37: Chapter 37 A Desperate Struggle

Xiao Hao's brow furrowed as he stared intently at every move of the two people on the arena stage.

Not only Xiao Hao, but Lu Ming also appeared, followed by all the Foundation Establishment Disciples of the Law Enforcement Hall, who completely surrounded the arena, causing the atmosphere to instantly turn solemn and chilling.

Many people noticed something was wrong and began to whisper to one another; a buzzing sound of discussion rose from the audience.

"What's happening?" A Disciple in the front row craned his neck, looking around blankly.

"I don't know?" The person beside him looked equally confused and subconsciously shrank back.

"Maybe they're worried they'll destroy the arena?" someone tried to guess.

"How is that possible?" A more knowledgeable Disciple sneered and pointed at the cold-faced Law Enforcement Disciples. "Is a broken arena worth a dozen Foundation Establishment Senior Brothers personally guarding it? Don't be ridiculous."

"Then you tell me what's going on." Having lost Face, the previous person asked crossly.

"This..." The questioned Disciple was at a loss for words, scratching his head and unable to give a clear explanation, only looking uneasily at the center of the arena, which was surrounded so tightly that even water could not leak through.

The strange changes below the stage did not affect the match on the stage.

On the contrary, because of the previous battle, the arena was covered in dust and smoke; let alone the crowd below, even the two on the stage could not see their opponent's exact position.

"Kid, something's wrong. He probably kicked up this dust on purpose," Elder Xuan reminded him.

Ye Chen's expression was solemn as he stared intently at every move before him, not letting even the slightest rustle escape him.

Li Ping completely turned into a shadow, constantly weaving through the dust as if toying with Ye Chen, sensing Ye Chen's unease.

"I understand what kind of Demonic Technique this kid is Cultivating," Elder Xuan suddenly said.

"Elder Xuan, what's the use of saying this now? Help me find where he is," Ye Chen said anxiously.

"Quiet. This kid is Cultivating a Demonic Technique related to the Divine Soul. Haven't you noticed your emotions are being influenced by him? Don't fall for his Dao."

"What should I do?"

"He just erupted with such powerful force, yet chose to attack by influencing your Divine Soul; there's definitely a problem. Either he's worried that using this power will completely expose the fact that he knows a Demonic Technique, or he wants to refine your Divine Soul. You can't let him have his way. I'll teach you a Heart-Calming Mantra; recite it silently in your mind."

As Elder Xuan's Heart-Calming Mantra was passed down, Ye Chen recited it in his mind. His anxious mood gradually settled down, and the dust in front of him seemed to thin out a bit.

Li Ping, however, frowned slightly. Inside the dust, he was covered in black Qi; this was the price of erupting his full power and also the reason he had deliberately kicked up dust on the arena.

He had originally thought of relying on influencing Ye Chen's Divine Soul to make him show a weakness, then winning in one blow and dispersing the black Qi before the dust cleared.

Otherwise, even if he won the match, he would be seen to have Cultivated a Demonic Technique and would likely be executed on the spot, and there would be no hope for the foundation establishment pill.

But what he didn't expect was that this green kid in front of him, besides wearing a turtle shell, actually had a mantra specifically for keeping calm. This kind of mantra wouldn't even be found in an ordinary Golden Core Family; could it be this kid has some background?

However, regardless of his background, he had to settle this quickly.

In the blink of an eye, the black Qi on his body grew stronger, even breaking through the dust and causing a wave of panic in the stands below.

"What is that!"

"Is it Devilish Qi? One of the two inside has Cultivated a Demonic Technique!"

"It must be that guy named Ye Chen! I knew it was impossible for someone so young to Breakthrough to Qi Refining Great Circle!"

"Right, it's definitely not Senior Brother Li Ping. Senior Brother is the best person!"

"Ye Chen, get down!"

Unlike the whispers when the Law Enforcement Hall's Foundation Establishment Senior Brothers appeared, when the audience below saw the Devilish Qi, they all started shouting in righteous indignation, as if they were shouting to prove themselves right.

