Shocking the Nine Heavens With My Sword
Chapter 256 - 244: Fighting Beast (2/3)

Chapter 256: Chapter 244: Fighting Beast (2/3)

After the clouds had dispersed and the rain ceased, the three women began to sit in meditation. Zhou Heng’s potent semen was a great tonic for them; because the disparity in strength was too significant, it was even more beneficial than upper-grade spirit stones.

Although Zhou Heng could not change his lying position, a martial artist could circulate spiritual power without needing the body to be in any particular state, and he did so, nourishing his body.

He estimated that his injuries would require him to lie in bed for over a month, but with the mutual complementation of the Heavenly Yang and Earthly Yin Technique, his healing might be achieved in around ten days, incomparable to before.

With such injuries, bloodline power was of little use since his body contained Zhao Duotian’s exotic spiritual power. He could not circulate the power of his bloodline to heal his wounds unless he expelled this spiritual power.

He lay quietly, his mind immersed in contemplation of the domain.

Day by day, his body was rapidly healing, and his understanding of the domain deepened with each passing day, verging on an epiphany of transformation.

Yet, he was just a breath away.

What is a domain? "Where my heart goes, countless transformations arise!"

It can be seen as a special space, created by the consciousness of the martial artist, that can envelop an area. Within this domain, the martial artist is a god, an immortal, dictating everything.

Unless one continuously maintains extremely high-speed movement, preventing the opponent’s divine sense from locking on, once a domain is established, it represents an all-encompassing attack that speed alone cannot overcome.

To counter a domain, one way is to possess an even more formidable power; absolute power crushes all with the principle that "One force breaks ten thousand laws." Alternatively, one can have immensely strong defensive power, unyielding to the fiercest storm.

If, for example, Zhou Heng now mastered a domain and confronted a Nascent Soul Realm elder, would his myriad attacks have any effect on the opponent?

A domain is merely a form of power deployment; in the end, it all depends on the individual’s strength!

Lastly, just as with confronting momentum, one can use a domain to counter a domain.

Zhou Heng refined his comprehension silently in his heart, thinking that a hearty and thorough battle might allow him to break through in one fell swoop.

With the meticulous care of the three women and his mother, he was truly living comfortably. Before he knew it, eleven days had passed, and he was finally able to walk. With each movement, he emanated the might of a dragon and the roar of a tiger.

Though he had been bedridden for over ten days, his gains were substantial—his spiritual power had advanced slightly and was nearing the mid-stage of the Heaven-Opening Realm’s Second Layer Heaven.

Two days later, having recovered a great deal, he pinned Xiao Huoshui and the other two women to the bed and fiercely claimed victory, letting them beg for mercy and recouping the suppressed dominance of these days.

One clear morning, he strolled in the garden.

Ever since he had grasped a general understanding of the domain, he particularly enjoyed communing with nature. The Sky-soaring Nine Forms were indeed powerful, but precisely because they were overly potent, he was unable to grasp some of the finer details which required true contact with nature.

Birdsong and fragrances filled the air, the grass was emerald green, and the flowers were a dazzling tapestry. Enlightenment surged within Zhou Heng as a Dao Lotus with eight colored petals bloomed within his Dantian, sending out a fresh lotus fragrance detectable from miles away.

"Eh, why is there suddenly such a fragrance?"

"My spiritual power has been activating on its own, and in just a short time, it has reached the effect of a day’s arduous cultivation!"

"It’s like my mind has suddenly cleared, haha, so that’s how ’Hooking the Heavens and Leaping’ should be understood!"

A wave of astonished commotion arose as eight youths approached, each with the poise and steadfastness of dragons and tigers, indicative of their extraordinary background.

The Zhao Family truly lived up to their name, raising such outstanding descendants!

Zhou Heng mused internally, and from among the eight, a slightly lean youth looked him over with a trace of arrogance and said, "So it’s you. Hey, what kind of treasure are you hiding on you?"

All eight could smell the lotus fragrance coming from Zhou Heng and thought it was some sort of heavenly and earthly treasure.

Although each of the eight displayed arrogance, not one showed a hint of greedy covetousness. In this world of martial artists, filled with predation, it wasn’t that they lacked desire; rather, since Zhou Heng was one of their own from the Zhao Family, how could they be tempted?

Following the great disaster over twenty years ago, the Zhao Family united from top to bottom, placing the utmost importance on kin.

Unable to help it, Zhou Heng smiled and asked, "You know me?"

"You are the Family Head’s nephew!" The slender youth held out his right hand, thumb up, gesturing towards himself, "My name is Zhao Hongcheng, from now on, just call me Brother Cheng!"

Zhou Heng’s smile widened, "I am older than you, so rightfully, you should be calling me ’brother’!"

"Hmph, we are of the same generation, so it isn’t about age. It’s about who has the stronger fist that will decide who gets to be the leader!" Zhao Hongcheng again gestured with his thumb, "I am the strongest, so naturally, I’m your brother, right?"

"Yes, Brother Cheng!" the other seven youths exclaimed loudly.

Zhou Heng shook his head, "You are no match for me!"

The youth was indeed extraordinary, having reached the peak of Land Cleaving’s Third Layer Heaven, but let alone the distance to Open Heaven, even reaching Open Heaven, he was far from being Zhou Heng’s match.

"Even more arrogant than me!" Zhao Hongcheng huffed, "But strength is proven through combat, not boast. Zhou Heng, don’t think that just because you survived the Family Head’s single finger strike without dying that you’re something special. You should know he was holding back!"

