39: Chapter 39 Victory!

Xue Yuan, eroded by the soul fiend, also stopped struggling at this moment.

His body, sprawled on the ground, suddenly arched like a beast about to pounce. The greenish-black evil Qi no longer overflowed but instead crazily converged toward the void-splitting blade.

The sharp blade embedded in the rock crevice began to vibrate violently. The green light and black Qi completely twisted together, forming a rotating black wind, with twisted space fragments vaguely visible at the eye of the wind.

A rattling sound emitted from his throat. Each inhalation caused the surrounding plants to wither and rocks to crumble. Evil power surged crazily along the veins of the earth into the void-splitting blade, making the black wind increasingly dense, with a dark purple color that devoured light even appearing at its edges.

The air pressure between heaven and earth was so low it was suffocating.

The thundercloud above Zhang Wen and the black wind in front of Xue Yuan stood facing each other from afar. On one side was the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder, the ultimate yang and rigidity, representing the punishment of heaven and earth; on the other was the soul fiend power, the ultimate yin and evil, symbolizing destruction and consumption. Both forces continued to climb, tearing countless invisible cracks into the air, making even light become sluggish at this moment.

"Kill..." Xue Yuan (soul fiend) finally let out a clear roar. He suddenly raised his hand, and the black wind transformed by the void-splitting blade suddenly soared into the air, bringing a screech that tore at the Divine Soul, and went to strangle Zhang Wen. Wherever the black wind passed, the ground was plowed into a gully over ten zhang wide, and even the dark clouds in the sky were rolled into shreds.

Zhang Wen slowly raised his right hand, his palm facing the black wind. The thunder core in his Dantian suddenly lit up, resonating with the thundercloud in the sky. Purple-gold Lightning Radiance poured down from the clouds like a waterfall, all converging into his palm.

"Thunder Wrath: Instant Prison Kill!"

He softly uttered these five words. The voice was not loud, but it clearly penetrated the wind and thunder.

In an instant, the thunder core in Zhang Wen's palm suddenly disappeared.

The next second, a purple-gold beam of light, as thin as a hair but so bright that it was impossible to look at directly, shot toward the black wind at a speed that transcended time.

There was no earth-shattering collision. The moment the beam of light made contact with the black wind, that evil wind, capable of devouring everything, disintegrated inch by inch like ice and snow melting, without even a shred of room to struggle. The beam pierced through the black wind, landing precisely on the center of Xue Yuan (soul fiend)'s brow, then exploded silently.

There was no roar, no aftermath.

Xue Yuan (soul fiend)'s body stiffened in place, and the greenish-black evil Qi receded like a tide, revealing the body underneath that had long been eroded beyond human form. Only a tiny scorch mark remained on the center of his brow; that was proof that the power of Thunder Wrath: Instant Prison Kill had completely annihilated the soul fiend core.

The dark clouds in the sky dissipated in an instant, and sunlight spilled back onto the earth, as if the standoff that had changed the color of heaven and earth moments ago had never happened.

Zhang Wen slowly stood up straight, the Lightning Radiance around him completely retracted, leaving only a faint scent of ozone. He looked at Xue Yuan, who had fallen to the ground and completely lost his breath, with no ripples in his eyes—to him, this was merely using the most suitable power to end a farce of evil spirits that should never have existed.

The aftermath of the battle had not yet completely dissipated, and the air was still filled with the scorching breath left after the energy collision. Zhang Wen's eyes were cold. With a wave of his hand, he invoked his Thunder Power. Purple-gold lightning, like a dancing swarm of snakes, instantly swallowed and shredded Xue Yuan's corpse, finally turning it into tiny stardust that was completely annihilated, leaving not even a trace behind.

As Xue Yuan's aura completely dissipated, the barrier that had trapped Zhang Wen's parents shattered like broken glass, turning into countless Shimmer that dissipated into the air.

Almost the same second the barrier disappeared, Wang Guihua and Zhang Jianguo stumbled toward Zhang Wen, their faces full of unconcealable anxiety and lingering fear.

"Little Wen! My son!" Wang Guihua rushed to Zhang Wen first, her hands fumbling all over him, her voice choked with sobs. "Let Mom see, are you hurt? Where does it hurt? You scared your father and me to death just now!"

Her hand touched a shallow scratch on Zhang Wen's arm caused by the energy, and her eyes immediately turned redder. "Look at your arm, the skin is broken; what are we going to do!"

"Don't just cry, let me see." Zhang Jianguo followed closely behind, frowning as he pulled Wang Guihua to the side. He carefully examined Zhang Wen, looking from his forehead to his feet, and only breathed a slight sigh of relief after confirming there were no serious injuries.

But his tone remained stern. "How old are you now? Can't you be more careful? That scene just now was so dangerous; if something had really happened to you, what would your mother and I do?"

"Why are you still scolding the child!" Wang Guihua was immediately displeased and slapped Zhang Jianguo's hand away. "Isn't the child doing this to protect us? You, on the other hand, don't say a word of concern but start lecturing him instead!"

"Isn't that because I'm worried about him?" Zhang Jianguo retorted, stiffening his neck. "What's wrong with me saying a few words? To let him learn a lesson so he won't always rush forward when he encounters things in the future!"

"Is that worry? You're just nitpicking!" Wang Guihua glared. "If Little Wen hadn't been there just now, who knows what would have happened to us; you still have the nerve to talk!"

"I..." Zhang Jianguo was choked up. Looking at Wang Guihua's puffed-up appearance and then at Zhang Wen, he finally just sighed and didn't argue further, though a trace of guilt quietly crept into his eyes.

Zhang Wen stood there, watching his parents bickering over him, and the exhaustion and fierceness from the battle just now seemed to be smoothed away in an instant.

His mother's nagging and his father's sternness now turned into a warm current surging into his heart, carrying the most genuine warmth. He couldn't help but smile, reaching out to grab the two who were still glaring at each other. "Dad, Mom, I'm fine, really. It's just a small injury, it doesn't matter. Stop arguing."

He paused, looking at his parents' concerned eyes, and a brilliant smile rose to the corners of his mouth, his voice filled with irrepressible joy. "By the way, there's some good news to tell you—if there are no surprises with my superpower college entrance exam results, the provincial top scholar title should be in the bag!"

"What?" Wang Guihua and Zhang Jianguo were both stunned, the previous argument instantly thrown to the back of their minds, and they asked in unison, "What did you say? The entire provincial top scholar?"

Zhang Wen nodded vigorously, a bright light shining in his eyes. "Yeah!"

Wang Guihua was stunned for a few seconds, then suddenly covered her mouth, tears gushing out again, but this time they were tears of excitement. "I knew my son was the best! That's great! That's great!"

Zhang Jianguo also grinned, a rare smile appearing on his usually stern face. He raised his hand and patted Zhang Wen's shoulder, not lightly, but full of gratification. "Good lad, you've got a future! Let's go, let's go home! Mom will make you your favorite braised pork, we have to celebrate properly!"

"Yes, yes, yes, let's go home and make braised pork!" Wang Guihua quickly wiped away her tears, took Zhang Wen's hand, and walked toward home, her steps so light that she seemed several years younger.

Zhang Wen was pulled by his parents on the left and right, feeling the warmth coming from their palms, watching their faces beam with joy because of his achievements, and his heart was filled with peace. The afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the three of them, stretching their shadows long, and the sound of their chatting and laughing along the way gradually disappeared on the road home.