the same level, no longer one in the sky and one on the ground, separated by a mere hundred meters.
Su Zhou could hear the battle raging at the fortress behind him—the clash between the Divine Wood Guard and the defenders. He could hear the furious sounds of slaughter, the detonations of Magma Bombs, the metallic hum of clashing blades, and every other sound he should have been able to hear.
But all these sounds quickly faded from his hearing, like a motorcycle speeding down a street, arriving with a deafening roar only to vanish into the distance just as fast.
At this very moment, his entire focus was fixed on the National Preceptor’s every move. Su Zhou’s eyes reflected the enemy’s rapidly recovering Spiritual Power and the flow of its Spiritual Qi. He was so engrossed that he couldn’t even hear the words the being was speaking as its mouth opened and closed.
This was Su Zhou’s ’combat state’—a natural state of ’Full Concentration’!
’So strong. That massive body, that vast reserve of Spiritual Qi... It’s as if its entire being is forged from Spiritual Qi itself!’
’It’s practically Half-Innate, Half-Extraordinary. No wonder the Hundred Schools’ Righteous Army said the National Preceptor and the Demon Emperor were both on the verge of successfully transforming into Dragons. It’s absolutely true!’
’Various data points on the National Preceptor flashed through Su Zhou’s mind. Its strength was undeniably overwhelming. Its massive Spiritual Qi alone was over ten times stronger than Li Daoran’s. Not even Su Zhou’s own monstrously deep foundation could compare. This was to be expected from one of the Demon Dynasty’s highest-ranking figures, who had accumulated power for decades!’
’But even so, it isn’t without weaknesses. For example, with a body that large, could its movements be slow?’
’Worth a try.’
He exhaled, as if expelling all impurities, then took another deep breath, drawing in a vast amount of Spiritual Qi.
BOOM! A deafening roar shook the ground as he stomped his foot. A tempest erupted from beneath him, kicking up countless chunks of earth and stone to hang suspended in the air. The resulting shockwave of snow and dust formed a ring of mist that shrouded his figure, making it impossible to tell which way he would move.
The instant he broke the National Preceptor’s visual lock, a figure that was practically a gale itself shot toward the National Preceptor, the tip of his long spear a razor-sharp glint!
A second later, the area where the National Preceptor stood was also engulfed by a sudden cloud of snow and dust. All that could be heard was the continuous CRACK of the ground splintering, as a spiderweb of fissures spread across the earth, carving a long path!
But soon, the northern gale scattered the dust cloud. Where the National Preceptor had been standing, Su Zhou’s long spear now stood in its place. He had thrust it over a meter deep into the solid, frozen earth, the impact blasting out a crater like a cannonball as the spear buried itself in the ground.
But the National Preceptor’s figure was gone.
With a powerful wrench, Su Zhou tore his long spear free. The frozen earth flew up in a great slab, like a sheet of ice ripped away by brute force. He silently turned his head to look at the Cyan Jade Form, which was now landing lightly on a nearby snowdrift.
The National Preceptor’s Qinggong was excellent. Despite its massive size, its body was not only swift but also incredibly nimble, moving with an eerie weightlessness. Though its four-meter-tall frame must have been incredibly heavy, it could stand atop a pile of snow.
Meeting Su Zhou’s gaze, it smiled, then casually flicked the Spiritual Light Sword in its hand. The electric arcs, which had vanished after it cast too many spells, began to reappear one by one on the five Spirit Pearls embedded in the blade.
The National Preceptor calmly opened its mouth and seemed to say something, likely a taunt about Su Zhou’s previous moves being mere trifles.
But in the next moment, its calm expression instantly turned grim.
Because Su Zhou’s mouth was now open, his eyes wide, and he was staring at it like a predator eyeing its prey.
HUFF, HUFF, HUFF!
’It can still dodge. Am I not fast enough?’
He took three deep, successive breaths. Spiritual Blood, like liquid mercury, surged through his Perfect Body. Su Zhou could hear his own heartbeat—impossibly slow, yet immensely heavy, thudding with the deep hum of a great temple bell. Since meeting Yara, this was the first time he had ever pushed his body to such a limit.
Then, he smiled, baring his teeth in a predatory grin at the grim-faced National Preceptor, who had already begun to swing its sword and cast a spell.
"That wasn’t fast enough."
He muttered to himself, and then came a resounding CRACK!
Surging Spiritual Power burst through his clothes. A cyan-purple Spiritual Light transformed into the Gale Armor. A violent wind tore Su Zhou’s plain clothes to shreds, and then those same gales condensed into translucent, cyan-purple plates of armor!
At this moment, triangular Spirit Patterns materialized across Su Zhou’s skin. The patterns flashed as his muscles knotted, pulsing as if alive and releasing a terrifying sense of power. The Perfect Body that had been hidden beneath his clothes, a physique that seemed forged from steel, began to absorb the surrounding Spiritual Qi at hundreds of times the normal rate, forming a veritable tornado around him!
