79: Chapter 79 Lei Yan's First Trial! Blade of the Ash Mantis!
After parting ways with Chen Ye,
Zhou Heng needed to fully integrate his newly mastered trump cards into actual combat, honing them until they were as natural as moving his own limbs!
"The [Lei Yan Three Transformations]... the theoretical deduction was successful, but I still need to test its effectiveness in actual combat!"
His eyes flickered with excitement as he headed toward his clear objective in the Integrated Combat Hall—the Advanced Combat Simulation Cabin!
He paid the credits and selected the mode.
[Mode: Extreme Challenge (Pain Sensitivity 10%)]
[Target: Peak Rank 2 Monster - Blade Cinder Mantis x 1]
[Environment: Molten Scorched Earth]
[Mission: Kill the target]
"Blade Cinder Mantis..." Zhou Heng's gaze turned solemn. This was a troublesome monster known for its speed and eerie blade techniques; its attacks carried fire poison, making it extremely difficult to deal with!
It was perfect for testing the combat effectiveness of the [Lei Yan Three Transformations]!
The scene shifted!
Intense heat rushed toward him instantly!
Beneath his feet was cracked, charred earth, while a river of lava flowed slowly in the distance; the air was thick with the smell of sulfur and scorching fire essence!
Hiss—!!!
A sharp, ear-piercing hiss rang out! A blurred, dark-red figure flashed out from behind a scorched rock like a ghost, moving so fast it left only an afterimage!
[Target: Blade Cinder Mantis (Peak Rank 2)]
[Traits: Extreme Speed, Eerie Blade Techniques (Dual-Wielding), Attacks Inflict Fire Poison, Concealment, Environmental Adaptation]
[Status: Peak Condition, Highly Aggressive]
[Skills: Flicker Raid, Cross Fire Blade Slash, Blazing Continuous Slashes, Fire Poison Spray, Mimicry Concealment...]
[Weaknesses: Relatively weak defense, joints in the carapace, vulnerable to extreme cold and powerful control, slightly slow recovery after sustained bursts...]
Zhou Heng's [Omniscient Eye] instantly locked onto the target!
It was a giant mantis nearly three meters tall!
Its body was dark red, like scorched metal, and its arms were two massive, sharp flame blades glowing with a dangerous red light! Its compound eyes were cold and heartless, fixed firmly on Zhou Heng!
"So fast!" Zhou Heng's heart tightened; this was definitely the fastest opponent he had ever encountered!
[Thunder Flash]!
He sidestepped to dodge without hesitation!
Sizzle!
The ground where he had been standing was torn open by a scorching red blade beam, leaving a deep scorch mark!
Having missed its strike, the Blade Cinder Mantis didn't pause; its form blurred again, appearing on Zhou Heng's flank as if teleporting! Its dual blades crossed, slashing out a lethal cross fire blade!
"Planetary Transformation... no, it's not time to use that yet!" Zhou Heng's eyes were sharp as his [Omniscient Eye] analyzed the opponent's trajectory at high speed, and he dodged again!
Simultaneously, the dragon spine spear erupted with thunderous light, and he used a [Shocking Thunder Break] to strike the side of one of the blades!
Clang!!!
Thunder and fire collided! An ear-piercing roar and a surge of energy erupted!
Zhou Heng felt his arm go numb; the opponent's strength and speed were both incredible! The flaming blade energy spread along the spear shaft, bringing a burning sensation!
The Blade Cinder Mantis was jolted into a brief stall, but its other blade already sliced toward Zhou Heng's ribs like a venomous snake!
Zhou Heng spun his spear shaft, using the momentum to retreat while parrying!
Shing!
The blade grazed past, trailing a shower of sparks and nearly breaking through his defense!
"Damn, it's fast!" Zhou Heng licked his lips, his battle intent boiling! This opponent was exactly what he wanted!
