Volume 1, Chapter 120 – Shen Tianlan

Gu Rentong’s feelings were complicated. No matter who it is, having someone suddenly step in right as you’re about to achieve your goal never feels good.

Let alone when the thing crashing in isn’t just a stick in the spokes, but a pillar holding up the heavens.

Shen Tianlan was only twenty-six years old. He was the last disciple personally taken in across generations by Lei Wuji, the founding ancestor of Sky Thunder Hall.

Born with a Thunder Spirit Body, he had only been accepted into Lei Wuji’s tutelage at the age of eighteen. Up to now, he had been cultivating for no more than eight years.

Standing beside him was Lei Chen, the current Hall Master of Sky Thunder Hall. In terms of seniority, even he had to address Shen Tianlan as Martial Uncle.

Martial artists at the Earth Fiend Realm and above could already see his level clearly. Shen Tianlan was now at the peak of the ninth stage of the Innate Realm. His aura was restless, not because his foundation was unstable, but because he was at the brink of a breakthrough at any moment.

He might even be deliberately suppressing that breakthrough.

A Thunder Spirit Body was born able to command lightning. With Shen Tianlan’s current strength, plus the home-field advantage of Sky Thunder Hall, even an ordinary Earth Fiend Realm martial artist might not be able to say for sure how a fight with him would end.

Only now did everyone understand why the rewards for this year’s martial meet were so much richer than in previous years. This entire martial meet had been set up by Sky Thunder Hall for Shen Tianlan, for no other purpose than to build his reputation.

Shen Tianlan would take first place, claim the Seven-Treasure Enlightening Jade Dew as a matter of course, then ride its medicinal power to break through straight into the Earth Fiend Realm. That whole sequence would firmly establish his name.

A twenty-six-year-old Earth Fiend Realm martial artist…

Could it be that Sky Thunder Hall was about to produce another peak expert of the Myriad Phenomena Realm, or even the Nascent Soul Realm?

With that thought, everyone around the arena found their feelings a tangled mess, minds full of restless thoughts.

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Shi Lan was thoroughly put out. For no reason at all, she felt as if she’d been forced into unpaid overtime.

Below the stage, Hao Pojun’s expression remained calm, neither happy nor sad, while Zhao Jing’an wore a faintly gloating smile.

“If you don’t wish to fight, young lady, you can concede directly. The reward for second place in this year’s martial meet isn’t much weaker than the first-place prize in previous years.”

While Shi Lan was silent, Shen Tianlan suddenly spoke.

He had little interest in crossing hands with Shi Lan. Her cultivation was only at the seventh stage of the Innate Realm. Winning against her wouldn’t be anything to boast about.

Shi Lan snapped back to herself and said nothing. She simply summoned her war halberd, making her attitude clear.

“The young lady has just finished a match. Do you need a moment to adjust your breathing?” Lei Chen asked from the side.

“There’s no need. Let’s start.”

Shi Lan shook her head. The energy she had spent in the last match had already fully recovered in the time that had passed.

Seeing her answer, Lei Chen said nothing more and retreated to the edge of the arena with Elder Xin.

“Go bring the Enlightening Jade Dew. This match won’t take long.” Once he was standing still, Lei Chen waved a hand to Elder Xin as he spoke.

Elder Xin acknowledged and left.

Shi Lan tightened her grip on the halberd in her hand, deliberately ignoring Lei Chen’s words. She’d accepted this task and would see it done. There was only one last step left; all she had to do was give it everything she had.

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Shen Tianlan did not waste words either. He summoned a point of spiritual light that turned into a jade folding fan a bit over half a foot long, which he held in his hand.

“Swish—”

Shen Tianlan lifted the fan. A strand of lightning leaped from the fan’s spine and, in the blink of an eye, turned into a purple bolt as thick as an arm that smashed straight down toward Shi Lan.

The instant that bolt appeared, blinding arcs of electricity flashed across the clouds in unison, turning the previously dim arena bright as day.

