Chapter 31: Strength is King
“I swore an oath never to reveal that person’s name,” Wen Zhao hurriedly explained, seeing Insect Ruo Ruo about to explode in fury. “But I can describe their characteristics. You’ll surely be able to guess.”
Insect Ruo Ruo’s patience wore thin. With a dismissive wave of her hand, the massive centipede continued its advance toward the center of the lake. “Enough wasting my time. Speak quickly, or you’re all finished.”
Wen Zhao raised her sword. “Do you think I fear death? Or do you truly dare to kill me? Little bug, this is a rare opportunity. Once we leave this Trial Ground, the only way you’ll learn who’s in Xiao Hui’s heart is by attending their wedding banquet.”
The swarm of insects abruptly stopped.
“Fine. Speak,” Insect Ruo Ruo demanded.
Wen Zhao studied her carefully, preparing her words.
At that moment, Wang Jie was entirely immersed in his own body, deaf to their exchange. The Seal Power he absorbed had indeed transformed—fully converted into raw strength. Though he had taken in so much Cataclysm Material that he could have broken through to Nine Seals, his current condition felt no different from before encountering Insect Ruo Ruo.
Still, the increase in power was undeniable.
He exhaled and opened his eyes. “I’m done.”
Wen Zhao glanced at him before turning forward. “Her legs are whiter than yours.”
Insect Ruo Ruo blinked, dumbfounded.
Wang Jie stared at Wen Zhao in shock. What had they been talking about? And why was the topic so outrageous?
Realizing she’d been fooled again, Insect Ruo Ruo shrieked in rage. “Wretched woman! You tricked me again! I’ll kill you! I swear I’ll kill you!”
Wang Jie wiped the sweat from his brow. “Your turn. You should be able to break through to Nine Seals now, right?”
Before Wen Zhao could answer, a colossal Eight-Seal insect loomed overhead, its shadow darkening the sky. It had evolved beyond recognition.
She frowned. “We should retreat.”
But Wang Jie merely smiled. “No need. She’s the one who should be running now. You focus on your breakthrough.”
Wen Zhao studied him deeply before nodding. Without another word, she retrieved Cataclysm Material and began absorbing Seal Power.
She knew Wang Jie was not one to make empty boasts.
Behind them, Insect Ruo Ruo ranted and raved. “Wretched woman! Wretched man! You’re both dead! I’ll slaughter you!”
Wang Jie rolled his shoulders, glancing toward the Sky Projection above. All around them, dead fish floated on the lake’s surface, the water boiling from the battle between fish and insects. Overhead, the Eight-Seal creature descended.
Boom!
With a single punch, Wang Jie obliterated it. His strength had grown eightfold since he first attained Eight Seals.
Wen Zhao was stunned. His power had increased yet again.
Eightfold.
A terrifying growth.
Even without this amplification, Wang Jie could have easily slain a typical Eight-Seal beast with a single strike. Now, with this immense enhancement, even he was unsure of his own limits.
The centipede hesitated, raising its front half warily, releasing a high-pitched screech.
Wang Jie ignored it, tilting his head back to gaze at the Sky Projection. “When I was a child, the Dean only let us watch a single movie. For ten years, I’ve treated the Sky Projection like a film. I remember many scenes, many movements. Some were too flashy to be practical. Others were too crude to be useful.”
“But now… perhaps I can finally use them.”
“After all, it seems I’ve embarked on the path where strength reigns supreme.”
The centipede, under Insect Ruo Ruo’s command, lunged at him, its body suddenly erupting in forest-green flames, emanating a terrifying chill that froze the entire lake in an instant.
Wang Jie stepped back with his right foot, shifting his stance forward. His arms lifted, fingers curved inward. His left and right hands met mid-air but stopped just short of touching, capturing a visible distortion of air between them. He slowly twisted his hands, rotating the compressed force within.
Though his movements were slow, the turbulence between his palms grew ever denser, as if compressing the air itself—or perhaps a raw manifestation of strength.
