OBS Chapter 170 The Black Crow Appears
Chapter 170 The Black Crow Appears
Lin Chen headed straight for the young master of Black Crow.
The two were only a dozen steps apart. Lin Chen, fully utilizing his Star Step technique, swept past him. His Star Sword slashed upwards, the first strike landing half a foot in front of Black Crow. Black Crow's evil energy surged forth as he drew his sword, transforming into a thick black mist that enveloped his arm and shoulder. Black Crow dodged to the side, pressing down with his palm. His evil energy condensed into a thin line, slicing along the surface of the arena towards Lin Chen's feet. Lin Chen sheathed his sword, changed direction, and struck again—three fluid movements, the sword tip aimed straight for his opponent's heart. Black Crow's shoulder slumped, avoiding the sword's trajectory, and he countered with a palm strike, the palm wind carrying several fine, black needle-like shadows. Lin Chen dodged the needle shadows, his sword spinning, star energy condensing into a thin film of light on the blade, striking Black Crow's palm and shattering the black mist.
The exchange between the two intensified, the sounds of footsteps and clashing weapons as dense as raindrops on sheet metal. Black Crow's attacks were all executed from angles unnoticed by ordinary martial artists, layers of malevolent mist pressing down, attempting to obscure perception and erode true energy. Each of Lin Chen's sword strikes was like a string stretched to its limit; each rebound created a small, silvery-white aftershock, dispersing, peeling away, and evaporating the oppressive black mist. The two figures clashed in the center of the arena, silver light and black mist constantly tearing at each other, occasionally a stray shockwave striking the protective shield at the edge of the arena, creating a muffled buzzing sound.
Black Crow retreated step by step, fine white cracks appearing on the bluestone slabs beneath his feet. His evil power dissipated continuously in the sword light, as if his outer skin had been scraped away piece by piece, revealing his skeleton beneath. A hint of unease flashed in his eyes, and he quickened his retreat, his hands suddenly forming a hand seal, causing the black mist around him to surge violently. Countless black evil crows flew out of the mist, densely packed, blotting out the sky, like an overturned inkwell spilling ink across the entire arena ceiling.
Before the black crows could land, Lin Chen's aura tightened abruptly, and the core of his star martial arts within his dantian sank sharply. A condensed silver star power, refined to its extreme, flowed through his meridians into the sword, unleashing the fourth move of the Star Sword Technique—Star River Suppression. The sword light reversed, a silver torrent cascading from the tip like an inverted Milky Way, plunging from the ground into the sky and colliding head-on with the swarm of black crows. There was no stalemate, no back-and-forth; wherever the silver star power swept, the crows' feathers, bodies, and claws were burned away in mid-air, shattering into countless black ash fragments that drifted in the lamplight. The expression on the face of the person controlling the black crows changed drastically at that moment.
Lin Chen activated his Star Steps once more, his figure breaking through the remaining black mist, the tip of his sword already half an inch above his opponent's shoulder blade. Black Crow tried to dodge, but the sword was too fast; so fast that even the thought of turning to the side hadn't fully reached his shoulder. With a soft thud, the sword tip pierced his shoulder, star energy surging into the wound, a dull thud echoing from the shoulder bone. The evil power beneath the skin was pulverized by the influx of silver energy. Black blood gushed from the wound, flowing down his shoulder blade and soaking a large patch onto his black robe.
Black Crow let out a miserable cry and retreated rapidly, pressing his left hand tightly against his shoulder. The evil power in his palm tried to seal the wound, but it was repeatedly forced back by the star power remaining at the edge of the wound, and it could not close properly. He raised his head, the scarlet in his eyes seemed to be even more intense than before, and there was still a smile on his lips, but there was a hint of haste in the smile.
"Lin Chen...you just wait!" His voice wasn't as composed as before; his breathing was erratic, and the last syllable trembled slightly. "The day the competition ends will be the day all of you die!"
He whistled, a short, sharp sound like a knife slicing through metal. In the same instant, the two guards withdrew, gripping their Mist Bullets tightly and slamming them onto the arena. All three bullets exploded simultaneously, black smoke rapidly expanding from the center of the arena, thick as if a bucket of ink had been poured on it, engulfing the entire arena in a few breaths. Several hurried footsteps echoed from within the black mist, followed by the sound of an iron passageway cover being flung open. The clanging of metal resounded muffledly in the mist before falling completely silent. When the black mist dissipated, only three scattered black robes remained in the center of the arena, their linings turned inside out, stitches still visible at the seams.
Security personnel rushed onto the arena from both sides. Some crouched at the edge of the arena, examining the floor gaps, while others squatted beside the black robes, scrutinizing the remaining traces on the fabric. After a while, someone lifted the iron cover of a hidden passage beneath the side of the arena, peeked inside, and gestured to the others. Immediately, three or four people slipped inside, their footsteps fading into the distance until they were completely silent. The match was naturally declared a victory for Xingwu University, and the match schedule on the big screen was updated accordingly, advancing their names to the final four. However, the applause in the stands was much shorter than usual. Many people were still staring at the three remaining black robes in the center of the arena, their expressions not so much of joy as of waiting for an answer that was yet to come.
Chen Feng had already stood up from the observation stand and strode to the passageway beside the arena. The encrypted document in his hand had been opened, and the edges of the paper were crumpled in several places. In his other hand, he was clutching a jade slip that he had just received, which he hadn't had time to put away yet. The contents of the jade slip were clearly not good news.
"The security department just discovered a large-scale evil-gathering array beneath the arena." His voice was low, and his speech was faster than usual. "The array's foundation has been laid up to the third layer, and the rune chains are activating sequentially; it's almost complete. It's located directly beneath the main stage. On the day of the finals, when the alliance leader and all the high-ranking officials from various countries are seated, if the array is activated, the spiritual energy of the entire arena will be transformed into an evil force field within a few breaths. At that time, no one will be able to maintain their composure; everyone will be simultaneously controlled."
He closed the file, put the jade slip into his inner pocket, glanced at the dissipating evil mist in the center of the arena, and then at the four people standing beside Lin Chen. "They deliberately fled in broad daylight to make the security department focus on the pursuit, giving the underground formation a few more days to activate."
Lin Chen remained silent. He glanced down at the remaining black blood on the divine weapon, and a silvery-white aura traced a circle along its blade, scorching away all the evil energy that had tainted it. Then he sheathed the sword. He turned and looked towards the distant grandstand. The grandstand was exceptionally bright under the lights, its metal edging reflecting the light. It was currently empty, awaiting the day the finals would fill it with delegations from various countries and high-ranking members of the martial arts alliance.
"The day of the final will be the day to close the net," he said. "They choose that day to make their move, and we'll choose that day to end it. We'll use the final to tie them up and dismantle them, man and organization."
The remaining three remained silent. Leng Feng drew his battle sword from its sheath, examined it to ensure the blade hadn't chipped in the previous clash, and then sheathed it. Chu Fan crouched at the edge of the arena, his fingertips touching the edge of the stone slab. He withdrew his hand, glanced at the dust on his fingertips, stood up, and clapped his hands. Su Ling'er fastened the clasp of her medicine box, straightened the straps, and returned to the ranks. Su Muyue stood a step behind Lin Chen, her array flags neatly folded in her hands. The five people stood on the arena, their shadows stretched long by the lights behind them, extending to the protective shield at the edge of the arena, like five dark lines fixed there, neither swaying nor shrinking.