Chapter 483 - 422: Thunder Shadow Clone (Part 2)

Chapter 483: Chapter 422: Thunder Shadow Clone (Part 2)

Ji Zhang gritted his teeth, cast a Water Wave Shield, and continued to charge forward!

The Water Wave Shield was a Tier One skill. Its defensive effect was stronger than the Spiritual Energy Shield, but it was far inferior to other defensive skills.

Ji Zhang didn’t use a stronger defensive skill because the Water Wave Shield could move with him, freeing him from having to remain stationary.

He was still within range of the trap. Stopping now would be suicide!

He would rather take a few hits from the skills than be struck by the trap.

BANG! A spinning ice hammer slammed into the Water Wave Shield, shattering the transparent barrier and striking Ji Zhang squarely in the chest.

Immediately after, a Water Demon Fist materialized and struck his lower abdomen.

The combined force of the two attacks sent Ji Zhang flying back over a hundred feet.

At the same time, hundreds of yellow plumes of smoke shot skyward. Dense Earth Element Spiritual Power rapidly converged, forming countless boulders that rained down like a dense storm.

Tier Two Trap Skill: Torrential Rainstone!

Ji Zhang’s figure was instantly swallowed by the avalanche of boulders...

The skill kicked up massive waves, gouging countless craters in the seabed and flinging sand and stone high into the water, like a dust storm sweeping across the ocean floor.

Even the clams and other shellfish hidden beneath the sand were blasted to smithereens.

Zhao Lin stood perfectly still, his eyes fixed on the murky water. He released his Divine Sense and used ultrasound to monitor any movement within.

At the same time, he beckoned, and his clone returned to his body.

...

After a long while, the seabed settled. Huge craters littered the landscape, turning it into a field of ruins.

’He’s still alive?’

Zhao Lin waited for a long time, but no Essence Soul emerged. A sense of alarm rose within him.

An ordinary Qi Refining Realm cultivator would have had no chance of surviving such a powerful skill. But Ji Zhang was a cultivator in a transitional state; he might have had a special life-saving technique.

Zhao Lin waited another moment. Seeing still no sign of movement, he slowly walked forward.

Once triggered, the trap entered a recharging phase and wouldn’t be active again for a full twenty-four hours. He didn’t have to worry about setting it off.

’How much longer can you hide?’

Zhao Lin’s gaze swept over the ruins. He executed a spell with his hands, and a fan-shaped wave of Earth Spiritual Qi rippled outward.

"Earthshatter!"

In an instant, the ground shook violently. Sand and stone tumbled as hundreds of crisscrossing fissures split the seabed open.

"I’ll kill you!"

A short figure shot out from a fissure, roaring as he charged toward Zhao Lin.

Ji Zhang was overcome with humiliation. He, a dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator, had been beaten into this state by a mere Low Tier cultivator.

He had planned to use an earth-burrowing technique for a sneak attack, never imagining that Zhao Lin possessed a skill like Earthshatter.

Since he couldn’t hide, he might as well risk it all in one last fight!

Ji Zhang slammed his palm on the ground, casting the Earth Cone Skill.

Dozens of thick stone cones immediately erupted from the ground, shooting toward the nearby Zhao Lin.

Zhao Lin was prepared. He leaped into the air, pointed his finger, and shouted, "Ice Blade Skill!"

A solid, translucent ice blade shot forth.

Ji Zhang was now severely injured and could barely muster a Tier Two skill. Seeing his ambush fail, he could only cast the Flying Waterfall Skill to defend himself, reinforcing it with his Ripple Armor.

Zhao Lin controlled the ice blade, striking three times in quick succession. It cleaved through the watery barrier created by the Flying Waterfall Skill and slashed into Ji Zhang’s body.

Despite the protection of his Ripple Armor, the ice blade still sent Ji Zhang stumbling back several steps, his face a deathly white.

Seeing this, Zhao Lin knew his opponent was at his limit. He didn’t press the attack, instead directing the ice blade to dart and weave, sometimes splitting apart, sometimes reforming, relentlessly striking the Ripple Armor.

The Spiritual Light on his Ripple Armor grew dimmer and dimmer. Feeling like a mouse being toyed with by a cat, Ji Zhang’s eyes turned bloodshot, his expression savage.

"If I’m going to die, you’re coming with me!"

He then slammed a hand against his chest, spitting out a mouthful of blood. With his blood-soaked palm, he drew a strange rune in the air before him.

The moment the rune was complete, it silently merged into his body.

In the next moment, Ji Zhang’s body began to grow explosively. He swelled like a balloon, his clothes bursting at the seams...

In the blink of an eye, he had transformed into a giant over ten feet tall, with bulging, knotted muscles and a body wreathed in red light.