Seeing Shen Tianlan make the first move, murmurs of discussion rose again around them.

“The Thunder Extreme Fan… I didn’t expect that artifact to end up in Shen Tianlan’s hands.”

“The Thunder Extreme Fan is already among the very best of exceptional-grade artifacts. Now, on the main peak of Sky Thunder Hall, with those clouds above storing ten thousand bolts of thunder to back it, it might well compete with spirit treasures.”

“This girl’s last two matches both had a bit of luck to them. This time won’t be nearly so easy.”

“Shen Tianlan is nothing like Zhao Jing’an. He was born a Thunder Spirit Body. All the thunder in the sky is his backing. Using her previous tactics is just wasted effort.”

“For this girl to lose, it’s only a matter of time.”

By the arena, Gu Rentong’s fingers twitched faintly within his sleeve. He sighed to himself and let go of any more thoughts about the Seven-Treasure Enlightening Jade Dew.

Facing the bolt of lightning barreling toward her, Shi Lan’s expression turned solemn. She leveled her war halberd at the thunder, fingers tightening around the butt of the shaft as true qi surged into the weapon. No aura flared along the halberd’s edge, only a cold, bone-white gleam.

Boom!

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The purple lightning slammed into the halberd’s blade, exploding into a spray of sparks as the shaft bent sharply, like a great bow being drawn.

Shi Lan slid half a step back. Her entire body tingled with numbness, a scorching heat spreading from her palms.

Gritting her teeth, she instantly stirred the vast true qi sealed within the halberd’s shaft.

“Break!”

The blade snapped back with a bang, and a purple arc of force less than a foot long exploded from the halberd’s edge.

Heaven-Scorching Three Halberds, First Halberd: Mortals Perish!

Of the twelve variations hidden within Mortals Perish, Shi Lan had only comprehended two so far. One of them was this “Stored Force.”

Stored Force meant gathering power to unleash it in one explosive instant, often producing nearly twice her usual strength.

The purple arc tore through the air, thrusting straight toward Shen Tianlan’s chest.

Shen Tianlan’s expression did not change. He raised his hand and opened a third of the fan’s surface. A layer of lightning flashed over it as he swung it to meet the incoming arc.

Bang!

Shen Tianlan felt his wrist go numb. The Thunder Extreme Fan in his hand nearly flew free, and his expression altered slightly.

Shi Lan circulated her blood and qi through a full cycle, and the scorching heat in her body dispersed.

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After taking a bolt of lightning head-on, she faintly felt as if something deep within her body had begun to awaken…

“Miss Shi Lan, I was looking down on you before. I hope you won’t hold it against me.”

After speaking, Shen Tianlan tightened his grip on the Thunder Extreme Fan and leaped into the air, coming to a stop above the arena as he slowly unfurled the entire fan.

Lines of divine patterns emerged along the fan’s surface. In the clouds overhead, lightning began to gather.

All at once, a deafening crash of thunder erupted. The gathered lightning condensed into a sphere of light nearly a zhang across that dropped from the sky, engulfing Shen Tianlan.

Bathed in lightning, he looked like a thunder god descended. His pupils filled with silver arcs, and the lightning-shaped mark on his forehead shone brilliantly. His already formidable aura began to surge higher once more.

The Thunder Extreme Fan flew from Shen Tianlan’s hand toward the clouds above. It expanded with the wind, and in an instant became a giant fan over three zhang long. The divine patterns on the fan’s surface stood out clearly, its terrifying presence pressing down over the entire peak.

Shi Lan looked up at the sky, her body trembling. Her blood and qi roared like waves within her. That earlier bolt of lightning felt as if it had ignited her blood, and her Innate true qi was on the verge of bursting out of her body.

A strange, fierce intent rose in her heart. A craving for battle surged up from the depths of her being, almost impossible to restrain.

Expression cold, Shen Tianlan lifted his hand to point at the Thunder Extreme Fan in the clouds and let out a long howl at the sky:

“Heavenly Thunder Summoning—bring the thunder!”