The two on the stage also heard the shouting from below.

"Senior Brother Li Ping isn't planning to pretend anymore?" Ye Chen split his attention, silently reciting the Heart-Calming Mantra in his mind while speaking mockingly.

Li Ping was now enveloped in black Qi and already somewhat delirious. He panted heavily with a wide grin and said, "If it weren't for you, you son of a bitch, how good it would have been if you just surrendered. Now you're going to lose your life."

"If I die, you won't escape either, having Cultivated a Demonic Technique."

"Hahaha, who knows? The dust is so thick that no one can see exactly what's happening inside. As long as I kill you before the dust clears, you'll be the one who Cultivated the Demonic Technique, and I'll be the hero who slew a demonic cultivator."

"That depends on if you have the ability!" In his life, Ye Chen hated demonic cultivators the most. Seeing Li Ping's hideous and terrifying appearance, he knew he had harmed countless lives.

The moment he confirmed Li Ping's position, Ye Chen turned into an afterimage and charged straight at Li Ping. Even if he couldn't win the fight, if he dragged it out to the end, he would still be the winner.

Unfortunately, he underestimated Li Ping at full power.

Li Ping's speed was so fast that the moment Ye Chen charged at him, he had already reached Ye Chen's back.

His hands turned into claws, and a casual strike left several gashes on the black flood dragon scale armor.

When Ye Chen turned back in alarm to attack, Li Ping had already vanished.

While searching for Li Ping's position again, Ye Chen's right shoulder took another claw strike. The luster of the black flood dragon scale armor began to dim; it wouldn't last much longer.

Then strike after strike, the black flood dragon scale armor looked like it was about to shatter again, and Ye Chen finally discovered Li Ping's weakness.

Absolute power was exchanged for losing most of his reason. At this time, all of Li Ping's attacks were basic scratching, punching, and kicking, completely unable to perform his cunning fist techniques.

In that case, his movements were too easy to guess.

As expected, when Li Ping came to Ye Chen's back again, intending to sneak attack...

Ye Chen actually reacted with extreme speed and dodged it without even glancing back at Li Ping.

After dodging, he immediately followed with a heavy counterattack, his Gold-Burning Mountain-Breaking Fist slamming fiercely into Li Ping's chest.

The massive impact even cleared away some of the dust.

"I think I saw the people inside!"

"It's Senior Brother Li Ping!"

"Why is Senior Brother Li Ping covered in black Qi?"

"You must have seen wrong."

"They're fighting, so they're bound to get some black Qi on them."

As the people below discussed animatedly, Ye Chen landed another solid punch on Li Ping.

After being injured, Li Ping's reason dropped further. His eyes were bloodshot, and the veins on his body were congested and bulging, like twisted little snakes inside him.

"Ye Chen! It's all your fault for stopping me from establishing my foundation; I want you dead!" Li Ping was completely assimilated by the Demonic Technique, turning into a demonic creature that knew only slaughter.

"Come on!" Ye Chen shouted.

Although the black flood dragon scale armor blocked most of the attacks, the impact of every one of Li Ping's strikes was not small, causing Ye Chen to still suffer significant internal injuries.

The two stepped forward and threw punches simultaneously.

Bang! Crack!

The two fists each smashed into the other's Face, hitting at the same time. Neither retreated; instead, they closed the distance even more fiercely.

Four arms turned into blurred afterimages, clashing and exchanging blows frantically in a small space.

There was no blocking, only mutual brawling.

You punch me in the ribs, I'll definitely blast you in the stomach. The dull thuds of bone and flesh colliding merged together, making it impossible to tell who was taking the beating.

Ye Chen's black flood dragon scale armor completely lost its luster, with dents everywhere.

Li Ping was even worse off; no telling how many bones in his body were broken, and blood mixed with black Qi flowed out continuously.

Most importantly, because of the wind from their punches, the dust completely cleared, and the two appeared before everyone's eyes just like that.