Chapter 127: Chapter 126: Foundation

The hoarse voice left Wu Chen utterly speechless.

’You couldn’t even land a sneak attack from behind when I let you have the first move. What’s with all the big talk?’

But at that moment, Wu Chen had a change of heart and decided to accept the challenge.

’After all, I’ll have to exchange more demon heads in the future. If I don’t establish some dominance now, what happens when some "Fourth Brother" or "Fifth Brother" pops up? I’ll be too busy to deal with them all.’

"Hm? It looks like you’ve accepted the challenge. In that case, you’d better be careful!"

Pang Lei watched the figure that had stopped thirty feet away. He saw a flicker in Wu Chen’s eyes and knew the man had decided to fight.

After all, who could tolerate being verbally challenged and then sneak-attacked from behind?

Not wanting to miss the opportunity, Pang Lei, who had been itching for a fight, immediately bellowed:

"Everyone, get back! Don’t get caught in the crossfire!"

With that, he unapologetically swung his chains and charged toward Wu Chen.

BAM! BAM! BAM!

As he ran, the air whipped violently around him.

A powerful aura instantly unfurled. Even the crowd, which had already retreated upon his warning, felt an inexplicable tightness in their chests.

The chains locked to his arms, like venomous snakes, writhed with his movements, striking the green flagstones and sending brilliant sparks into the air.

"Third Brother must have built up a ton of killing intent on his trip!"

"I can’t imagine how terrifying it’ll be when Third Brother reaches the Organ Refining Realm!"

"..."

No one in the Casting Area had any mind for smithing now. They stood watching from all over, secretly shocked, especially by Pang Lei’s powerful aura that stirred the very air.

In contrast, the other figure looked utterly ordinary, as plain as could be.

He showed no sign of a sharp aura. In fact, he gave off the impression that he would be crushed by Pang Lei the moment they clashed.

"What are you standing there for? Draw your blade!"

Pang Lei had already closed the distance to within twenty feet, well within the attack range of his chains.

Seeing the figure opposite him still standing there, not drawing his blade or even moving, he couldn’t help but feel a little anxious, worried he might accidentally kill the man!

But then he recalled the rumors about the man, as well as his superb Body Technique from moments before, and thought his worries were probably unnecessary.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

He held back no longer. His outstretched arms snapped together, and the two chains connected to them became afterimages, slashing toward the figure before him with a force no less than a sharp blade.

’This guy’s Body Technique allowed him to dodge before. There’s no reason he can’t dodge now, right?’

As Pang Lei thought this, he already pictured Wu Chen leaping aside with ease.

But to his surprise, Wu Chen didn’t dodge this time.

Instead, he raised the scabbard in his left hand, and at the same time, both his hands turned crimson.

’He’s not dodging this time?’

As Pang Lei stared in a daze, the chains struck Wu Chen.

KRAK! SNAP!

The falling chains made two distinctly different sounds.

The black chain had wrapped itself tightly around Wu Chen’s raised scabbard, locking it in place and blocking the attack on the left.

Meanwhile, his right hand had firmly gripped the other one.

Just like that, he had effortlessly neutralized the two fierce chain attacks.

"Damn, what kind of eyesight does he have? He actually caught it!"

"So what if he caught them? Third Brother is a master of chains. Isn’t this guy just tying his own hands?"

"Exactly! How can he fight with his blade all tangled up? He’s already lost!"

"..."

The onlookers had reached their verdict, which was exactly what Pang Lei was thinking as well.

In his mind, Wu Chen now had only two choices: hold onto his blade and be pulled in close...

...or abandon the blade to free himself.

But a swordsman without his sword? Wouldn’t that be an admission of defeat?!

"Get over here!"

Pang Lei let out a low growl. The muscles in his arms bulged as he prepared to drag Wu Chen, who was over ten feet away, toward him, eager to see how the man would handle the situation.

After all, abandoning the blade wasn’t a big deal. The Casting Area had no shortage of blades; he could just grab another one.

But if the guy was truly a stubborn fool, then this match might as well be over.

It would mean that his ability to take so many demon heads was just a matter of luck.

"Come!"

Pang Lei shouted and yanked with all his might. The black chains snapped taut, but the figure opposite him didn’t budge an inch.

Instead, it was his own body that swayed from the pull.

"Huh!"

Pang Lei looked at his opponent again, his expression growing much more serious.

He realized that not only had his pull failed to move the man, but an irresistible force was now traveling up his arms from the other end of the chains.

It was pulling *him* over!

"A little interesting!"

"No wonder he didn’t dodge!"

Feeling his feet scraping and sliding by millimeters, Pang Lei was inwardly shocked. His opponent’s seemingly slender frame possessed a Qi Power that was no less than his own!

"Then try this!"

After sliding a few more inches, Pang Lei retracted his aura, no longer letting it spread out.

This brought immediate relief to the dozens of onlookers nearby, who found they could breathe much more easily.

But in the next instant, Pang Lei dropped into a horse stance, his feet stomping hard on the flagstones. A low, muffled roar like a clap of thunder erupted from his throat as his body sank down.

