Chapter 338 - Hidden Strength

Long Chen knew that his growth had been fast, and he had done it without a background like Lin Zichen’s family. Less than a year had passed since he started cultivating in Baiyang Town, and he was already at the Sixth River Stage. Lin Zichen was not the same—he had been trained by the incumbent Sword Emperor since young and received the best cultivation techniques and mentorship.

With the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon’s divine techniques and Divine Fire Clone, Long Chen was barely a match for Lin Zichen. As for everything else he owned, his most powerful combat and defense techniques were only at the intermediate Earth-tier. Although he possessed the Level Three Blazing Thunder Combat Body, it was the same as having nothing when faced with Lin Zichen.

Lin Zichen surely had advanced Earth-tier techniques in every aspect, even ultimate techniques at the Heaven-tier.

How was Long Chen going to fight him?

A normal person would have despaired after considering the canyon of a gap between them. But Long Chen did not. When he had someone he needed to protect, it did not matter how powerful the enemy was—he would not take even one step back.

Sometimes, this stubborn refusal to give up was the only way to achieve victory. “Actually, I’ve heard the story of you two too ...” Lin Zichen eyed both Long Chen and Ling Xi and smirked with amusement. “It’s indeed very touching. The hero, the damsel, the passion, the killing of the six commanders, the annihilation of the dwarves ... After this experience, the bond between you two must be very deep, right? But I refuse to believe that a relationship can be absolutely strong. I’ll give you two a choice. One of you must die today, while the other shall follow me back to the imperial capital. I’ll give you fifteen minutes to discuss. I, Lin Zichen, always keep my promises.”

He had made himself clear. If Ling Xi died, he would take Long Chen back, and vice versa. However, it was not known how long the other person would live at the imperial capital.

“Will you keep your promise?” Ling Xi asked immediately. “As long as I die, you’ll let Brother Chen live?”

She grasped onto his promise like a drowning man grasping on a piece of floating straw.

“Xiao Xi, shut your mouth.” Long Chen’s cold glare scared Ling Xi into falling several steps back. He knew what she was thinking. Her body was only made of the Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus, and she was obviously willing to abandon the body so Long Chen could live.

However, Long Chen knew that if he went to the imperial capital, he would end up dead.

“But ...” Ling Xi wanted to say something, but Long Chen shut her up with a fierce glare. She knew he was doing this for her own good. Obtaining the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit was not a guarantee. Long Chen did not want to put any hope on an almost unattainable object.

“I see. Long Chen, it looks like I overestimated you. This girl is willing to die for you, and you’re too afraid to die. It looks like you’re not a good man. Let’s put it this way. If you die, I’ll let her go, so she’ll leave safely. What do you say?” Lin Zichen smirked.

He was throwing Long Chen a challenge. If Long Chen really loved her, he would naturally sacrifice his life for her safety. But Long Chen was not stupid. He only trusted a duel and his own strength, not a promise that the enemy made.

“Stop with the nonsense. Fight me if you dare. Lin Zichen, you’re going to lose my respect if you keep uttering those empty words.” Long Chen took out the Azure Dragon Halberd, then blood-red scales gradually covered his body. “Xiao Xi, get back!”

Under Long Chen’s command, Ling Xi paled. She had no choice but to back away, trying her best to stay away from the battle. However, Lin Zichen’s words made her very anxious. She was more aware than Long Chen of the gap in their strengths, so she knew that Long Chen didn’t have much of a chance ...

If he keeps his promise, Brother Chen can make a comeback as long as he stays alive. What is my life worth anyway? It’s just a Profound Heavenly Jade Lotus. I’ve been in the Ling Xi Sword all this time, so what’s stopping me from returning to it?

Ling Xi watched them both anxiously, her mind racing as she worried about Long Chen’s safety.

I’ll keep an eye on the battle. If Brother Chen really gets into trouble, this will be the only way ...

She sighed.

Long Chen had long prepared himself for the battle with Lin Zichen. The tension in the air was high, and the duel was going to begin at any second.

“Your Beast Soul Transformation seems to have given you a lot of strength. You were at the Sixth River Stage, and now it looks like you’re close to the Seventh River Stage already,” Lin Zichen remarked with some surprise.

In truth, his evaluation of Long Chen was incorrect, because his Qi level had already reached the Eighth River stage. This was how powerful the Dragon Soul Transformation was.

