54: Chapter 54: I'll give you three moves so you won't accuse me of bullying a disabled person.

Above the Star Observation Platform, blood energy filled the sky.

Wang Teng's entire being resembled a burning crimson meteor. The demonic halberd in his hand, wrapped in world-destroying Asura baleful energy, was now less than three inches from Xu Chen's glabella.

The terrifying gale-force winds whipped Xu Chen's black hair into a frenzy, and even the hard stone platform beneath his feet began to crack inch by inch.

"DIE!!!"

Wang Teng's face was contorted. This strike concentrated all his essence, energy, and spirit; it was his strongest attack since clawing his way back from hell. He could already picture the miserable scene of Xu Chen's head bursting open, blood splattering everywhere.

However,

just as the demonic halberd was about to touch Xu Chen's skin,

"Stop."

A single, light word drifted from Xu Chen's lips.

There was no earth-shattering divine ability, nor any radiant, magnificent treasure.

Xu Chen merely extended two fingers and, with a seemingly casual motion, reached forward and pinched.

*CLANG——!*

A sound of grinding metal, enough to set one's teeth on edge, rang out.

That demonic halberd, powerful enough to pierce mountains and currently in a state of extreme velocity, was thus abruptly halted in mid-air.

Not a single tremor!

Wang Teng remained frozen in his forward-thrusting posture, eyes wide, his eyeballs nearly popping out. He felt as if his halberd hadn't struck a human body, but rather a primordial divine mountain. No matter how he channeled his spiritual power, the halberd seemed to have taken root, firmly stuck between Xu Chen's two fingers.

"You..."

Wang Teng exclaimed in shock and terror.

"What's the hurry?"

Xu Chen exerted a slight force with his two fingers, and the demonic halberd emitted a groan of protest.

He looked at Wang Teng, who was so close and dripping with cold sweat, a playful smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"Brother Wang, although your insults earlier were quite unpleasant, I am a magnanimous man. I believe in respecting the elderly and cherishing the young, and showing compassion for the disabled."

"Dis... disabled?!"

Wang Teng was so enraged he nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood. He was now a Dao Severing King, his demonic body reforged! Where was he disabled?

"Brain damage is also a form of disability."

Xu Chen released his fingers and, with a backhanded push, gave a light shove.

*BOOM!*

A gentle yet irresistible force surged forth, sending Wang Teng, along with his halberd, flying back several dozen zhang, re-establishing the distance between them.

Xu Chen brushed off some non-existent dust from his sleeve, stood with his hands clasped behind his back, and extended three fingers towards Wang Teng.

"Seeing how desperately you want to kill me, I'll give you a chance."

"I'll give you three moves."

"During these three moves, I will only defend and will not retaliate."

"Lest it get out that I, Xu Chen, bullied a mentally-challenged, disabled person."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire arena erupted in an uproar.

"Arrogant! Too arrogant!"

"Facing a Dao Severing King of the same realm, he dares to say he'll give him three moves? This Xu Chen is far too presumptuous!"

"Wang Teng's last strike contained the power of laws, and he caught it with just two fingers? Just how strong is his physical body...?"

The prodigies below the platform murmured amongst themselves. The looks they cast towards Xu Chen now held not just jealousy, but a deep layer of awe.

Meanwhile, the four beloved wives behind Xu Chen exchanged glances and smiles, their eyes brimming with pride.

"Husband is about to start tricking people again."

Luo Hongyi covered her mouth with a light laugh, "He could slap him to death in an instant, yet he insists on playing this cat-and-mouse game."

"This is called psychological warfare."

Jiang Liuli gently stroked her zither strings, her voice soft, "Husband intends to shatter Wang Teng's dignity bit by bit, to let him know what true despair feels like."

...

At the center of the battlefield,

Wang Teng's face had darkened to the color of a pot bottom.

This was blatant humiliation!

"Xu Chen! You will pay for your arrogance!"

Wang Teng roared at the sky, veins bulging all over his body. The Asura blood baleful energy within him was pushed to its absolute limit.

"First Move! Surging Sea of Blood!"

*RUMBLE!*

The void trembled. An endless expanse of blood materialized out of thin air, transforming into a boiling sea of blood that surged towards Xu Chen. Within the blood sea, countless vengeful spirits wailed, attempting to disturb Xu Chen's mind.

This was a dual attack—spiritual and physical!

Yet, Xu Chen remained standing in place, neither dodging nor evading.

"All flash, no substance."

He simply gave a light stomp with his foot.

*HUMMM!*

A violet-gold halo expanded outwards from him as the center.

The once turbulent and surging sea of blood, upon contact with this halo, melted away like snow under the scorching sun, dissolving into wisps of green smoke that dissipated into the heavens and earth.

It didn't even dampen the corner of Xu Chen's robe.

"That's one move."

Xu Chen reported calmly, "Two more to go."

"Aaaargh!"

Wang Teng was nearly driven mad with rage. Refusing to believe it, he formed hand seals once more.

"Second Move! Asura Dharma Form!"

This time, the void behind him split open, revealing a hundred-zhang tall, three-headed, six-armed crimson Asura Dharma Form. The Dharma Form raised six weapons condensed from baleful energy and, with world-destroying momentum, simultaneously smashed them down towards Xu Chen.

The power of this strike was enough to instantly reduce an ordinary Dao Severing King to ashes!

"Now that's slightly more interesting."

Xu Chen lifted his head, a glint of golden light flashing in his eyes as he watched the descending colossal weapons.

He didn't employ any treasure, nor did he even summon a spiritual energy shield.