The flagstones beneath his feet sank more than two inches under the brutal force.

BOOM!

The aura radiating from him this time was no longer suffocating.

Instead, it made the crowd shrink back, as if an invisible boulder was pressing down on their heads, making their necks stiff and immobile.

"Again!"

Anchored by his Thousand-Jin Drop stance, Pang Lei’s body was as steady as a boulder, like a hundred-year-old tree rooted firmly in the ground, halting his forward slide.

He gestured for Wu Chen to try pulling again.

"Alright." Wu Chen nodded. He had the same idea.

The two men gripped the chains tightly, both leaning back slightly to exert their strength. A force of thousands upon thousands of pounds began to erupt.

VMMMM! VMMMM!—

Brutal force poured in from both ends of the chains. The ten-foot lengths of iron trembled uncontrollably, blurring into afterimages as they struggled to absorb the immense power.

The chains let out a high-pitched hum, like a cry for mercy under an unbearable load.

The surrounding crowd stared wide-eyed at the scene.

They had expected a duel of ultimate techniques and flashy Body Technique, not a contest of brute strength!

It had turned into a simple, almost tedious, game of tug-of-war!

"Who do you think will win?"

"You think all that muscle on Third Brother is just for show?"

"But this Wu Chen guy doesn’t look weak either!"

"Just wait a moment. We’ll know once we see who starts to waver first."

"..."

The crowd murmured amongst themselves. Most of them favored Pang Lei; after all, his large frame was plain to see.

SSSK! SSSK!

However, just as everyone thought they would have to wait at least a moment, a mere seven or eight breaths later, they saw Pang Lei—the one known for his Qi Power—sliding forward.

"How is that possible!" The crowd was stunned, their eyes glued to Pang Lei’s feet.

It was subtle, and his body wasn’t wavering, but there was no mistaking his continuously sliding feet.

Clearly, in this contest of Qi Power, Pang Lei was losing.

"Hah!"

But the slight movement only lasted for about half a foot. With another explosive roar from his throat, Pang Lei’s body stabilized completely, not moving another inch, as if he had merged with the flagstones beneath him.

’So this is a disciple that a sect has poured all its resources into cultivating!’

Wu Chen unleashed all the Qi Power in his body. Using the force of his ’Rampaging Bull Shakes the Earth’ technique, he had managed to pull his opponent half a foot before they reached a complete stalemate.

He couldn’t help but be inwardly surprised.

This was the first time he had met an opponent of a similar realm who was his equal in terms of Qi Power.

Wu Chen shook his head inwardly. ’No, it’s different. He’s borrowing strength from his stance while standing still. Ultimately, it’s just static strength. He can’t integrate it into any technique like I can.’

Feeling the chains in his hands twisting and whining, Wu Chen had no intention of continuing this boring contest of brute strength.

Even if he could wear his opponent down and win, he didn’t have the patience to wait.

But recalling how the other man had warned the bystanders, Wu Chen offered a good-natured warning of his own:

"Now it’s my turn to attack."

"Heh, whatever tricks you have, kid, just bring them on..."

Pang Lei was unconcerned. ’Isn’t seeing his real skills the whole reason I challenged him?’

But before he could finish his sentence, a light breeze swept past him, bringing a chill. In the next instant, Wu Chen’s figure appeared before him, less than five feet away.

The chains suddenly went slack. However, because all of his Qi Power was sunk into the ground, Pang Lei’s body didn’t waver.

But a hint of surprise flashed across his large, dark-skinned face, clearly startled by Wu Chen’s speed.

"So fast!"

Seeing Wu Chen leap forward with a roundhouse kick aimed at his side, Pang Lei instinctively bent his arm to block.

’A Body Technique imbued with ’potential’ isn’t just about moving nimbly or running fast. A kick with that kind of force, one that penetrates skin and muscle to strike the bone, would be more than I could handle.’

But Wu Chen had already abandoned his weapon, gripping the iron chains with both hands and giving a sharp pull.

RATTLE!

The chains clattered loudly, the force making the slack links writhe like a snake.

The chains connected to Pang Lei’s arms were naturally pulled taut. Thrown off balance by the immense force, his blocking motion slowed by a fraction.

But that fraction of a second was all it took. Wu Chen’s side kick slammed into his thick torso.

It was a simple, unadorned kick, yet its force pierced through skin, muscle, and sinew, striking deep into his organs.

"Hss-Hah!—"

Unable to contain his breath from the pain, Pang Lei’s stance instantly broke and his strength dissipated. His sunken body began to sway.

But before he could recover, Wu Chen twisted back around, and a second kick landed squarely on Pang Lei’s chest.

With his technique completely broken, Pang Lei was in no condition to withstand the blow, and his body was sent flying backward.

CLANG!—

But the rattling of chains sounded again as Wu Chen gave a sharp tug, brutally yanking Pang Lei’s airborne body back toward him.

Then, Wu Chen rose and delivered another kick!

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