140: Chapter 140 Death... It never ends!

"How about this... I am a person who cherishes talent. You kid, give that woman to me, then join us, and I will spare your life."

Black Snake offered what he considered an excellent condition.

Lu Cheng stood up from the ground.

It hurt.

It hurt like hell.

Su Wan and the others were all here, so Lone Hero didn't trigger... otherwise, it wouldn't hurt this much.

The thin blade in Black Snake's hand gleamed coldly under the sunlight; the edge was so narrow that one could only see a silver line.

He took a step forward, his boot soles stepping on broken bricks, making a faint crunching sound.

Lu Cheng raised his right hand and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

He grinned, then raised his middle finger at Black Snake.

"Go to hell!"

"Hey..." He tilted his head, looking at Xia Xi, Su Wan, and Qian Shuying not far behind him. "You three, stay back."

Xia Xi's hand holding the giant hammer tightened.

She wanted to say something, her mouth opened, but the words were swallowed back.

The three looked at each other.

They were not fools.

With such an obvious gap in strength, stepping forward would only get in the way.

They weren't even in the Meridian Opening Realm; facing someone in the War General Realm, they didn't even qualify to be cannon fodder.

Xia Xi bit her lower lip and took a step back.

Her shoe soles dragged across the ground with a harsh friction sound.

Qian Shuying also retreated, but Su Wan stood in place, unmoving.

"Go."

Lu Cheng's gaze was fixed on Black Snake... The holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament flowed over him, and the black-red demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation sprayed out from the gaps in the scale armor.

Su Wan took a deep breath.

The Cold Soul Sword Cloak faded from the sword, and she turned around, following Xia Xi and Qian Shuying to retreat into the distance.

Black Snake watched the three retreat, his eyes narrowing under his hood.

"Want to leave?"

The speed of a War General Realm expert was fully unleashed; the air was torn apart by his body, and the thin blade dragged a silver line through the sunlight.

In the distance, the cold energy within Su Wan was constantly being mobilized... If she was caught up, or if Lu Cheng was on the verge of death... she would have no choice but to sacrifice her talent and seal herself together with the person in front of her.

Lu Cheng's Thunder Step Boots exploded with lightning.

Gale Step.

Drifting Dragon Rending Shadow.

A golden-red afterimage dragged out as his body cut right in front of Black Snake.

His right fist, charged with holy light and demonic flames, smashed toward Black Snake's face.

Black Snake angled his thin blade, the edge horizontal in front of him.

The fist slammed into the blade.

A crisp sound of metal clashing exploded.

The dragon scales on Lu Cheng's fist shattered, blood splattering from the cracks and dripping onto the ground.

Black Snake was forced back half a step by this punch, his boot soles dragging two black marks on the asphalt road.

"You guy..." Black Snake's voice came from under the hood, with a trace of impatience for the first time. "Really annoying."

Lu Cheng retracted his fist, and Holy Radiance Regeneration had already begun to repair the wounds on the back of his hand.

He shook the blood off his hand and stood straight.

"Typical villain dialogue." He grinned. "Let me see what level you really are."

Black Snake didn't look in Xia Xi's direction again.

He turned around, facing Lu Cheng head-on.

The thin blade spun between his fingers, the cold light on the edge dazzling Lu Cheng's eyes.

He intended to focus on dealing with the person in front of him.

The next second, Black Snake's figure disappeared.

Lu Cheng's Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck exploded in his mind, and he subconsciously leaned his body to the left.

The thin blade grazed his right shoulder.

The blade cut through the dragon scales, leaving a wound on his shoulder extending from the collarbone to the shoulder blade.

Blood gushed from the wound, dyeing half of the Holy Dragon Armament red.

It hurt.

Lu Cheng took two steps back, covering the wound on his shoulder with his right hand, his palm covered in blood.