He no longer held back as his Minor Accomplishment Spear Intent erupted! His Invincible Intent condensed!
"Thunderstorm Star!"
A thunderous vortex suddenly appeared, covering the surrounding area in an attempt to restrict the opponent's ghostly speed!
The Blade Cinder Mantis hissed,
But instead of taking it head-on, its form blurred again, flickering out of the vortex's range while simultaneously opening its mouth to spray a thick cloud of dark-red fire poison mist!
The mist spread, carrying a pungent stench and terrifying corrosiveness, instantly enveloping Zhou Heng!
[Warning! Suffering from fire poison erosion!]
[yuan energy protection consumption intensified! Vitality is suffering slight burns!]
[Myriad Tribulations Thunder Prison Body resistance triggered! Poison resistance increased!]
Zhou Heng held his breath, his body protected by thunder light as he forcibly dispersed the poison mist! However, his vision and perception were interfered with!
At that very moment!
The Blade Cinder Mantis's figure vanished as if blending into the environment! [Mimicry Concealment]!
Zhou Heng's heart tightened, and he pushed his [Omniscient Eye] to its limit, capturing the slightest energy fluctuations and killing intent in the air!
To the left! A sudden surge of killing intent!
"Found you! Rushing Thunder Thrust!"
He didn't hesitate, thrusting his spear into the empty space on his left!
Puchi!
The Blade Cinder Mantis was forced to reveal itself as its blade collided with the spear tip once more! A hint of surprise flashed in its eyes, as if it hadn't expected the opponent to see through its concealment!
An intense close-quarters struggle instantly unfolded!
The Blade Cinder Mantis's dual blades were fast as lightning and struck from tricky angles; combined with its elusive flickering and fire poison interference, its offensive was like a violent storm!
Zhou Heng pushed the [Thunder Piercing Kill Spear] to its limit, using [Rushing Thunder Thrust] for high-speed precision strikes, [Thunder Break] for heavy parries, [Shocking Thunder Break] to exploit weaknesses, and [Thunderstorm Star] for area suppression! spear intent surged, and thunder light flashed!
He utilized the insight of the [Omniscient Eye] to its maximum, constantly predicting, parrying, and counterattacking! New burn marks appeared on his body, and the fire poison erosion brought waves of stinging pain, but he fought with increasing vigor!
"My speed is still a bit lacking... I can't keep up with its rhythm!" Zhou Heng realized that in his normal state, his speed was still being suppressed by this monster that specialized in speed!
"It's time! Lei Yan First Transformation—Thunder Instant Transformation!"
A fierce light flashed in his eyes as he activated his trump card without hesitation!
Boom!!!
His vitality and thunder yuan burned intensely in an instant! A powerful force flooded his limbs and bones! His speed and neural reflexes skyrocketed! Everything around him seemed to slow down!
[Thunder Instant Transformation: Speed and reflexes increased by 8%! Duration: 5 seconds!]
"Kill!"
Zhou Heng let out a low growl, and his figure vanished instantly!
The Blade Cinder Mantis felt its vision blur as the target's speed exploded! It instinctively flickered backward!
But Zhou Heng was faster!
[Thunder Flash] stacked with [Thunder Instant Transformation]!
Sizzle!
The dragon spine spear appeared before it as if teleporting, thrusting accurately into the joint of the carapace beneath its compound eye—the weakness identified by the [Omniscient Eye]!
The Blade Cinder Mantis was terrified and swung its dual blades frantically to parry!
Clang clang clang clang!!!
In an instant, both sides traded blows at high speed, colliding dozens of times! Sparks flew everywhere, and thunder light exploded!
The 5 seconds were up! Zhou Heng's speed dropped back down, and he panted slightly; the consumption of vitality was not small.
But the Blade Cinder Mantis was in worse shape! Forced into a direct confrontation with the speed-boosted Zhou Heng, although it had blocked most of the attacks, its dual blades were covered in thunder-charred marks, and one blade-arm even showed fine cracks! More importantly, its rhythm had been disrupted!
