Chapter 360: Brawl

The moment Li Pin donned the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor, he felt as though it possessed a life of its own.

A mysterious force seemed to constantly permeate into him from the armor. This infiltration felt akin to the corrosive effect of dark magic and the enhancement of starlight energy experienced when he refined the Essence-Gathering Pearl.

Even with the slight seepage, Li Pin could sense his qi and blood surging at an incredible rate. "So, this is why the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor is said to rival Legendary powers?"

Feeling the dual energies at play, Li Pin noticed a peculiar balance forming within him.

While donned, the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor would maintain the balance between the dark magic and astral energy. When taken off, however, the two energies would start to wear each other down.

Without the armor's circulatory reinforcement, this attrition would soon exhaust both forces.

This sensation reminded Li Pin of legendary concepts like "external elixirs," "avatars," and "natal spirit weapons." The Heavenly Demon Divine Armor amplified his strength by sustaining this delicate balance.[1]

"When dark magic dominates, it devours and refines astral energy. Yet when astral energy grows stronger, it can purify dark magic.

"The armor's purpose is to maintain this equilibrium, harnessing both energies to keep them in a state of activation, preventing them from deeply infiltrating the body and causing mutations while maximizing the power of both energies."

Understanding the armor's augmentation principle, Li Pin had to admit that its creator was a true genius. This was an achievement of a superpower from a hundred years ago, renowned for its wealth of talent.[2]

Rumble, rumble!

At that moment, a tremor shook the earth above him. Chunks of stone and soil fell in showers as if an immense force was trying to pierce the mountain and break into the area.

As this pressure spread, fallen rocks shattered under an invisible force, creating a visible vacuum path through the dust.

The end of this path... led directly to Li Pin! This was a manifestation of Force strong enough to tear the void and obliterate anything in its way.

Almost simultaneously, as the "vacuum path" extended toward him, Li Pin leaped upward, skimming the edge of the path.

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a blood-red figure rocketing toward the spot where he had just stood, slamming its fist down like a cannonball.

The destructive power caused the area to crack and collapse, sending countless fragments flying in all directions.

A deafening sonic boom erupted from the nearly hundred-meter-long vacuum tunnel carved through the mountainside, shattering all surrounding rocks and debris into dust.

Enduring the blast and shockwaves, Li Pin streaked out of the cave like lightning, finally seeing daylight once again.

The moment he escaped, the blood-red monster inside the cave let out an enraged roar, shaking the ground once more. "

Roar!

"

"Bring it on!"

Li Pin felt the terrifying power the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor granted surging within him. He sheathed his sword in mid-air and spun sharply without any support.

Rumble, rumble!

As lightning crackled around him, he hurtled straight down toward the mountain below.

Almost at the same time, the mountainside within a radius of a dozen meters seemed to be overturned by a prehistoric beast. Massive boulders, weighing several tons, were launched hundreds of meters into the air, accompanied by a cloud of dust and debris.

In the center of this chaos, the blood-red, two-headed creature roared, ready to strike the "thief" who had taken its armor. Yet, before it could launch another attack, Li Pin had already descended upon it with thunderous might, his violent fist force aimed directly at the creature's skull.

Buzz, buzz!

A visible white shockwave radiated from him, rippling through the air.

When his punch connected, the shockwave erupted, reducing everything within a dozen meters to dust as fragments flew in all directions.

The six-meter-tall beast, resembling a towering giant, was knocked sideways by Li Pin's blow, crashing heavily into the ground.

However, with a qi and blood level exceeding 3000, this monster seemed nearly indestructible.

Li Pin's strike had been strong enough to shatter even steel, yet it only caused the monster to careen sideways, leaving deep fissures and pits in the earth. It didn't die on the spot, and its skull remained intact.

It was incredibly resilient. Even receiving a direct hit from a cannon might not faze it.

Pain ignited the beast's fury, and it writhed, struggling to rise.

Li Pin's assault continued unabated.

Fist after fist rained down like a relentless storm. Enhanced by the propulsion of his Celestial Magnetic Field, each strike contained the might of a heavy cannon.

