Chapter 31: Enemies on a Narrow Path

The aftermath of the first round had not yet fully subsided; the excitement and chatter in the air were like boiling water.

Soon, the presiding Elder’s deep voice once again echoed through the Martial Arts Arena, suppressing all the noise:

"Second round draw, begin!"

The crowd surged again as the Disciples stepped forward one after another to draw the numbers that would decide their fates.

Chen Chuan’s expression was calm, as if his stunning performance in the first round had merely been an ordinary display.

He reached into the drawing box and pulled out a slip; upon seeing it, his eyebrows couldn’t help but twitch slightly.

It was the number "one" again.

"Hey! Platform One again! Senior Brother Chen Chuan’s luck... is he stuck on Platform One?" a sharp-eyed Disciple immediately shouted.

"It’s fate! I wonder which lucky soul will be Chen Chuan’s opponent this time?"

Chen Chuan shook his head and didn’t think much of it, walking composedly toward the Duel Platform that had just made him the center of attention.

He stood still for a moment, waiting for his opponent to appear.

The crowd automatically parted to form a path.

A fiery red figure, like a Phoenix undergoing Nirvana, stepped onto the Duel Platform step by step, carrying a scorching and sharp Aura.

When she stood firm and raised her eyes—filled with a mixture of fury and frost—to look at Chen Chuan, the area around Platform One instantly erupted into a frenzy.

"Holy crap! It’s Senior Sister Feng Zhixian!"

"Hahaha! Talk about enemies on a narrow path, there’s going to be a good show now."

"The Heavenly Dao is a cycle; the heavens spare no one. Chen Chuan avoided Senior Sister Feng in the first round, but he got matched with her immediately in the second!"

"Bets are open, bets are open! Bet on how many Moves Chen Chuan can last against Senior Sister Feng. I bet three Moves, wagering a hundred contribution points."

"Three Moves? You think too highly of Chen Chuan! I bet on a one-Move instant kill."

"With Senior Sister Feng’s explosive temper and their past grievances, won’t she just directly unleash her inner Universe?"

The onlookers were as excited as if they had been injected with chicken blood; the slight respect they had just begun to feel for Chen Chuan was instantly diluted by this even more dramatic confrontation.

What could be more satisfying than watching a drama where enemies meet and their eyes turn red with hatred?

Not far away, Feng Tianming and Feng Tianxiang were so excited they almost jumped up.

"Sister! Go for it! Give this fellow who doesn’t know the height of the heavens a harsh lesson." Feng Tianming waved his fists, his voice shrill.

Beside him, Feng Tianxiang’s face was full of a cruel smirk, as if he could already see the scene of Chen Chuan kneeling and begging for mercy.

Chen Ping’s heart suddenly leaped into his throat.

Feng Zhixian’s strength and talent were known to everyone in the Outer Sect; she was far from being comparable to a Cultivator like Zhang Mang, who had only just entered the Furnace Realm.

"Big Brother, be careful! If you can’t win, just admit defeat, there’s no shame in it."

Chen Ping prayed silently in his heart, only hoping his brother wouldn’t get beaten too badly.

On the Duel Platform, Feng Zhixian’s gaze was as cold as a blade, locking onto Chen Chuan. Her red lips parted slightly, her voice carrying the fury she had suppressed for two full years:

"Chen Chuan, I have waited for this moment for two whole years. Today, I will certainly vent my anger."

Facing Feng Zhixian’s gaze that seemed ready to spit fire, Chen Chuan merely rubbed his nose, a helpless and slightly playful smile appearing on his face:

"Feng Zhixian, why such a big temper? I’m afraid that if you lose later and cry in public, it won’t look very good."

"You!"

Feng Zhixian was so enraged by his nonchalant attitude that her chest heaved, and the spiritual energy around her body instantly surged out uncontrollably.

Boom!

An Aura several times stronger than Zhang Mang’s erupted. The scorching spiritual energy seemed to form an invisible vortex of flames around her, causing the air to slightly distort.

"Second Level of the Furnace Realm! My god!"