Holy Radiance Regeneration desperately repaired it, but the martial will of the War General Realm remained on the wound, like a layer of black film covering the flesh, hindering regeneration.

Black Snake didn't give him a chance to catch his breath.

The thin blade came again.

This time it was three strikes.

One horizontal slash, one vertical chop, one diagonal stab.

There was no gap between the three strikes; the thin blade in Black Snake's hand was like a living silver snake, its trajectory erratic.

Lu Cheng pushed Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck to the limit.

His body made the smallest adjustments to evade between the trajectories of the thin blade.

After a few rounds, Black Snake realized that this guy had ridiculously high defense.

As a War General Realm expert, he couldn't kill him in a short time.

Black Snake's thin blade grazed Lu Cheng's chest again.

The blade dragged a string of sparks across the dragon scales, leaving a wound from his chest to his abdomen.

Lu Cheng stepped back twice, his heel stepping on a broken brick, and his body swayed.

The holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament dimmed a little.

The black-red demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation also weakened by a fraction.

But he didn't fall; Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck was pushed to the limit.

Before every strike landed, he could sense the trajectory of the danger in advance.

If it were just one-on-one, Lu Cheng was confident in minimizing the damage caused by every strike.

Black Snake's next strike stabbed over.

Lu Cheng didn't dodge this time.

He tilted his body, letting the blade pierce his left shoulder instead of his chest.

The thin blade pierced through the dragon scales, through the flesh, and passed by the shoulder blade. Blood flowed down the blade and dripped onto the ground.

Then Lu Cheng raised his right hand and grabbed Black Snake's wrist.

The power of the Holy Dragon Armament was fully unleashed.

The phantom of the dragon soul spread its wings behind him, and the dragon might pressed down.

Black Snake's movements stalled for a moment.

Just for this instant.

Lu Cheng took a deep breath.

The dragon crest on the chest of the Holy Dragon Armament lit up, and holy light flowed rapidly on the surface of the scales, all converging toward his throat.

A low dragon roar sounded in the air, shaking the surrounding pebbles.

Holy Dragon Roar.

A golden-white dragon breath spewed from Lu Cheng's mouth, slamming straight into Black Snake's face.

The distance was too close, so close that Black Snake didn't have time to raise his hand to defend.

The dragon breath blasted his face, golden-white holy light exploded, and the sound of the dragon roar shattered the glass windows on both sides of the street.

Black Snake let go of the hilt, and his whole body retreated several steps.

He lowered his head, his hood blown off by the dragon breath, revealing a scar on his face burned by the holy light.

The wound went diagonally from his forehead down, across the bridge of his nose, and extended to his chin; the skin was scorched black, and small golden-white sparks were still emerging from the edges.

He raised his hand and touched the wound on his face.

His fingers got stained with a bit of skin scorched by the holy light.

Black Snake looked up.

The eyes under the hood were finally fully revealed.

Those eyes were not large, and the pupils were vertical, like a snake's.

The area around the eye sockets was covered with black rune patterns, and those runes squirmed under the skin like living insects.

"Very good..."

His voice became somewhat hysterical.

"You have angered me."

Lu Cheng pulled out the thin blade stuck in his left shoulder and threw it on the ground.

The blade hit the asphalt road with a crisp sound.

Holy Radiance Regeneration began to repair the penetrating wound on his left shoulder, but the erosion of the martial will was still there, and the repair speed was very slow.

The black robe on Black Snake's body bulged, and the contaminated Source Power in his body surged out.

Black Source Power seeped out from under the robe, viscous like asphalt, wrapping around his body.

His body began to deform.

Bones clicked.

His shoulders widened, his arms lengthened, and the nails on his fingers turned black and grew longer, extending from his fingertips, with edges as sharp as blades.

Both sides of his neck bulged, the skin cracked, and two rows of dense snake scales grew out from the cracks, dark green and oily...

His eyes completely turned into vertical pupils, and the corners of his mouth split to his ears, revealing sharp teeth.