Zhou Heng actually had a favorable impression of these youths, seeing in them a rare kinship within major families. He smiled and asked, "Then how should I prove that I’m more formidable than you all?"

"If you can withstand ten of my punches, that’ll show you’ve got some skills!" Zhao Hongcheng shouted, suddenly throwing a punch, "Start!"

Boom!

With his fist thrusting forward, the force of the punch tore through the air, the sonic boom relentless.

Zhou Heng raised his hand and grabbed Zhao Hongcheng’s wrist firmly, stopping the punch just an inch from his face.

"Finger Strike!" Zhao Hongcheng roared, fingers splayed as he flicked them towards Zhou Heng’s face. "Ah!" He instantly screamed in pain, his face twitching, "It hurts, it hurts! Let go! Brother Heng, let go!"

Zhou Heng’s brutal strength was truly terrifying, and just by tightening his fingers, he caused Zhao Hongcheng great agony, so much so that tears were about to stream down his face.

"Cheng bro, how did you lose in one move?"

"Fight again!"

The other youths shouted, one after another. Although they saw Zhou Heng as one of their own, there were many subgroups within their own circle, and Zhou Heng hadn’t yet been integrated into theirs. Naturally, they didn’t want to see their leader defeated.

"Fight what!" Zhao Hongcheng glared at them all, "Brother Heng is in the Heaven-Opening Realm, all of us together wouldn’t even match up to one of his fingers!"

This youngster was indeed outspoken, realizing he was outmatched, he instantly kept calling "Brother Heng" nonstop, proving himself to be a clever spirit. He didn’t become arrogant because of his family background and forget how much he was truly worth.

Zhou Heng, being of similar age, quickly integrated with them.

The Zhao Family, having been reborn from the ashes more than twenty years ago, was now an emerging powerhouse. Every great house in its early stages is filled with vitality and incredible unity; only after many generations does it succumb to power struggles and internal conflict.

Some crumble due to these internal conflicts.

The Zhao Family was now flourishing, in the best of times, which made Zhou Heng happily blend into such an environment. He had lost the wager and would have to stay with the Zhao Family for three years.

In the following days, Zhou Heng occasionally gave guidance on cultivation to Zhao Hongcheng and the other eight. Although he didn’t practice the Zhao Family’s martial techniques, he possessed the profound wisdom formed by the Sky-soaring Nine Forms. Each insight he provided was extremely precious to Zhao Hongcheng and the others.

They had happily accepted this "Brother Heng" and held immense respect for him.

A few days later, Zhao Hongcheng, looking dejected, came to find Zhou Heng alone and asked, "Brother Heng, do you have any spirit stones?"

"How many do you need?" Zhou Heng inquired.

"The more the better!" he said, looking at Zhou Heng with hope.

Spirit stones are both a resource for cultivation and the currency amongst martial artists. The Zhao Family strictly regulated their clan members’ expenses. They were very generous with spirit stones used for cultivation but would never let clan members develop a habit of spending lavishly.

This was the frugality of a rising powerhouse; otherwise, after a few generations, a culture of indulgence would corrupt every clan member. After all, isn’t gaining power through martial artist cultivation just a means to an end? To enjoy life, right?

Zhou Heng watched him, continuing to ask, "What do you need the spirit stones for?"

"To buy fighting beasts!" Zhao Hongcheng answered straightforwardly.

"Fighting beasts?"

"Oh, Brother Heng, you’ve just arrived in the Imperial Capital, so you don’t know what fighting beasts are!" Zhao Hongcheng nodded, then explained, "Fighting beasts are specifically wild beasts, demon beasts, bred for combat! Of course, the one I want to buy is definitely a demon beast, and it has to be at least of the Initial Separation Realm!"

Bright Moon Country has enjoyed countless years of glory, and the Empire long lost its drive for progress, indulging instead in the degenerate enjoyment of luxury. Fighting beasts here were not like those in the Beast Fighting Arena of Cold Blue Country, where various demon beasts fought each other to the death. Here, fighting beasts have become an industry, extremely popular and coveted.

Fighting beasts were specially raised, and if someone’s beast proved invincible, the owner would also receive fervent admiration.

Everyone in the Imperial Capital, from top to bottom, liked fighting beasts, and the vast majority had their own. Even a newly emerged powerhouse like the Zhao Family was no exception, with many clan members raising fighting beasts privately.

That’s because winning with a fighting beast could bring in a prize, and naturally, no one would dislike an activity that provided both pleasure and an extra source of income.

Zhao Hongcheng had a very powerful fighting beast, but it had been soundly defeated a few days ago, killed by an opponent’s beast. Therefore, he wanted to buy a new one to exact his revenge!

"Ying Chuchen?" A chill flashed in Zhou Heng’s eyes, "Is the person you want to defeat from the Ying Family?"

"Yes!" Zhao Hongcheng nodded, "And, and..."

He hemmed and hawed, and it took a while for Zhou Heng to pry the truth out of him. It turned out that this issue also involved a third person—Bai Feifei.

Bai Feifei was the young princess of the Bai Family, one of the three great houses in Bright Moon. Only seventeen years old, she was exceptionally talented within the Bai Family. Not only that, she was ravishingly beautiful, the object of countless young men’s admiration in the Imperial Capital.

Zhao Hongcheng and Ying Chuchen were both pursuing Bai Feifei, and fighting beasts were a means for both impressing her and edging each other out.(To be continued. If you like this book, please vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)