Chapter 163: Chapter 157 Sky Shaking Bow Shocks Immortals【Seeking Subscription Seeking Monthly Ticket】_1
Sha Chen directly swung the Giant Que Sword, sending Kui Mulang flying with a strike. Kui Mulang’s face turned unsightly, his gaze dark and cold. Although he was sent flying, he hadn’t suffered significant injury. After all, his physical body was very powerful, and his Mana was profound. It was hardly possible for Sha Chen to defeat him in a single move. Furthermore, Sha Chen hadn’t even used his full strength; of course, Kui Mulang didn’t know this. He simply assumed this was all Sha Chen could muster—capable of sending him flying, but nothing more.
Kui Mulang fell back, widening the distance between himself and Sha Chen. His several favored subordinates had been shot dead by Sha Chen, and Tianpeng had already retreated to Sha Chen’s side. If Kui Mulang wanted to do anything, he had to confront Sha Chen directly. He hurriedly gathered his remaining subordinates and retreated to the top of a mountain over a hundred miles from the Flowing Sand River, looking back with an unsightly expression. His stature remained colossal, like a mountain, as he looked down towards Sha Chen by the Flowing Sand River.
"How can his strength be so formidable?" Kui Mulang gritted his teeth and seethed.
The eight Celestial Gods of the Thunder Department in the sky were also stunned. They knew Sha Chen was formidable, capable of subduing Wen Zhong with a single move. But they also knew that Kui Mulang, bearing the karma of the Divine Enthronement catastrophe, was said to be invincible below the Da Luo realm. He was very likely at the Da Luo level already. Yet, he was no match for Sha Chen and had been overpowered in a single move. Most importantly, the eight Celestial Gods of the Thunder Department had even created a distraction for Sha Chen, with thunderbolts continuously bombarding him. For an ordinary person, Kui Mulang might not even have needed to act; the heavenly thunder alone could have killed them. But Sha Chen was completely unaffected; it even seemed as if he enjoyed bathing in the thunderbolts. They were shaken to the core, full of disbelief.
How is this possible? How can Sha Chen be so powerful, completely unafraid of heavenly thunder? And to think he could battle Kui Mulang, not only defeating him but forcing him to retreat to a mountain over a hundred miles away, too scared to come closer!
Sha Chen glanced at the immortals in the sky and said emotionlessly, "Kui Mulang is an immortal who descended to become a demon, wreaking havoc. You knew this but didn’t stop him; instead, you aided the tyrant. Sooner or later, I will hold you accountable for this."
The Celestial Gods from the Thunder Department exchanged unsightly glances, unsure of what to do. Taoist Master Gou tried to console them, "Don’t worry. He’s no longer a Celestial God; he has no right to hold us accountable." He then shouted loudly, "Sha Chen, today’s divine punishment isn’t over yet! Are you prepared to bear it?"
Sha Chen let out a cold laugh. "Very well. You’re good at avoiding the important and focusing on the trivial. You’ll eventually pay the price for today." Then he turned to go back to the Flowing Sand River Cave.
Taoist Master Gou bellowed, "Sha Chen, you are not allowed to leave! We must watch you bear the thunder punishment!"
Sha Chen replied, "You unleash your thunder. Must I endure the punishment wherever you wish me to?"
If I choose to bear it, I will. If I don’t, even if Wen Zhong himself were to strike with thunder, it would be useless. It was only because the thunder punishment could strengthen his physical body that he accepted it at all; otherwise, the Thunder Department was merely for show before him.
As for being unaffected earlier, he wasn’t actually tempering his physique. Tempering the body was a state of Cultivation that could affect combat power. Just now, Sha Chen had used the Power of Five Elements Transmutation to transform the thunderbolts’ energy into Divine Power, making the Mana within his body even more complete. He was getting closer and closer to the Da Luo realm.
As Sha Chen was about to open his cave and return, completely ignoring the Thunder Department, Taoist Master Gou and the others were infuriated. Previously, Sha Chen could have been described as submissive, admitting to faults and accepting punishment. But now, he dared to be so audacious and disrespectful towards them.
Yet, they simply didn’t remember that Sha Chen had never truly been submissive to them. His previous admissions and acceptance of punishment were only because he didn’t want to offend the Heavenly Court and felt the timing wasn’t right—nothing more. Furthermore, he hadn’t emerged from the cave before simply because he was concerned about possible ambushes outside. If there had been anyone outside powerful enough to threaten him, he wouldn’t have appeared. But this time there wasn’t, so naturally, he had taken forceful action. To him, the Thunder Department was a matter of respect: if he gave them face, they were Thunder Gods; if not, they were mere birdmen.
However, Sha Chen, intending to return to his cave, stopped. He saw Kui Mulang lurking in the distance with his subordinates, ready to move at any opportune moment. It seemed that as soon as Sha Chen dared to open his cave, they would immediately rush over. Sha Chen knit his brows; he wouldn’t allow so many demons to enter his cave, even with his absolute confidence in killing them all. He simply would not let them in. This was because he was uncertain if those demons hid something unknown or if they might bring something into the cave capable of threatening him. That would be troubling. Therefore, he couldn’t easily open his cave to return now, lest he give Kui Mulang and the other demons a chance to invade.
