Overlord of the Wilderness

"ROAR!"

Du Hong threw a punch.

Du Hong now stood nearly twenty feet tall, each of his arms thicker than an ordinary person’s thigh. His fists were covered in dense scales, and an endless black gas billowed from them. In an instant, a brutal, tyrannical aura enveloped the area.

BOOM—

Though the fist was still over ten feet from Zhaang Ye, an endless Powerful Qi had already displaced the air, surging outward in all directions like successive ocean waves. An unfathomable pressure crushed the void, making it creak and groan, and the entire arena trembled under the force of Du Hong’s punch!

Below the arena, the crowd felt the ground tremble violently as Du Hong threw his punch, as if dozens of fissures might crack open at any moment. Sensing the extreme might of this blow, everyone fixed their gaze on Zhaang Ye, waiting to see how he would respond.

Clad in green robes, Zhaang Ye stood at the center of the arena, his clothes and long hair whipping in the wind from the punch. As he watched Du Hong’s fist descend, a grave look appeared in his eyes. His formidable Spiritual Power clearly sensed that the force behind this punch had reached an astonishing 1.5 million jin!

’Interesting, very interesting! My body was tempered by Ancient Elephant Power and Ancient Dragon Power, which is how I can unleash such immense strength. I never thought this Du Hong could also produce such astonishing power! I wonder what kind of terrifying Ancient Power is hidden within him?’ Zhaang Ye thought. With a flick of his arm, he met Du Hong’s fist head-on!

BOOM!

One large and one small, the two fists collided violently in mid-air. Du Hong’s eyes bulged wider than his fists, and his teeth ground together with a harsh CRACK. An unimaginable, surging momentum erupted as if it were tangible.

"AHHH—"

Du Hong roared, unleashing boundless strength from his arm. He wanted to smash Zhaang Ye into a meat paste, to drive him straight into the ground. But just as their fists met, an incomparably tyrannical power suddenly erupted from Zhaang Ye’s small fist, forcefully knocking Du Hong’s own fist away!

THUD, THUD, THUD!

Steam billowed from Du Hong’s body as he staggered back three more steps, his eyes filled with disbelief. He couldn’t believe that the full-force punch he had thrown was blocked by Zhaang Ye—blocked purely with Physical Body’s Power!

The crowd erupted in an uproar.

"Zhaang Ye is terrifying!"

"Not only has Zhaang Ye reached the Martial Arts Ninth Layer in Cultivation, but his Body Refining Technique is also extraordinary. This is going to be a great fight!"

"I have no idea how Zhaang Ye cultivates! He doesn’t even look thirty, yet he’s already at the Martial Arts Ninth Layer and has developed such Divine Power. How is anyone else supposed to compete?!"

The spectators below the arena burst into discussion upon seeing Zhaang Ye take Du Hong’s heaven-shaking blow head-on. They stared intently at Zhaang Ye, unable to comprehend how his seemingly slender frame could contain such terrifying power, matching Du Hong’s astounding Divine Power without being at a disadvantage.

’I don’t believe it! The blood of Ancient Giants flows in my veins. I refuse to believe I can’t even take down one Zhaang Ye! My Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand has more than just the Cloud-Breaking Fist. There’s the Cloud-Breaking Claw, Cloud-Breaking Finger, Cloud-Breaking Palm, and Cloud-Breaking Sword. I will defeat him!’ After his shock, Du Hong became ruthless. His figure shot toward Zhaang Ye, and he swiped through the air!

HISS!

As Du Hong’s palm swiped through the air, the people below the arena all gasped sharply. With that one grab from his massive hand, a terrifying Devouring Power instantly enveloped an area of several dozen yards. The air within that radius was suddenly sucked toward his palm, and even the spectators nearly flew toward him!

’Hm? This grab from Du Hong is somewhat similar to the Devouring Power of a Space Storm. Its Realm and might are no weaker than my Mountain-Breaking Slash. It’s just a shame Du Hong can’t fully unleash its power.’ Zhaang Ye was slightly moved as he sensed Du Hong’s attack. His Mountain-Breaking Slash was comprehended from a Space Storm, and he had originally thought no other Combat Skill could compare. But after Du Hong made his move, Zhaang Ye realized he had underestimated the masters of the world.

’Since this Du Hong’s Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand is so marvelous, I won’t be in a rush to defeat him. This is a rare opportunity, so I should take a good look at this wondrous Combat Skill!’ Zhaang Ye quickly made his decision. With a slight movement of his hand, he executed a slash through the air.

The moment Zhaang Ye unleashed this slash, Du Hong’s expression changed. He could clearly feel that Zhaang Ye’s attack also contained a Devouring Power, one that was even more terrifying than his own!

CRACKLE! CRACKLE! CRACKLE!

Du Hong’s Cloud-Breaking Claw met Zhaang Ye’s Hand Blade, and the fierce Powerful Qi collided in a dense flurry, producing a series of dull thuds. After the sounds faded, Du Hong’s towering figure retreated for the third time—three steps back, for the third time!

’This Zhaang Ye is terrifying. My Cloud-Breaking Claw contains all sorts of profound mysteries; it’s not a Combat Skill that relies on brute force to overwhelm an opponent. I can’t believe he still broke through it so easily!’ Having witnessed Zhaang Ye’s power several times now, Du Hong already considered him the greatest enemy of his life. Astonished, he let out a stifled grunt, took a step forward, and attacked once more.