The monster, unable to stand, was battered by Li Pin's barrage. Each punch unleashed a shockwave powerful enough to uproot trees dozens of meters away, launching them into the air.

Under the unyielding onslaught, the creature howled in pain and rage. The mountainside, where it was, collapsed, revealing the hollowed interior of a cave.

However, the collapse finally provided the creature with an opening. As Li Pin lunged forward to attack again, the monster swung its massive arm, blocking his punch. Almost instantly, it retaliated with a palm strike that seemed to cover Li Pin entirely.

The ferocity of the Force sent a gale so fierce that it felt as though the air had ignited, creating a stifling heat.

The magnetic field whirled!

Nine Heavens Kunpeng!

In a flash of crackling electricity, Li Pin dodged a few meters to the side, narrowly avoiding the creature's thunderous palm.

However, as he evaded, the creature lunged at him with terrifying speed, swinging its colossal head forward in a brutal charge.

It was going for a headbutt!

In that critical moment, Li Pin raised his arm to block.

Bang!

Force erupted outward, scattering energy that shattered countless rocks within the cave.

Li Pin was thrown from the mountainside, launched outward with such speed that he broke the sound barrier.

Rumble, rumble!

The creature lunged powerfully, shooting out of the cave like a fifth-generation fighter jet, trailing a visible shockwave as it rapidly closed in on Li Pin. Its fists crashed down with overwhelming force.

"Impressive!"

Still in midair and unable to shift his direction, Li Pin thrust out his hand, conjuring a domain that seemed to solidify around him.

Lunar Youying!

However, just as the Lunar Youying formed, the monstrous creature shattered it with raw, brutal force, tearing it apart. Though Li Pin intercepted the punch, the Force within it reverberated violently through him.

Had it not been for the protection of the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor, coupled with the dark magic and astral energy within him, the impact would have easily torn him to shreds.

3000 points of qi and blood... that was a power beyond the reach of any mortal. That was enough to obliterate even a man made of iron.

Despite the incredible defense of the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor, Li Pin plummeted like a meteor, crashing into the ground and creating a crater dozens of meters wide.

He coughed heavily, excitement blazing in his eyes. "

Haha!

What formidable strength!"

Before he could catch his breath, the blood-red creature followed closely and descended from the sky. Its raised right foot, poised to strike, and aimed directly at him.

Sizzle, sizzle!

Electricity crackled as Li Pin shot away in a swift burst.

Almost simultaneously, the creature's foot crashed down where Li Pin had just fallen, causing the ground within a hundred-meter radius to sink rapidly, churning like a boiling lake, sending countless rocks flying into the air.

Lin Baizhan and the other Top-Tier Astral Cultivators had just managed to catch their breath. They were watching from a distance when the sheer destructive force sent chills down the spine. The terrifying power and explosive speed left them helpless.

Without starlight transformation, they had no means of survival. Even with it, how many times could they endure the onslaught?

In the minute they had delayed the creature, two of them were nearly drained of energy from constant transformation. If the creature hadn't turned back, a few more minutes of pursuit would have meant sure death for all six of them.

"Why isn't he using his sword?"

One of the Top-Tier Astral Cultivators beside Lin Baizhan couldn't help but remark as he watched the close-range battle between man and monster unfold, "Several times now, Martial God Li has landed precise hits. If he had switched to his sword, wouldn't this fight already be over? The armor-piercing quality of the Sword of Destiny could have breached that creature's defense."

The other shaken Top-Tier Astral Cultivators also shared his concerns.

"Why isn't he using a sword...?"

Lin Baizhan watched the clash unfolding in midair, where Li Pin, despite the power difference, was holding his ground through sheer skill, the Heavenly Demon Divine Armor defense, and his extraordinary agility and explosive strength.

"Because..." A complex expression crossed the Master Astral Cultivator's face. "He's enjoying the fight."

1. A Chinese context mythology which conveys the avatar the manifestation of a spiritual being in a physical form, natal weapon as the weapon closely connected to the individual's spiritual essence, external elixirs to enhance their physical and spiritual attributes, thereby maintaining a harmony where the body and mind are all aligned and strengthened. ☜

2. Referring to the Great Moon. ☜