However, Kui Mulang did not continue his attack. It seemed Kui Mulang already knew Sha Chen wouldn’t leave the Flowing Sand River; he wouldn’t even emerge completely from the water. Just showing half his body was already quite audacious of Sha Chen. Therefore, being so far apart, Kui Mulang felt very safe, able to advance or retreat as he pleased. He even sneered and ordered his subordinates to spread out, ready to strike at any opportunity.
"That lowly deity hides in the Flowing Sand River, timid as a mouse, afraid to leave the water! As long as we threaten him from out here and maintain this stalemate, we will eventually win."
"Heh heh, Sha Chen, if you refuse to come out, I’ll force you out! Once you can’t help but emerge, you’ll find the outside world so beautiful you won’t want to go back." Kui Mulang sneered, his eyes sparkling with malicious glee.
The Thunder Gods in the sky also seemed to notice this. They widened the distance, laughing gleefully as they watched the spectacle. Taoist Master Gou even said, "Let’s strike him with thunder for fun. Since he doesn’t dare go back, we’ll just blast him to death with thunder from out here!" The Celestials obeyed, launching thunder strikes and administering the divine punishment.
Tianpeng saw Sha Chen’s predicament and said, "Old Sha, what are you afraid of? With one leap, you could kill those demons!"
"When you made your move just now, I could tell you were holding back. Otherwise, that fellow Li Xiong would probably be gravely injured and near death by now."
Sha Chen stated, "I’m not leaving. Not one step."
Tianpeng pressed, "But why? The enemy is right before your eyes! Go and kill him!"
Sha Chen simply said, "I’m afraid."
Tianpeng was speechless. Your enemy is even more afraid of you!
He roared, "Afraid of what? I’ve been through countless battles overseas and never felt fear!"
Sha Chen glanced at him. "When you were tied up, you were the one yelling the loudest."
Tianpeng chuckled embarrassedly. "That was on purpose! I didn’t want to provoke that demon any further. Otherwise, my backbone is steel! I can withstand any beating or scolding without even frowning."
Sha Chen laughed dismissively, taking it as mere bluster.
Tianpeng then asked, "But still, if you refuse to leave, how are you going to kill the enemy right in front of you? Kui Mulang has some skill. If your divine ability attack goes through, he might dodge it, and if it doesn’t, the impact won’t be strong enough to harm him."
Sha Chen said, "A mere hundred miles is not a significant distance."
Tianpeng argued, "He can increase that distance even more! If you don’t leave the Flowing Sand River, you won’t be able to harm him."
No sooner had Tianpeng finished speaking than Sha Chen once again reached out his hand in a grasping motion, the Sky Shaking Bow materializing in his palm. He drew the bow, nocked an arrow, and released it.
WHOOSH!
A demon beside Kui Mulang was instantly blown apart.
Tianpeng was stunned. Shocked, he stammered, "Could it be? Is that the Sky Shaking Bow that belonged to Fairy Chang E’s dead husband? HISS... I didn’t look closely earlier. How did it end up in your hands?"
Sha Chen replied, "Perhaps it’s not just the Sky Shaking Bow that has ended up in my hands."
Tianpeng asked, "Could the Sun Shooting Arrows also be with you?"
Sha Chen said, "The other one."
Astonished, Tianpeng asked, "The other what?"
Sha Chen just smiled without speaking. Tianpeng gasped, a horrifying thought dawning on him. Could it be... Chang E... Fairy Chang E... has she already...?
Sha Chen ignored him, drawing the bow and nocking another arrow. Once an arrow was loosed, it found its mark; every shot killed a demon. The demons around Kui Mulang, no matter how they dodged or defended, were all shot dead. They were terrified. Even hiding behind Kui Mulang, Sha Chen’s cunning archery still managed to pick them off and blow them apart. Kui Mulang was furious and tried to resist and defend his remaining men. But his subordinates dwindled in number as Sha Chen easily shot them down.
The Celestials in the sky watched, shocked beyond belief. Taoist Master Gou was trembling with fear. "How does he have the Sky Shaking Bow? And how is his archery so formidable?" Suddenly, he felt that even this distance wasn’t safe. If Sha Chen decided to shoot him, he would likely die as well. He had already experienced the formidability of Sha Chen’s archery, and now, watching him kill others made it all the more vivid and terrifying.
Kui Mulang bellowed, "Don’t be afraid! The Sky Shaking Bow requires vital Qi and blood to draw, and the Primordial Spirit to lock on! He’s already used it so many times in a row; he must be a spent force, unable to draw the bow much longer!"
Then, an hour later, Sha Chen had drawn the bow three thousand times, killing all the demons around Kui Mulang. Kui Mulang was left utterly alone. Blood stained the mountaintop red beneath his feet, and flesh and skin hung from the branches. As for Kui Mulang, his legs trembled uncontrollably, his face twitching. His eyes reflected shock and horror, and the hand clutching his blade trembled slightly.
How can he be... so... powerful? Does he have endless strength?!