"Senior Sister Feng has actually broken through to the Second Level! How long has it been?"

"It’s over, it’s over. Chen Chuan is completely finished this time! Any bit of wishful thinking from before can be put away now."

"First Level of the Furnace Realm against the Second, and it’s a Genius with an Ultimate Grade Spiritual Root and Bloodline like Senior Sister Feng. This isn’t just a crushing defeat, it’s a slaughter!"

"Senior Brother Chen Chuan, have a safe journey! On this day next year, I’ll burn some spirit money for you."

The spectating Disciples sensed this Aura and cried out in alarm, their eyes looking at Chen Chuan with pity and sympathy, as if they were looking at a brave warrior about to head to the execution ground.

Even Ye Linger, who had been watching with a spectator’s mindset, blinked her large eyes.

With a candied hawthorn she’d pulled out from who-knows-where dangling from her small mouth, she mumbled indistinctly:

"Wow, Feng Zhixian is so fierce! Such a strong Aura. Junior Brother is probably going to turn into a roasted suckling pig."

"But he looks like he’s not afraid at all? Is he scared silly or does he really have confidence?"

She tilted her head, her lively large eyes flashing with the light of curiosity, finding the scene increasingly interesting.

Feng Zhixian was very satisfied with the reaction of the crowd below. She looked down at Chen Chuan like a Phoenix looking down at an ant:

"Now, do you still have the confidence to make me cry?"

Chen Chuan felt the pressure blowing against his face, but his expression remained calm, his gaze only becoming a bit more serious. "We’ll know once we try, won’t we?"

"Then let’s see the truth through our hands!"

Feng Zhixian wasted no more words. With a delicate shout, her fiery red figure turned into a streak of light, shooting toward Chen Chuan.

She struck out with her jade-like hand, her palm glowing with a crimson light, carrying a scorching Concept that seemed capable of incinerating the eight wildernesses.

It was precisely the core Cultivation Technique of the Feng Family, the Nine Revolutions Nirvana Scripture.

"Good timing!"

Inside Chen Chuan’s body, the Primordial Sacred Dragon Scripture quietly operated, and an ancient, overbearing Aura awakened from deep within his Bloodline.

He did not retreat, instead taking a step forward as well, meeting her with a simple and unadorned punch.

Within the wind of the punch, there was a faint, low roar of a dragon. Though there were no flashy Moves, it contained a terrifying power capable of shattering stone.

Bang!

Punch and palm collided, producing a dull, thunderous sound.

The crimson and pale-golden spiritual energy lights clashed violently, and a shockwave surged outward from the two of them as the center.

The expected scene of Chen Chuan being sent flying by a single palm strike did not occur.

The two separated as soon as they touched, each stepping back two paces, surprisingly appearing to be evenly matched.

"What? He blocked it?"

"How is that possible? Chen Chuan actually took Senior Sister Feng’s attack head-on."

"His spiritual energy seems a bit strange; it feels exceptionally solid, heavy, and overbearing."

The mocking laughter below the platform stopped abruptly, replaced by shock and confusion.

Within Feng Zhixian’s heart, even greater waves of shock were stirred.

With that palm strike just now, although she hadn’t used her full strength, she had used seventy to eighty percent of her power. Combined with the dominance of the Nine Revolutions Nirvana Scripture, an ordinary Second Level Furnace Realm Cultivator wouldn’t dare to take it head-on.

Yet Chen Chuan not only took it, but was also completely unharmed.

The quality of his spiritual energy far exceeded her estimates.

"Hmph! You have some tricks. It seems these past two years weren’t entirely wasted."

Feng Zhixian suppressed the shock in her heart and resumed her offensive.

Operating the Nine Revolutions Nirvana Scripture to its limit, her figure seemed to transform into whirlwinds of fire, her attacks enveloping Chen Chuan like a violent storm.

Chen Chuan, meanwhile, was like a boulder in a torrential stream, pushing the power within his body to its peak.

His Moves remained simple and direct—whether punching, palming, blocking, or parrying—yet he could always perfectly seal off Feng Zhixian’s offensive.

The powerful Physical Body and pure spiritual energy derived from the Chaos Divine Body allowed him to not fall behind at all, even with a slightly lower cultivation level.

There was even a faint trend of him using raw power to break her finesse, suppressing her instead.

Bang, bang, bang!

The two figures on the platform crossed paths, the sound of spiritual energy collisions constant.

Crimson flames and pale-golden light intertwined; the scene was incredibly intense, a dazzling sight for the eyes.

"Strange! Chen Chuan is actually holding his ground?"

"More than just holding his ground! Look at Senior Sister Feng’s offensive—it seems like she’s being suppressed?"

"This is the First Level of the Furnace Realm? You’ve got to be joking! Why do I feel like he’s much stronger than when he fought Zhang Mang?"

The onlookers were dumbstruck.

The script was wrong!

What happened to the one-sided crushing victory for Feng Zhixian?

How did it turn into a stalemate where they were evenly matched?

Chen Ping, below the platform, was even more moved, his fists clenched in excitement:

"Big Brother is too amazing! He’s only had the Primordial Sacred Dragon Scripture for less than seven days! This Cultivation talent..."

He could no longer find the words to describe it.

Unable to land a decisive blow and instead feeling faintly countered by her opponent, the frustration and fury in Feng Zhixian’s heart burned hotter and hotter.

She was the favored daughter of the Feng Family, a peerless Genius possessing a Seventh-Grade Phoenix Bloodline; how could she be pushed to this point by someone she once regarded as trash?

"Chen Chuan! You forced my hand!"

Feng Zhixian suddenly leaped backward, creating distance from Chen Chuan.

A flash of decisiveness and crimson color crossed her beautiful eyes.

"Li!"

A clear and resonant Phoenix cry seemed to come from ancient times, echoing through the clouds.

Boom!

An Aura far more majestic than before erupted from within Feng Zhixian’s body.

Raging crimson flames burned all around her, light radiating in all directions, as if she had truly transformed into a Phoenix reborn from the fire.

Her Aura climbed steadily, instantly breaking the boundary of the Second Level of the Furnace Realm, reaching a level sufficient to make Cultivators at the Fourth or Fifth Level of the Furnace Realm feel palpitations.

Seventh-Grade Phoenix Bloodline, fully activated!

"It’s coming, it’s coming! Senior Sister Feng is getting serious!"

"Phoenix Bloodline! Seventh-Grade concentration! My god, this pressure... I feel like I’m about to lose my breath."

"It’s over, it’s completely over. For Chen Chuan to be able to force out Senior Sister Feng’s Bloodline Power, he can be proud even in defeat."

"Sister, go for it! Quickly knock this arrogant fellow down!" Feng Tianming and Feng Tianxiang screamed excitedly, as if victory was already in their grasp.

Ye Linger also stopped her munching on the candied hawthorn, her small face becoming serious:

"Oh dear, she’s truly angry! Seventh-Grade Phoenix Bloodline... Junior Brother is in big trouble now. He won’t really be roasted well-done, will he?"

Everyone believed that the battle would end here.

With her Bloodline Power activated, Feng Zhixian’s strength had undergone a qualitative leap; it was absolutely not something Chen Chuan could withstand.

On the Duel Platform, Feng Zhixian, enveloped in crimson light like a goddess of fire, looked coldly at Chen Chuan and said icily:

"To be able to force me to use my Bloodline Power, you have enough to be proud of! Now, fall!"

Facing this overwhelming might, Chen Chuan instead slowly raised his head. Not only was there no fear on his face, but a faint, almost imperceptible curve also hooked at the corner of his mouth.

Deep within his eyes, a trace of Chaos quietly flowed.

"The Phoenix Bloodline is indeed extraordinary. However, if you want to beat me, I’m afraid it won’t be that easy."

His voice was not loud, yet it clearly reached the ears of everyone staring intently at the platform.

Everyone: "???"

Even at a time like this, he’s still talking tough?