He was like a completely different person, save for his face, which remained the same.

Zhao Lin sensed the change and immediately glanced at his Spirit Cultivation Map.

In the fifth panel of the Spirit Cultivation Map, above Qi Observation Skill and Mind Stabilizing Skill, three new words appeared: Blood Ignition Body!

’A Tier Three skill!’

Zhao Lin was shocked. Only mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators could use Tier Three skills. Ji Zhang was a cultivator in a transitional state; how could he possibly break the limits imposed by the Celestial Dao?

A thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately understood. ’The answer is in the name of the skill!’

’Blood Ignition Body must be a skill that burns one’s life force in exchange for a temporary surge in power, similar to a self-destruct technique.’

’The Celestial Dao restricts cultivators in transitional states from using high-tier skills, but it doesn’t stop them from killing themselves. It’s like being able to commit suicide even while in shackles.’

Realizing this, he turned and fled!

"Trying to run?"

Ji Zhang’s eyes were bloodshot and filled with madness. He took huge strides, charging straight for Zhao Lin.

Each step covered seventy or eighty feet, his speed like a flash of lightning!

’This is bad!’ Zhao Lin thought. He quickly turned and cast the Void Trapping Skill, dozens of rapidly spinning vortexes appearing in front of Ji Zhang.

Ji Zhang charged on as if he hadn’t seen them. He passed right through the vortexes, his body barely faltering, his speed undiminished.

Zhao Lin’s brow furrowed at the sight. He rapidly formed a series of hand seals for several more spells.

Ice Blade Skill, Flame Stream Arrow, Water Demon Fist...

But these skills were useless against the transformed Ji Zhang. No matter what he threw, Ji Zhang shattered it with a single punch.

’He’s a complete monster!’

Zhao Lin’s eye twitched. He dodged behind a reef and sprinted toward the location of another trap.

BOOM!

Ji Zhang kicked the mountain-sized reef aside, laughing maniacally as he reached out a massive, blood-red hand to grab Zhao Lin.

With a sharp CRACK, the barrier of his Water Manipulation Skill shattered on impact.

A cold sweat broke out on Zhao Lin’s skin. He swerved sharply to the side, knowing that at this rate, Ji Zhang would catch him and they would both perish long before he reached the next trap.

As his mind raced, he suddenly spotted a bright blue light not far ahead.

He looked closer and saw an Eight-cornered Clam, over ten feet long, its shell open as it absorbed Spiritual Qi.

The blue light was coming from a massive Spirit Pearl nestled inside the shell.

As if spotting a lifeline, Zhao Lin desperately lunged toward the Eight-cornered Clam.

The Eight-cornered Clam sensed the danger. It immediately snapped its shell shut and cast the Sand Escape Skill.

Water Element Spiritual Power converged, lifting the Eight-cornered Clam up.

Then, dozens of jets of water shot out from its shell. The powerful recoil propelled the clam’s body, slamming it down into the sand.

Zhao Lin reached it in the nick of time. He grabbed onto the clam’s hinge and was pulled down into the seabed along with it.

SPLURT!

A blood-red hand plunged into the sand, yanking the Eight-cornered Clam back out.

Seeing that it could not escape, the Eight-cornered Clam’s shell trembled as it cast a Clam Shield Skill.

A layer of Water Element Spiritual Qi, shimmering with a faint blue halo, covered the clam’s surface, protecting it completely.

Since Zhao Lin was clinging tightly to the shell, he was also enveloped by the skill.

The Clam Shield Skill was the Eight-cornered Clam’s innate ability, and it was even tougher than a master-level Water Shield Skill.

Ji Zhang roared at the sight. He put all his strength into his hands and, with a loud CRACK, shattered the Clam Shield Skill and a corner of the shell itself.

The Eight-cornered Clam cried out in pain. It opened its shell and spewed out a great cloud of inky-black breath.

The breath was highly toxic and seeped into Ji Zhang’s body through his eyes, nose, and pores.

Ji Zhang felt a searing pain in his eyes, blinding him. The parts of his body hit by the toxic breath burned like fire. Enraged, he smashed his fist into the clam shell.

With a deafening CRUNCH, the clam shell shattered, its fragments flying in all directions.

Zhao Lin seized the opportunity. He drew his Silver Light Dagger, lunged forward, and plunged it deep into Ji Zhang’s heart.

"Aaargh! Die!"

Ji Zhang screamed, swinging his massive, blood-red hand and slamming it into Zhao Lin’s torso.

A sickening crack echoed from Zhao Lin’s body under the immense force.

His sternum shattered, he was sent flying over a hundred feet before landing on the ground, motionless.

THUD. Ji Zhang collapsed to his knees.

The blood-red color on his face and hands began to fade. His body gradually shrank, returning to its original form.