Cloud-Breaking Fist!

Cloud-Breaking Claw!

Cloud-Breaking Finger!

Cloud-Breaking Palm!

Cloud-Breaking Sword!

The Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand had five strikes in total. Facing a fearsome foe like Zhaang Ye, Du Hong immediately unleashed everything he had. Fierce Fist Force, claw power, palm energy, finger strikes, and Sword Qi pierced through the void for dozens of yards, seemingly tearing even the clouds in the sky to shreds!

Faced with such a terrifying assault, even Zhaang Ye didn’t dare to be careless. His hand transformed into a blade, and he slashed out again and again. The Saber Technique Zhaang Ye was using now was none other than the Mountain-Breaking Slash.

For the past year, Zhaang Ye had been silently comprehending the Ancient Sword Intent and Ancient Fist Intent. As a result, his understanding of the Sword Dao grew deeper, and the power of his Mountain-Breaking Slash became more formidable. The Mountain-Breaking Slash he now executed was like a meteor streaking across the night sky, or like sunlight blanketing the earth, containing a profound and mysterious Realm. Although Du Hong’s Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand was incomparably wondrous, it gained no advantage against Zhaang Ye’s Mountain-Breaking Slash.

The more Du Hong attacked, the more frustrated he became, so much so that he wanted to roar at the heavens. He discovered that no matter how fierce his attacks were, Zhaang Ye could always neutralize them with ease.

If Du Hong was an invincible general galloping across a battlefield, then Zhaang Ye was an emperor. No matter how mighty the general was on the battlefield, he could only submit obediently before the emperor, not even daring to breathe too loudly.

HISS— Du Hong was truly shaken this time. He possessed the bloodline of the Ancient Giants. After entering the True Hall, several Hall Masters of the Great Bell Kingdom had painstakingly nurtured him, finally awakening the Giant Race bloodline within him completely and allowing him to possess a trace of Ancient Power.

Once Du Hong’s Giant Race bloodline was fully awakened, he quickly acquired some of the Ancient Giants’ fighting methods from it. These methods were scattered and chaotic, but after being refined by several Hall Masters, they became the current Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand.

The Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand was derived from the combat techniques of the Ancient Giants. Although its power was greatly diminished after being organized by the Hall Masters, it was still no small matter. Ordinary Late-stage Martial Arts Ninth Layer experts could only carefully defend against his Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand, able to parry but not counter-attack.

But now, this nobody Zhaang Ye had easily broken through his incomparably profound and powerful Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand. This was something Du Hong simply could not accept!

At the judges’ table.

One of the judges watched the battle on the arena and sighed softly. "This young man, Zhaang Ye, his strength is truly unfathomable! Du Hong’s Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand is a Combat Skill of the Ancient Giant Clan, both tyrannical and profound. But under such a terrifying Combat Skill, Zhaang Ye is not only handling it with ease but even seems to have the upper hand. Truly, the younger generation is formidable!"

Another judge nodded slightly and said, "Du Hong himself has the Cultivation of a Martial Arts Ninth Level Middle Stage expert, and his Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand is both incomparably profound and extremely powerful. Yet even with all that, he’s unable to defeat Zhaang Ye. It’s truly hard to accept. In this battle, I think Zhaang Ye will win soon."

Du Hong was a young expert from the Great Bell Kingdom. Hearing two judges praise Zhaang Ye, the judge from the Great Bell Kingdom snorted in displeasure. "It’s too early to declare Zhaang Ye the victor. Du Hong became famous at a young age and has fought countless hard battles. His strength was forged in combat. Although this Zhaang Ye’s strength is decent, I think it’s impossible for him to defeat Du Hong!"

"Heh heh heh!" At this moment, the Eighth Elder of the Wei Kingdom True Hall spoke up. "Elder Du, Du Hong has already used all five strikes of his Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand, but he still can’t do anything to Zhaang Ye. Zhaang Ye, on the other hand, has used the same single move over and over to neutralize all of Du Hong’s attacks. Heh heh, and you still dare to say Zhaang Ye can’t defeat Du Hong?"

Elder Du snorted.

The Eighth Elder of the Wei Kingdom True Hall added smugly, "And another thing, look at Zhaang Ye’s feet. He has been fighting Du Hong for so long, yet his feet haven’t moved an inch. In other words, Du Hong doesn’t even have the strength to make Zhaang Ye dodge. Between Zhaang Ye and Du Hong, it’s already clear who is more skilled!"

As the Eighth Hall Master of the Wei Kingdom True Hall said this, the expressions of the other judges changed slightly. They all thought of the same question: ’If Zhaang Ye is so powerful, why hasn’t he moved quickly to secure victory?’

The judges were all Elders of a Hall, with profound Cultivation and vast experience. With just a flicker of thought, they arrived at the answer—Zhaang Ye wasn’t counter-attacking quickly because he was silently comprehending Du Hong’s Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand!

Upon reaching this conclusion, the Elders from the Great Rong Kingdom, Great Chang Kingdom, Celestial Forest Kingdom, Great Bell Kingdom, and Moon Country all had looks of utter disbelief. The Elders stared silently at Zhaang Ye as if they were looking at a monster.

BOOM! At that moment, another loud crash echoed from the arena, and Zhaang Ye’s clear voice rang out. "Brother Du, your Cloud-Breaking Scattering Hand is truly impressive. I have learned much! Now, I will begin my counter-attack. Be careful!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)