"You get to see my divine body..." Every word of his voice carried a hissing sound.

"Be honored."

The next second, he was in front of Lu Cheng.

The speed was more than a notch faster than before.

Lu Cheng's Seeking Good Fortune and Avoiding Bad Luck just sounded, and Black Snake's claws had already pierced his chest.

Five sharp claws went in from the front of his chest and out from his back.

The Holy Dragon Armament didn't shatter... but the entire armor was embedded with Black Snake's hand, penetrating through Lu Cheng's chest...

Lu Cheng looked down at the hand in his chest.

Blood gushed from his mouth.

Then Black Snake pulled his hand back.

Lu Cheng's body swayed and took a step back...

He knelt on one knee on the ground, five blood holes in his chest spraying blood, and the holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament began to extinguish.

In the distance, Xia Xi felt Lu Cheng's life force fading, and her whole body went limp.

"Lu Cheng!!!"

Her mental power surged, emitting an aura that even Su Wan was somewhat wary of.

"Calm down." Su Wan reached out and pressed her shoulder.

The Cold Soul Sword Cloak wrapped around the sword again, and she looked in Lu Cheng's direction.

"Lu Cheng is not dead yet."

On the battlefield.

Black Snake turned around, preparing to leave.

Half of his hood remained, and the wound on his face burned by the dragon breath was still itching slightly...

He raised his hand and touched the wound on his face, hissing.

Then he stopped.

An aura that should have dissipated was now appearing again.

He turned his head.

Lu Cheng's body, kneeling on the ground, moved.

[Eight Lives: Gained 10 He of Blood Qi! 100 points of Source Power!]

[Eternal Calamity: Remembered your death... Significantly increased physical defense!]

Lu Cheng opened his eyes.

The five blood holes in his chest were still there, but the blood had stopped flowing out.

The holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament lit up again, surging out from the gaps in the scale armor, brighter than before.

"The reward is really low..." He stood up from the ground and patted the dust off his knees. "Looks like I have to die one more time."

He raised his head and looked at Black Snake.

The black-red demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation surged from his body again.

Flame horns grew on his head, and his pupils turned into molten gold. The dragon scales of the Holy Dragon Armament, under the dual illumination of the demonic flames and holy light, shone with a golden-red glow.

"Come." Lu Cheng raised his hand and beckoned to Black Snake with his finger. "Continue."

He kicked off the ground.

Thunder Step Boots exploded with lightning.

Drifting Dragon Rending Shadow dragged out a golden-red afterimage, and Black Snake turned to meet him.

Claws against fists!

The half-beast Black Snake's combat power soared, every claw leaving a wound on Lu Cheng.

But Lu Cheng also smashed several punches onto his face, chest, and arms.

The impact of Holy Dragon Shock Blast shattered several of Black Snake's snake scales, and the black-red demonic flames burned on him, making the snake scales sizzle.

A moment later.

Black Snake's claws pierced Lu Cheng's heart again.

The sharp claws pierced in from the center of his chest, crushing his heart...

Lu Cheng's body stiffened.

The holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament extinguished completely. The demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation also dissipated in an instant.

He fell to the ground.

Black Snake withdrew his claws and looked down at the corpse on the ground.

He shook the blood off his claws...

"This armor... is a good thing... I'll accept it..."

Before he finished speaking, he stopped again...

Lu Cheng's aura, which had dissipated, surged out again.

[Seven Lives: 100 He of Blood Qi; 1000 points of Source Power]

[Eternal Calamity: Remembered your death... Significantly increased physical defense!!]

Lu Cheng climbed up from the ground, the holy light of the Holy Dragon Armament bloomed again, even more brilliantly than before.

The demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation burned more vigorously, and the black-red flames surged from his body, wrapping him into a burning humanoid torch.

He felt it.

The blood core and Source core had reached saturation.

He now had the strength of the peak of the Source Gathering Realm.

But even so, he still couldn't match Black Snake.

His current strength could barely allow him to trade a couple of moves with this guy, but it wasn't enough.

Black Snake looked at him, his vertical pupils contracting.

"You..."

He didn't finish.

Because Lu Cheng rushed over again.

The golden-red afterimage pulled out by Drifting Dragon Rending Shadow was longer than before!

The lightning exploded from the Thunder Step Boots wrapped around his legs, and the acceleration of Gale Step made his speed so fast that the air began to burn.

He smashed a punch onto Black Snake's sharp claws.

The explosive sound of metal clashing made the pebbles on the ground jump up.

Black Snake was knocked back a step by this punch.

Several dragon scales on Lu Cheng's own fist shattered, and blood splattered from the cracks.

But he didn't stop.

Second punch.

Third punch.

Fourth punch.

Every punch smashed onto the sharp claws Black Snake had blocked in front of him.

The dragon scales shattered and grew back, grew back and shattered.

Blood dripped from his fist, staining a small patch of the asphalt road beneath his feet.

Cracks began to appear on Black Snake's sharp claws.

The bones on Lu Cheng's fist were exposed.

Then Black Snake moved.

He no longer blocked passively.

His body flashed to the side, and his sharp claws slashed from the side.

Five sharp claws slashed across Lu Cheng's chest from left to right, cutting through the dragon scales, cutting through the flesh, and several ribs were broken.

Lu Cheng's movements stopped.

He looked down and saw a wound across his entire chest.

Blood gushed from the wound, and even his internal organs could be seen.

He took a step back, his knees unable to support him...

His whole body fell backward onto the ground.

The Dragon Scale Holy Armor also disappeared into the air.

Black Snake stood in place, looking down at the corpse on the ground, exhaling a breath of turbid air...

He had cut his body into mincemeat..

"This time... he should be dead for sure..."

[Six Lives: Gained Nine Luminaries Holy Meridian!]

[Every meridian opened, gain additional bonuses!]

Nine Meridians: Qi Sea Meridian → Dual Arm Meridians → Dual Foot Meridians → Dragon Spine Meridian → Blood Furnace Meridian → Hundred Skeleton Meridian → Profound Heart Meridian → Heavenly Spirit Meridian → Return to Source Meridian

[Currently Opened: Qi Sea Meridian, gained additional Sun Luminary Meridian: Source Power capacity skyrocketed, recovery speed increased; the Source Power in the body is no longer a shallow pool, like a scorching sun hanging above the Qi Sea, and as the Source Power circulates, there is a feeling of endless life!]

[Eternal Calamity: Remembered your death... Significantly increased physical defense!!!]

Lu Cheng's body softened from the space and finally returned to its original state...

Black Snake looked at the surrounding flesh and blood, feeling incredibly eerie... This method, even a Holy Lord might not be able to do it...

Lu Cheng stood up and looked at Black Snake. Was he in the Meridian Opening Realm now...

He felt the opening of the Qi Sea Meridian, and the Source Power in his body was no longer a pool of stagnant water.

The Source core began to breathe like a living thing.

With every breath, the Source Power circulated through his whole body once.

The speed of circulation was countless times faster than before.

The Holy Dragon Armament also changed, the patterns on the dragon scales adjusting on their own.

The direction and angle of those patterns became smoother and more fitting to his body.

Implicitly, the restrictions on his power had been lifted somewhat.

He stood up from the ground.

The wound on his chest had completely healed.

The Holy Dragon Armament covered him again, the dragon scales flashing with golden-white light.

The demonic flames of Flame Demon Transformation reignited, more vigorously than before.

He raised his head and looked at Black Snake.

There was a smile on his face.

"Thanks to you..." Lu Cheng raised his hand and flexed his fingers.

The Source Power of the Qi Sea Meridian circulated in his body, endless and tireless. "My current state is better than ever."