“Unfortunately, even at the Seventh River Stage, you’re still too weak to me. You’re not even qualified to see my combat techniques,” Lin Zichen said smugly.

“Well, let’s test it out, then!” Long Chen roared. He turned into a red arrow and shot towards Lin Zichen.

Whoosh!

A blood-red line turned into a dragon and flew at his head!

“Too weak!” Lin Zichen laughed and punched casually. Long Chen’s Dragon King Burial was punched away immediately. Long Chen struggled to stabilize himself despite it being merely a light punch! He was now deeply aware of the gap between them.

However, he had expected Lin Zichen to be powerful. “And you’re nothing to shout about either!” He gritted his teeth, spun in mid-air, then charged with another storm-like attack! His attacks were extremely vicious, and could even be described as suicidal. However, every single time, Lin Lin Zichen threw him back in the air with just a simple flick, not even needing an attack technique.

“What is going on? You wouldn’t even be able to defeat a regular Seventh River Stage cultivator with this strength. How did you kill the six commanders? And that dwarf, Song Zhongcheng?” Lin Zichen was utterly disappointed by his strength. Long Chen was just a normal Sixth River Stage cultivator; there was nothing special about him.

“The rumors made you seem god-like. Looks like they aren’t true. And the rumors scared me too. I’m disappointed ...” Lin Zichen looked at him with pity and disappointment. He had heard of Long Chen’s extraordinary talent, which was why he had voluntarily joined the chase. Since he had always been an extraordinary prodigy himself, it was difficult to find a master of the same age. When he heard of Long Chen, he rushed over immediately. To his surprise, the youth that they spoke of like a god was not as strong as he thought ...

Long Chen ignored his mocking, attacking him with all he had. His eyes were red. Whenever he fought, the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon’s nature would erupt through him, and his aura would turn into one of violence.

“What is Brother Chen doing?” Ling Xi was puzzled. She was well aware of what he was capable of. He was not using the Blood Devouring Domain or Divine Fire Clone; he wasn’t even using Blood Sacrifice, which was even stronger!

Unless ...

Indeed, by now, Lin Zichen had lost his patience. When he had verified that Long Chen was only at the Sixth River Stage, he punched Long Chen’s abdomen! Long Chen flew back, blood spraying out of his mouth, and crashed!

“Trash! How could trash like that cause such a huge commotion across the Cangyang Kingdom? It’s hard to believe ...” He slowly closed in on Long Chen. It was clear that he would take Long Chen’s life with his next strike.

“It was only a light punch. Are you unable to stand up already?” Lin Zichen was speechless when he saw Long Chen struggling on the ground. He walked nonchalantly, glancing at Ling Xi. To be honest, he was tempted when he saw how beautiful she was. However, from his perspective, even the most beautiful woman was merely a distraction on the Sword Dao journey. That was how he controlled his urges.

“I can’t believe Ninth Brother died because of a woman. What a useless idiot.” Lin Zichen shook his head. He was about to bend over and end the struggling Long Chen’s life when he was enveloped in a red space!

“What is this?” Lin Zichen gasped. Since he had let his guard down, he could not react in time to the sudden change.

The red mist swirled around him like blood-colored dragons, dancing and twisting around Lin Zichen. There was a powerful pull that caused his blood to start boiling, and he was starting to lose control.

Then endless red flames rose from Long Chen’s body, and 125 Divine Fire Clones appeared instantly! They all pounced on Lin Zichen, launching a suffocating attack! In that instant, roaring flames rose and the earth shook!

Has he been hiding his strength?

Lin Zichen had a sudden thought. When he glanced at Ling Xi just now, he found that while she was nervous, she did not look grief-stricken or terrified due to Long Chen’s injury. This meant that she knew Long Chen was fine!

“How dare you trick me?!” Lin Zichen raged. The fire clones were not that powerful to him. Although it was inconvenient, as he needed to use his Qi to suppress his blood, it was not enough to overwhelm him. Even though Long Chen’s attack had truly caught him off guard, he could retaliate easily.

Despite hiding his strength and launching a surprise attack, Long Chen is far too weak.

Long Chen was nothing but a weakling to the Ninth River Stage Lin Zichen.

That was when a powerful surge of energy exploded from where Long Chen was!