As Seal Power surged around his arms, Wang Jie suddenly snapped his gaze toward the charging centipede and unleashed the energy he had gathered.
A spherical shockwave blasted forth, like a detonation of air itself, colliding with the monstrous insect.
Boom!
The earth shattered.
The lake ruptured, waves surging in every direction. A devastating blast of force swept across the battlefield, sending insects and fish alike flying. The forest-green flames that had frozen the lake were forcefully extinguished.
Wen Zhao, on the verge of her breakthrough, was knocked backward by the sheer pressure, staring in shock at the devastation before her.
From above, it looked as though a storm had erupted with Wang Jie at its center, the winds tearing through everything within several kilometers. Towering waves crashed across the lake. The centipede’s upper half was blown away, plunging back into the depths.
Insect Ruo Ruo stood frozen, mouth agape. “What the hell?! That wasn’t Lock Force! How was the impact so enormous?!”
The Armor One Sect had countless combat techniques, passed down through the generations. Many had been lost—not necessarily because they were too powerful to master, but simply because some were deemed unnecessary. Like this one. Without Wang Jie’s strength augmentation and Seal Power infusion, it would have been ineffective.
In truth, this technique lacked lethal power.
But for Wang Jie, it was perfect. It amplified his overwhelming strength while clearing the battlefield.
The centipede crashed into the lake, sending another massive wave skyward.
Wang Jie lowered his hands. Exhilarating. The pent-up frustration of countless battles had been unleashed in a single strike.
The lake water rained down upon him, soaking both him and Insect Ruo Ruo.
His eyes locked onto her.
One step forward.
He charged.
Insect Ruo Ruo shrieked and bolted. The surrounding swarm hurled themselves at Wang Jie in desperation, but he merely punched through them, tearing a path straight toward her.
Wang Jie’s power surged with just a slight exertion of Seal Power, striking down several Eight-Seal Insects in an instant.
From the depths of the lake, a Huge Centipede emerged, its body coiling as it lunged toward Wang Jie. Meanwhile, Insect Ruo Ruo sprinted toward the centipede, her movement leaving behind a trail of afterimages that dazzled Wang Jie’s vision. Though not as swift as Armor Eight Steps, her speed far outmatched any footwork Wang Jie had learned. It was evident that the Heavenly Insect People possessed extraordinary skills when it came to evasion.
Wang Jie faced the centipede head-on.
“No need to hold back.”
Though his previous strike had repelled the creature, it had not inflicted any real damage. Its defense was formidable. In that case…
With a crisp snap of his fingers, a drastic change swept over the battlefield.
From the center of the lake, Wen Zhao’s gaze sharpened. “That technique—”
High above, the sky split apart as a colossal finger pierced through the clouds, descending with an unstoppable force. Below, the ground cracked, and from its depths, another giant finger emerged.
Insect Ruo Ruo stood frozen in shock. “What fresh horror is this?!”
Far away, atop the walls of Upper Capital City Base, numerous cultivators watched in awe as the divine fingers descended from the heavens.
“Is that… a battle technique?”
“It’s Boss!” Qing Zheng and his companions had been keeping watch from the city wall. Seeing this, their expressions darkened with concern. “If he’s using this move, it means he’s in real danger.”
Even Older Sister Tang was taken aback. “This is a combat technique?”
The Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger struck—one from above, one from below—trapping the Huge Centipede at their convergence point. With a faint snapping sound, its hardened exoskeleton shattered. The destruction spread rapidly across its entire body, breaking it apart inch by inch until nothing remained but a splatter of green blood raining from the sky.
Insect Ruo Ruo was drenched in the green liquid.
She stared in sheer disbelief. As a Heavenly Insect Person, she had witnessed countless unfathomable techniques—even those capable of obliterating entire planets. But never had she seen something like this wielded by an Eight-Seal cultivator.
“Is this truly the power of someone at the Eight-Seal level?”