"Great chance! Lei Yan Second Transformation—Thunder Aura Transformation!"
Zhou Heng didn't stop, activating the secret technique once more! This time, he burned vitality and thunder yuan in exchange for extreme strength and defense!
Boom!!!
His muscles instantly bulged, veins popped, and the thunder light on his body condensed into a physical suit of armor! His aura became incredibly violent and heavy!
[Thunder Aura Transformation: Strength and defense increased by 10%! Duration: 5 seconds!]
"Shocking Thunder Break!!!"
He gripped the spear with both hands, no longer pursuing speed but pure explosive power! He smashed the spear down! It was as if he carried the weight of ten thousand thunderbolts!
The Blade Cinder Mantis had just stabilized itself when it felt a terrifying sense of pressure! It hissed and crossed its dual blades upward to block!
Boom—!!!!
A terrifying roar echoed!
The Blade Cinder Mantis was hit as if by a meteorite, its entire body suddenly sinking! The scorched earth beneath its feet exploded! Its indestructible flaming blade-arms were actually smashed until they bent, letting out an overwhelmed groan!
Pfft!
Its internal organs suffered violent tremors, and it spat out a mouthful of green blood!
Another 5 seconds passed! Zhou Heng's aura declined again, his face turning slightly pale; using two transformations in succession was a massive burden!
But the Blade Cinder Mantis was already heavily injured! Its movements were noticeably sluggish!
"Now! Let's end this! Thunderstorm Star: Modified!"
Zhou Heng forced his yuan energy to rise and swung the dragon spine spear wildly! A massive thunderous vortex appeared again, but this time it didn't seek range; instead, it was extremely condensed, tightly entangling the heavily injured Blade Cinder Mantis as countless thunderous spear beams frantically tore into it!
The Blade Cinder Mantis let out a desperate hiss, struggling with all its might, its blades dancing wildly and fire poison spraying everywhere!
But under its heavy injuries, its resistance grew weaker and weaker!
Zhou Heng saw his chance, and his [Omniscient Eye] locked onto its core!
"Rushing Thunder Thrust: Finishing Blow!"
Man and spear became one! Turning into a beam of extreme thunder light, he instantly pierced through the Blade Cinder Mantis's head!
Boom!!!
The Blade Cinder Mantis's body stiffened, and then it exploded, dissipating into points of light.
[Killed Peak Rank 2 Blade Cinder Mantis (Simulated Body), combat experience significantly increased!]
[Lei Yan Three Transformations (First two transformations) successfully verified in combat! Mastery increased to Proficient!]
[Ability to deal with high-speed moving targets improved!]
[Fire poison resistance slightly increased!]
[Combat Evaluation: S-Rank!]
[Status: Over half of vitality consumed, 70% of yuan energy consumed, slight fire poison erosion (suppressed), significant physical burden.]
The simulated environment slowly dissipated.
Zhou Heng leaned on his spear, gasping for breath as sweat poured down like rain, but his face was filled with an excited smile!
"It worked! The first two forms of the [Lei Yan Three Transformations]... the results are outstanding!" He felt his body's condition; although the burden was significant, it was completely within a controllable range! The powerful physique and robust vitality of the [Myriad Tribulations Thunder Prison Body] were enough to support it!
This was undoubtedly a powerful trump card!
"It's a pity the third transformation [Thunder Extermination Transformation] is incomplete and the risk is too high, so I don't dare try it easily..." He felt a slight regret but was soon relieved. The first two transformations were already enough to handle most situations.
After resting for a moment and recovering some energy, Zhou Heng once again threw himself into simulated combat, constantly refining the coordination between the [Lei Yan Three Transformations] and his spear techniques, familiarizing himself with their use in various situations.
It wasn't until he was exhausted that he finally left the simulation cabin, satisfied.