บท 113: The difference between a mortal and a deity.

The silver-haired and black-eyed Huang Dong continued to casually walk closer to Liang Chen and Yan Ling, who both took two steps back for each step Huang Dong took forward. Huang Dong didn't seem disturbed in the slightest, happily talking to Yan Ling.

"I'm truly overjoyed that you would come to find me, Ling'er. But why did you bring this one with you? What was it again, Scourge King Liang Chen?"

Huang Dong barely even glanced at Liang Chen, as if he didn't even bother with his existence. Listening to his words, Liang Chen felt like spitting in disgust. Did Huang Dong truly believe the words he said? Was he really that conceited and self-centered that he thought Yan Ling had come here to look for him? Seeing Yan Ling and Liang Chen continue to back up, Huang Dong's lips curled up slightly, his gaze finally landing on Liang Chen as he taunted.

"Why are you backing up, what happened to all that bravado you showed when we last met in the city? Didn't you want to kill me? Well, I am right here."

Liang Chen didn't even bother responding, there was no way he would fall for such petty taunts. His mind was right now fully focused on figuring a way out of this predicament, Yan Ling was much the same, her eyes darting all over the cavern as she looked for anything they could use to their advantage.

There was the black stone, the Gravity Well, but there was no way for them to get too close to it. If they entered the space where it had concentrated all the gravity, they would be distorted and crushed by the horrifying gravity it unleashed. Yan Ling's lips curled into a light smile, one of defiance and determination, as she tilted her head at Liang Chen.

"I assume you don't have any super freakish techniques that will let you kill him? Cause if not, things aren't looking too good."

Even in this situation, she was still Yan Ling, she was still as fearless and challenging as ever. She still wore that smile that had made Liang Chen fall for her, that charming and oh so fearless smile. Looking at her, Liang Chen felt all his worries dissipate, but he still shook his head. If he had any such techniques, this wouldn't have been a predicament. Yan Ling gave a slight nod of her head, the grasp she had on her sword tightening as she whispered to Liang Chen.

"Let's show him that we aren't as easy to pluck as he thinks, we are roses with sharp thorns. I'm not as strong as you in close combat, so I'll focus on supporting you and doing my best to launch sneak attacks. I'll have to leave the brunt of the frontal attacks to you, a perfect task for my Little Freak, no?"

Liang Chen's lips started to curl into a smile very similar to Yan Ling's after hearing her words. He gave a nod of his head, his blazing eyes landing on Huang Dong. Liang Chen stopped stepping back and took a step forward, all the Qi within his body billowing forth as gray scales started to cover his arms and legs. His bloodline reacted to his feelings and the crisis ahead of him, scales starting to faintly appear on his abdomen and chest as well.

The earth beneath Liang Chen's feet shattered and was blown away by the billowing Qi, emerald lightning and white poison dancing around his body. He took another step forward, the wind around him suddenly picking up and turning his body light as a feather, Yan Ling using her law of wind to support him.

Huang Dong smiled at Liang Chen, a smile of derision and arrogance. Liang Chen had seen such smiles directed at him several times, but each time it was he who walked away alive, he hoped that he would be able to do the same here now.

He stepped forward once more, turning into a blur as he shot forward in a strange movement. He was now using one of the Chaos King techniques he had learned before the start of this competition, the movement skill. The first three skills of the Chaos King technique all focused on the word chaos. This movement technique turned the Qi within your own body chaotic, making it hard for others to track your movements based on your Qi. And using this chaotic movement of Qi, it also distorted your own movements, turning them erratic to the point of being hard to follow and nearly impossible to predict. It was a movement technique focused on making close combat and dodging to escape easier.

Huang Dong raised his right arm and pointed at Liang Chen, gravity all around Liang Chen suddenly turning incredibly heavy, the earth beneath him shattering as his feet sank into by almost half a meter. Huang Dong specialized in the law of gravity and the law of hardening, the law of hardening being a law that focused on just that, hardening all things in creation, turning them rigid and unmoveable.

Liang Chen reinforced his body using his Fiendgod Essence, his physical strength drastically increasing and allowing him to resist the strengthened gravity. Huang Dong slightly raised an eyebrow when he saw Liang Chen resisting the gravity and continuing to charge at him, his opinion of Liang Chen increasing slightly.

Liang Chen arrived in front of Huang Dong, the gravity having grown so strong that his entire body was slightly hunched. He stabbed out with his spear, lightning and poison coiling around the tip like serpentine dragons waiting to strike. Huang Dong clenched his fist and punched down on the spear, meeting the attack with his own fist.

His fist collided with the spear, a loud explosion sounding out as Liang Chen's lightning and poison were unable to enter Huang Dong's hardened fist. But this attack was only a decoy anyway, so Liang Chen didn't really care that it failed. The moment he struck out with his spear, he had also sent out his poisonous Anima Essence through his feet, aiming to have it dig into Huang Dong's body through his feet.

