Chapter 142: Blasted to Dust

Lin Zhan broke out in a cold sweat, having been touched by the strange beast right before his eyes, yet he remained completely unaware, his attention wholly absorbed by the distant hissing and writhing sounds.

Combat itself is full of unpredictability; one cannot afford the slightest negligence. Once again, Lin Zhan was jolted awake—an elevation of his awareness.

Yet, a sense of embarrassment and annoyance lingered. In response, his ink sword unleashed a blazing arc of fiery sword light in a perfect circle, striking outward into the surrounding darkness.

Immediately, continuous moos and wails rose up, overlapping in a cacophony.

By the light of the fiery sword glow, Lin Zhan’s heart nearly stopped—a wide circle of fallen figures littered the ground, all those hideous bull-headed beasts from before.

It turned out that as soon as he entered this shadowy forest, he had been surrounded by these creatures!

The stench of blood and malevolence now surged forth; evidently, these bull-headed beasts had been suppressing their aura until now.

Through relentless fighting, Lin Zhan’s ink sword flashed continuously, while the Fate Spirit Wheel spun majestically around him, a golden aura encircling his body. Golden light shimmered brilliantly, the roar of a golden dragon echoing—he looked every bit like a wealthy magnate suddenly unleashed.

Before he could even fully discern the bull-headed beasts’ forms, Lin Zhan swiftly pierced through the dark forest. Behind him, the beast horde surged, but none dared to step beyond the forest’s edge—their range was evidently confined.

Ahead stood two barren gray rocky peaks, like two slumbering giants. Between them, a narrow winding path was the only passage.

Such bare mountains should be safe, it seemed—no place for hidden beasts or lurking danger.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Lin Zhan pressed onward without pause.

Time passed unknowingly here. Outside, the fierce competition among the disciples of the Five Flame Peaks continued; the outcome was unknown. He needed to conserve every moment, avoiding needless delay.

At first, the gray peaks showed no sign of movement, seemingly without any hint of danger.

Lin Zhan was about to step over a stone ledge when, unexpectedly, the ledge shifted forward along with his step.

It was easy to imagine the result: Lin Zhan tripped, though his body was protected by spiritual energy, and his nimble footwork prevented a fall.

Suddenly, a rumbling sound echoed, unannounced.

Leaping aside, Lin Zhan saw that the stone ledge was actually part of a stone figure’s leg! A gray stone humanoid separated from the mountain rock, its joints clattering as it adjusted, rising to stand.

That stone ledge had been the figure’s lower leg!

The stone man stood over three meters tall, its body sharply faceted, limbs structured like a human’s, but its head was a vague mass, lacking facial features.

In a flash, the stone giant swung its fist fiercely. The punch carried a gust of wind, sweeping toward Lin Zhan.

Facing the brutal strike, Lin Zhan responded with his Blazing Fist. If his centuries-old Ice of Chen could shatter walls, surely this fiery punch could crush mere stone.

Sure enough, the stone man’s fist shattered under the fiery blow. Yet, despite this, its arm and body pressed on stubbornly, as if the broken hand was not truly part of it.

This stone man clearly lacked conscious nerve control. Lin Zhan relaxed and unleashed several heavy punches, each strike powerful and resolute, pulverizing the figure into rubble.

Its stone head was smashed with a single blow, dust and fragments scattering.

Crackling sounds rang out.

Lin Zhan’s scalp tingled as two more stone men emerged, each the same size, separating from the mountain rock on either side, advancing in formation.

These two were roughly twice as strong as the first, but Lin Zhan still crushed them with mighty punches.

Then four, eight, sixteen...

The two rocky peaks shrank by more than half, as stone men continued to emerge, their strength multiplying each time. Yet Lin Zhan was not overwhelmed; on the contrary, he found joy in the battle.

Fighting stone men and the floating dust soldiers he had faced in the second trial had honed Lin Zhan’s awareness and tactics for fighting multiple foes.

In the cultivation world, though respect for rank and equality is honored in duels, overwhelming odds and encirclement remain possible; Lin Zhan had endured many such trials.

Often, these chaotic battles were life-or-death moments, sharpening his skill in “group combat.”

Surrounded by numerous foes, organizing waves of relentless assaults, the art of striking precisely, seizing openings, conserving energy, and targeting key threats—only through actual combat could these skills be refined and wisdom born.

The stone men were not overly powerful individually, well within Lin Zhan’s capacity. Their terror lay in sheer numbers and their fearless, relentless attacks—all strikes came without retreat.

Crushed to dust! This was Lin Zhan’s final verdict on each stone man.

Unknowingly, the two rocky peaks had been reduced to half their original height and shrunk by fifty percent in volume. The narrow path between them had been filled with stone dust and rubble from the shattered stone men, nearly leveling it with the peaks themselves.

The last stone man, over a dozen meters tall, had its massive stone head smashed to fragments, dust drifting down.

Lin Zhan gazed at the now flattened ground and his current vantage point, offering a wry smile.

“The heavy labor should be done here, I suppose.”

Rumble, crackle...

The sound of battle against dozens of stone men had been continuous. Only after the last one appeared did it finally cease, allowing Lin Zhan a brief breath.

But then an even greater commotion began.

This time, the earth shook and the roar was hundreds, even thousands of times louder than before. Lin Zhan felt as if standing on a sieve, barely able to steady himself; stones and debris crumbled and sank beneath him.

The two rocky peaks began to swell, arch, and shift.

On each side, the half-remaining peaks stretched and moved, adjusting their stance, until finally they stood upright!

When they had been crouched, such a transformation was unimaginable. Lin Zhan was stunned—this was truly a towering presence, touching the heavens and standing firm on the earth!

This was exactly the form of the Black-Faced Sword Spirit with Lantern Eyes from the Nine Star Realm—that little dark figure’s ideal shape, now manifest before him.

The ground beneath him shuddered violently. Lin Zhan summoned the Thousand Flower Sword, lightly leaping into the air. In his hand, the white Bone Pagoda swelled mightily, expanding against the wind.

Only a Bone Pagoda transformed to its limit could hope to contend with such a giant stone man.

Yet the Bone Pagoda could only restrain one stone man; Lin Zhan still had to face the other.

He must find a way to break the giant stone men!