He merely straightened his chest.

Hongmeng Creation Body, fully unleashed!

*ROAR——!*

A draconic roar from ancient times resonated from within his body.

Violet qi swirled around Xu Chen, and a layer of fine violet-gold dragon scales surfaced on his skin.

*DANG! DANG! DANG!*

The six baleful weapons smashed fiercely onto his body, producing deafening metallic clangs like giant bells. Sparks flew in all directions, shockwaves erupted, shattering the surrounding ground of the Star Observation Platform.

But when the dust settled,

Xu Chen still stood there steadily, completely unscathed.

He even stretched lazily and let out a yawn.

"The force is passable. You could barely work as a masseur."

"But the technique is too crude. Far inferior to my Ningbing's."

*PUFF——!*

Wang Teng could no longer hold back, spurting out a mouthful of reverse-flowing blood.

This wasn't from injury; it was from sheer fury.

His all-out killing move, in the other's eyes, was merely... a massage?

"One last move remains."

Xu Chen raised his final finger. The smile on his face gradually faded, his gaze turning profound and icy.

"Wang Teng, is this your limit?"

"If this is all you're capable of, then you've truly disappointed me."

"I might even regret accepting your challenge earlier."

These words pierced Wang Teng's heart like a sharp dagger.

Despair.

Powerlessness.

He had paid such a great price, turned himself into a monstrous creature, neither human nor ghost, yet in front of Xu Chen, he was still as weak as an ant?

"No! I haven't lost!"

"I still have one last move! I'll drag you down to death with me!"

A flash of maddened resolve crossed Wang Teng's eyes.

He fiercely bit the tip of his tongue and spat out a blood mist containing his origin essence blood.

"With my blood, I sacrifice to the Asura!"

"Forbidden Divine Ability—Descent of the Blood God!"

*BOOM——!!!*

The sky completely darkened.

A terrifying aura, ten, a hundred times stronger than before, erupted from Wang Teng's body. His flesh began to crack, blood streaming down, but the Asura Dharma Form behind him became incredibly solid, even opening its eyes, which brimmed with destructive aura.

For this strike, he had sacrificed his own life force in exchange for a brief moment of Saint-level combat power!

"Die, Xu Chen!"

Wang Teng's entire being merged into the Dharma Form, transforming into a sky-obscuring crimson giant hand that descended with the momentum to crush everything in its path.

This time, even the defensive formations of the Star Observation Platform emitted groaning, cracking sounds under the strain.

All the prodigies present changed expressions, hastily retreating for fear of being caught in the aftermath.

"This move has some merit."

Facing this terrifying strike capable of slaying a Half-Saint, Xu Chen finally nodded slightly, offering a measure of acknowledgment.

But it was merely acknowledgment.

"Three moves are over."

"Now, it's my turn."

Xu Chen took a deep breath.

He was no longer passively defending.

He slowly raised his right hand, palm facing upward, in a lifting motion.

*RUMBLE!*

Behind him, a vast, boundless, chaotic, and hazy violet world materialized out of thin air.

That was not an illusion conjured by spiritual energy; it was a physique phenomenon—the Primordial Opening of the Hongmeng!

Within that chaotic world, three thousand Great Daos rose and fell, suns, moons, and stars evolved. An ancient aura, as if originating from the dawn of the universe, instantly suppressed the entire arena.

Before that aura, Wang Teng's so-called Asura Blood God was like a firefly trying to compete with the brilliance of the bright moon.

Insignificant.

Laughable.

"Disperse."

Xu Chen lightly uttered a single word.

The chaotic world behind him trembled slightly, and a stream of violet qi surged forth like a long river.

"NO—!!!"

In mid-air, that sky-obscuring crimson giant hand couldn't last even a single breath before the onslaught of this violet qi. It instantly disintegrated, transforming into a skyful of bloody rain.

Wang Teng's figure tumbled out once more, covered in blood, crashing to the ground like a dead dog, unable to get up again.

The entire arena fell deathly silent.

Everyone stared at the man standing on the high platform, his white robes pristine and unstained, as if looking at a monster.

Three moves.

Completely unscathed.

In the end, he didn't even truly strike a blow, merely suppressing the Wang Teng who had erupted with Saint-level combat power using only his physique phenomenon.

Was this the Young Master of the Imperial Clan?

Was this... a kept man?

"To hell with 'kept man'!"

Someone screamed internally, "If this is a kept man, then there's no such thing as a real man in this world!"

Xu Chen retracted his phenomenon. Looking at the still-twitching Wang Teng on the ground, there was not a trace of pity in his eyes.

He turned and beckoned towards Su Qingge on the viewing stand.

"Qingge, bring Great Treasure over."

Everyone was stunned.

Wasn't it over? Why bring the child?

Su Qingge, holding Great Treasure, flew down and landed.

Xu Chen took his son and walked back to stand before Wang Teng.

Although Wang Teng's meridians were shattered, he still clung to a breath of life. He laboriously lifted his head, his gaze unfocused as he looked at Xu Chen.

"Wang Teng, didn't you just call my son a bastard?"

Xu Chen held the child, his tone gentle as if telling a bedtime story, but the chill in the depths of his eyes could freeze a soul.

"Now, I'll let you see."

"How the 'bastard' you spoke of... swats away a so-called 'prodigy' like you as if beating a dog."

Xu Chen grabbed Great Treasure's chubby little hand and gestured towards Wang Teng with it.

"Son, ready?"

"Dad will teach you a move. It's called the Dog-Beating Staff Technique."