At the same time, sharp blades of wind came at Huang Dong from the left, aiming for his throat. Sharp spears of water also appeared behind Huang Dong, aiming to stab through his heart from behind. Liang Chen wasn't here alone, Yan Ling was providing support in any way she could.

But the one they faced was someone at the peak of the Soaring Immortal realm, far above them. There was a fundamental difference between someone at the Soaring Immortal realm and someone at the Heaven's Gate realm. Those at the Soaring Immortal Realm had shed their mortal coil, to normal mortals, they were practically deities. Everyone below the Soaring Immortal realm was considered a normal mortal, and a mortal could never kill a deity.

Huang Dong ignored the blades of wind and spears of water, the gravity around them turning so heavy that the attacks imploded in on themselves under their own weight. Even Liang Chen's Anima Essence was unable to shake Huang Dong's soul, the poison within the Anima Essence neutralized by Huang Dong's Qi. Huang Dong simply grinned at Liang Chen, continuing to taunt him.

"Is this it? What a disappointment, 'Scourge King Liang Chen'. Let me show you why you can never kill me, the difference between a mortal and a deity."

Huang Dong clenched his other fist and aimed a punch at Liang Chen's abdomen. Liang Chen had the law of lightning, so speed was something he excelled at, but he found himself nearly unable to see Huang Dong's attack, barely even seeing a blur.

Liang Chen immediately used the second skill he had learned from the Chaos King technique, the defensive one. This skill focused on using a chaotic flow of Qi to separate an opponents attack, or rather the Qi and strength within the attack, into several different segments, pushing each segment into a different direction to dissipate it. While preparing this defense, Liang Chen also moved his arm in front of his abdomen to block the attack.

Huang Dong's attack grew a bit weaker thanks to the skill, but it still contained enough force to push Liang Chen's arm away, his forearm nearly shattering from the short moment of contact. Huang Dong's fist then crashed into Liang Chen's abdomen, unleashing all the remaining force it contained.

Liang Chen instantly spewed up large amounts of blood, all his organs feeling like they had ruptured under the force of that one fist. His body was sent flying backward, only stopping when Yan Ling caught him. Liang Chen continued to throw up blood, the taste of blood filling his mouth and the scent filling his nose. That one punch alone was enough to nearly completely incapacitate him. Liang Chen was confident that if he actually had an Ascended Tower in his dantian, it would have shattered and crippled his cultivation. Huang Dong unclenched his fist, giving his hand a few casual waves as he continued to talk.

"Did you see that? That is the difference between a deity and a mere mortal, that is the reason you will never be able to kill me. Ling'er, come to me, there is no need for you to suffer here. Just leave him behind and I promise you that the Storm Wolf sect will reach new heights."

Huang Dong wore a very gentle and caring expression as he spoke, but his words were rather vicious. Yan Ling's mouth curled into a sneer as she raised her arm and flipped Huang Dong off, cursing at him.

"Fuck off, I'd never follow someone like you. Today I either survive alongside him, or I die alongside him. No matter which it is, I will have no regrets."

Despite the horrid pain in his body, Liang Chen couldn't help but smile when he heard those words. His smile was incredibly bloody, but it looked so very content, so very determined. Liang Chen forced his body to up, forced himself to separate from Yan Ling and stand up. His legs were unsteady, his upper body swaying uncontrollably as blood continued to pour out of his mouth. He turned his head slightly, looking at Yan Ling and opening his mouth to talk.

"Ling'er..."

This was the first time he had ever called her by such an intimate name, but before he even got to finish his sentence, Yan Ling hit him over the head, scowling slightly at him.

"You better not tell me to run away or follow him. Like I said, I either survive with you or die with you. There is no way I am letting my Little Freak get out of my sight, who knows how much trouble you'd stir up if I were to do that."

Liang Chen couldn't help but burst into laughter after hearing her words, the laughter increasing the pain in his body and causing him to cough up more blood. He waved his hand, a light smile on his face.

"There's no way I'd tell you something like that. I am far too selfish for that, I want to keep you by my side no matter what. What I was going to say is, I'll leave the rest, and the aftermath, to you."

Liang Chen then turned his gaze onto Huang Dong, his light smile turning vicious and savage, the blood dripping down his face only further increasing the savagery of his smile. Liang Chen stretched out two unsteady hands, talking to Huang Dong for the first time since they met here.

"You're right, Huang Dong, I am unable to kill you, I don't have that strength. But what I do have, is the strength to allow another 'mere mortal' to kill you."

After he spoke, Liang Chen dug his own hands into his chest, piercing his flesh and crushing several of his ribs. Yan Ling was horrified when she saw the scene, but Huang Dong only looked on with some mild curiosity. When Liang Chen pulled his hands out of his chest again, he was holding six petals in his grasp.

Two of the petals were a deep violet, two of them were a pure white, and the last two were a ghastly gray in color, they were the leaves from his Dragon Lotuses. By plucking them here, he had lowered his own cultivation back to the early stage of the Heaven's Gate realm, the price he had to pay to activate this Sebettu secret technique. He crushed the six petals in his grasp, a cold voice sounding out.

"Mad King's Rage."