Fate-Defying Demon Emperor

Zhao Ming was so excited he felt he could fly.

Su Han had punched him once before, a slight that Zhao Ming had nursed as a grudge ever since, constantly plotting his revenge. He had even spoken ill of Su Han among the other Sons of the Sequence, but those were merely empty words. What he truly craved was an opportunity to face Su Han one-on-one and eliminate him. That wish materialized the moment he entered the Dragon Palace Ruins. How could he not be thrilled? How could he not burst into manic laughter?

”Die for me!”

Zhao Ming’s hand shot out, grasping the Nether Long Spear. Black Death Qi swirled around the weapon, giving it the aura of the legendary Nether God Spear as it thrust directly at Su Han with the stench of death.

Zhao Ming was a powerhouse at the Fifth Layer of the Divine Power Realm, nearly an entire Great Realm higher than Su Han. Even without manifesting his Physique, his Spiritual Energy was ten times more concentrated. As he thrust his spear, the air cracked with a mournful howl, like the wail of a fierce ghost that made one’s scalp tingle. The terrifying might pierced the air like a black bolt of lightning, heading straight for Su Han’s head.

”Ghostly Face Mask!”

Su Han showed no fear, nor did he retreat. He simply reached out, grabbed the Ghostly Face Mask, and donned it. Instantly, his aura surged, reaching the Ninth Layer of the Physique Realm.

”Fifth move: Heavenly Lightning Strike!”

Reaching out, he summoned the Black Blade and immediately unleashed the Thunderbolt Seven Absolute Slashes. Heaven and earth resonated with the attack. Even within the Dragon Palace Ruins, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking directly toward Zhao Ming.

Zhao Ming possessed the Nether King’s Body and cultivated the Nether Attribute, making him inherently wary of supremely firm and Yang energies like thunderbolts and flames.

BOOM!

The long spear and the Black Blade collided. Death Qi and Thunder Light intertwined and erupted in a terrifying blast, unleashing a shockwave of energy. The explosion sent sand and stone flying, shredded nearby vegetation to splinters, and violently roiled the air. However, because the earth and mountains in this place were ten times harder than in the outside world, the strike did not cause the heavens to collapse and the earth to split asunder.

SKID, SKID, SKID!

Su Han retreated seven steps before he managed to steady himself, whereas Zhao Ming had only been forced back one step. The gap in their Realms was immense; even with the Ghostly Face Mask, Su Han could only narrow the difference, not bridge it entirely.

However, Zhao Ming was deeply dissatisfied that his spear had failed to grievously wound or kill Su Han, and a gloomy expression darkened his face. Zhao Ming was not just a Fifth-Layer Divine Power Realm expert; he also possessed the Nether King’s Body and was a prodigy ranked eighty-first on the Fiendish Talent List. As for Su Han, he was merely in the Physique Realm—a country bumpkin from some backwater.

Zhao Ming had an extremely high opinion of himself and was incredibly proud. He had never once taken Su Han seriously. His failure to crush Su Han outright now filled him with rage and shame.

”Earth Rank High Level Martial Technique: Ambush from All Sides!”

Furious, Zhao Ming unleashed a torrent of dense Death Qi from his body, pouring it all into the Nether Long Spear. This ignited the Dao Rhyme within the weapon, causing the air to churn as the Death Qi grew thick and suffocating.

HISS!

Gripping the Nether Long Spear, Zhao Ming thrust out violently. In an instant, hundreds, even thousands, of phantoms filled the space between heaven and earth. These phantoms were all images of the Nether Long Spear, arrayed in every direction—above, below, left, and right—completely surrounding Su Han and leaving him no room to escape. Of course, the phantoms were illusory; only one was real. But no one could tell which one, and to be struck by it meant certain death.

”Nine Heavens Eye!”

An ordinary person would have found it impossible to identify the real spear among the thousands of phantoms, but Su Han possessed the Nine Heavens Eye. He activated it at once, piercing through the illusion and discerning the truth. However, he did not strike back directly. Instead, he gripped his Black Blade and slashed toward a completely different direction.

”You fell for it!”

Zhao Ming’s eyes gleamed with triumphant surprise. He brandished the true Nether Long Spear and lunged, aiming straight for the back of Su Han’s head. If this strike landed, even with Su Han’s Crystallization of the Holy Body, it would spell certain death.

As expected, the Nether Long Spear precisely pierced the back of Su Han’s skull, running him clean through. But Zhao Ming’s joy turned to shock. Su Han didn’t bleed, and the spear felt no resistance whatsoever.

Damn it, it’s a trap!

Though arrogant, Zhao Ming was still the Seventh Sequence, a warrior who had clawed his way through countless battles. He instantly realized he’d been tricked, but it was a step too late.

”Divine Prohibition Heavenly Method!”

Su Han swiftly executed the technique, instantly casting five minor Divine Prohibitions on Zhao Ming. Caught completely off guard, Zhao Ming was unable to react and found himself immobilized for one crucial second.

And that one second was enough to turn the tide of battle.

”Origin Technique: Heavier Than Tai Mount!”

”Origin Technique: Myriad Encompassing Heavenly Attraction!”

In the blink of an eye, Su Han unleashed two great Origin Techniques in succession. They created a powerful gravitational field that ensnared Zhao Ming, making him feel as if he were trapped in a quagmire.

”Golden Emperor Tanyang Fist!”

Su Han was already wearing the Dragon Silkworm Silk Gloves. Combined with the Physical Strength he had gained from devouring the Mountain-Subduing Sacred Body, this punch wielded a terrifying force of two billion pounds.

Golden Qi-Blood surged within him as his 128 Great Luo Golden Bones shone with a dazzling brilliance, rich with Dao Rhyme and embodying the concept of Vajra Undying. Further augmented by the Fight Character Secret, this punch was more fearsome than any he had ever thrown.

BOOM!

The punch shot forward with surging power, blasting the air before it into a vacuum. The golden fist was like a sun pushing across the sky, unstoppable. Behind Su Han, the Golden Emperor Phantom manifested and threw an identical punch. It was like the strike of a superhuman hero, its might terrifying and its power world-shaking.

Although Zhao Ming was of a higher Realm and possessed the Nether King’s Body, his physical prowess was no match for Su Han’s. Seeing the Golden Fist Radiance rapidly approaching, his hair stood on end and his heart nearly stopped.

”Origin Technique: Nether King’s Protection!”

The punch came too fast. Weighed down by the gravitational field, Zhao Ming had no time to use any other abilities. He could only channel his Nether King’s Body to its absolute limit and deploy its Origin Technique. A dense cloud of Death Qi erupted, forming a black fog that enveloped him. The fog swirled, sketching the phantom of the Nether King, a formidable defense.

BANG!

The Golden Fist Radiance descended, colliding with the black fog. The punch’s force was so immense that the moment they made contact, the black fog was instantly blasted apart, thunderously dispersing. The defense was shattered in the blink of an eye.

Zhao Ming’s pupils constricted. He barely had time to throw the Nether Long Spear horizontally in front of him before the Golden Fist Radiance slammed into it.

An unimaginable, colossal force smashed into him. Zhao Ming felt his ribs snap as his internal organs threatened to rupture from the compression. In the next moment, the Nether Long Spear was torn from his grasp and sent flying. He himself was launched backward by the force of the punch, crashing into the massive boulder where the Dragon Blood Herb grew.

With a deafening crash, the boulder shattered into countless pieces. Zhao Ming lay amidst the rubble, bleeding from all seven orifices, his gaze vacant. He was gravely wounded and on the brink of death.

This one punch had cost him half his life