Her gaze drifted toward Wang Jie, standing amidst the falling green blood. A thought surfaced—could the one she encountered earlier withstand this attack?
Even Wang Jie hadn’t expected the Heaven and Earth Luo Xuan Finger to annihilate the centipede so effortlessly.
After all, this technique had once failed to defeat Wen Zhao, merely forcing her to retreat. But with his increased strength, everything had changed. The technique had evolved.
“If I hadn’t reached eight times my previous power, that strike wouldn’t have been enough.”
The surrounding insects scattered in fear.
Wang Jie stepped forward, his boots sinking into the blood-soaked ground as he advanced toward Insect Ruo Ruo.
From the center of the lake, Wen Zhao exhaled in relief. “Seems like he doesn’t need my help anymore.” She could now focus on breaking through to Nine-Seal.
When Wang Jie reached Insect Ruo Ruo, he lifted his hand and swung his palm toward her.
She instinctively dodged, but his strike stopped just before making contact.
Peering cautiously from behind her raised arm, she met Wang Jie’s gaze. He flicked his finger against her forehead.
“Ow!” She winced, stumbling back a few steps, her face full of indignation as she glared at him.
“If you dare cause trouble again, it won’t be this easy next time, you little brat.”
Had she harbored true killing intent, Wang Jie wouldn’t have let her off so lightly. As for the Heavenly Insect People’s inevitable retaliation—well, that was a concern for another time. But letting her go wouldn’t come without a price.
“Hmph.” Insect Ruo Ruo huffed, wiping the green blood from her arms. “Ugh, it stinks.” Without hesitation, she leapt into the lake to wash herself.
Meanwhile, Wang Jie turned his attention to gathering Cataclysm Materials. There were plenty scattered about.
From the water, Insect Ruo Ruo’s voice rang out. “Hey! You’re not peeking, are you?”
Wang Jie, focused on scouring the ground, responded absentmindedly, “Flat chest, no curves—what’s there to look at?”
Insect Ruo Ruo’s face flushed with fury. She clenched her fists, her expression shifting between blue and white in outrage. Yet, she bit her tongue, restraining herself. Controlling her insects, she positioned them around the area, keeping watch for any mutated creatures from the lake.
After some time, she emerged from the water, now fully dressed in fresh clothing retrieved from her storage ring.
Meanwhile, Wen Zhao had completed her breakthrough. Her Nine-Seal aura radiated an undeniable pressure.
Insect Ruo Ruo gave her a sidelong glance. “So, you’ve broken through to Nine-Seal, huh?”
Wen Zhao smirked. “What? Want to test me?”
“Hah! If it weren’t for that vile man, I’d have captured you already.”
Wen Zhao couldn’t deny it. In this kind of trial, the Heavenly Insect People were nearly invincible. “Well, I suppose I just have a charismatic personality. Unlike you, who can’t seem to find a man willing to help you.”
Insect Ruo Ruo gritted her teeth. “Tch! Flirting everywhere like that, Brother Xiao would never like you.”
Wen Zhao sighed. “For the last time, this has nothing to do with him.”
Hearing that, Insect Ruo Ruo relaxed. “Good. Now I know you’re telling the truth.”
Then, Wang Jie’s voice interrupted them. “Hey, girl.”
Insect Ruo Ruo turned.
“Hand over all the Cataclysm Materials you’ve got.”
She crossed her arms. “And why should I?”
“Because I let you live.”
“You vile man! If you’ve got the guts, then don’t let me go and see what happens!”
Wang Jie arched a brow, his gaze darkening. Insect Ruo Ruo stiffened but remained defiant. “Wh-what do you want?”
“For a war slave destined to die on the Interstellar Battlefield, do you think there’s anything I wouldn’t dare to do?” Wang Jie said lazily.
Insect Ruo Ruo blinked, hesitated, then sighed in resignation. Silently, she retrieved her Cataclysm Materials from her storage ring and dropped them onto the ground.
The sheer quantity stunned both Wang Jie and Wen Zhao.
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation