Apotheosis – Ascension to Godhood

Chapter 439: Any Other Volunteers

The levels of cultivation had significant differences in terms of power and strength. The cultivators at the pinnacle of the Illuminating Soul Realm were far more powerful and stronger than the third grade of the same Realm.

Hence, the practitioners who had reached the pinnacle of the Illuminating Soul Realm had rushed to Zen in high confidence.

Since they had already reached such a cultivation level, they thought that catching a third-grade practitioner like Zen would be a piece of cake.

It was an easy way to make contributions, hence, everyone rushed to catch Zen.

When Fred faced Bevis of the Mysterious Luna Hall, others took it as an opportunity to chase down and attack Zen simultaneously.

Among those who were attacking Zen, Mason was swiftest and most vicious. He didn't care whether Zen would be injured or broken. If he could still breath and talk, that would be fine. He vowed to catch and take Zen back no matter what it could cost him.

Mason took the initiative and started the attack. As the others saw this, they could do nothing but feel bad for Zen. They knew that once Mason put his heart into something, he would surely do anything to get it done. And now that he was determined to catch Zen, the latter could only wish to see another day. If Zen got hit by Mason's attack, he could lose his legs and might not be able to walk again…

However, something unexpected happened.

Before anyone could realize what was happening, Zen had already hit Mason with one blow. The blow was so powerful that Mason flew out. He hit on several houses and knocked them down before finally hitting the ground. He was badly injured that even if his wounds healed, it might take half a year to completely recover.

And with the time he needed to fully recover, he might miss his chance to participate in the upcoming Martial Arts Contest.

Mason was considered one of the best practitioners who had reached the pinnacle of Illuminating Soul Realm. Although Fred and some other practitioners were better than Mason, he still ranked fourth among them.

They didn't expect that he could be defeated by someone who was in the third grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm. But seeing that he was easily knocked down by Zen with just one blow, it created an instant fear among the rest of the practitioners. Their confidence gradually faded that no one dared to make the next move.

They still couldn't understand how Zen did it considering that Mason's strength and power were beyond his.

Fred was also stunned to see how Zen just easily knocked down Mason with just one blow.

He knew Zen better than anyone who was chasing Zen right now. He had witnessed Zen fight with other practitioners at Cloud Hall. Zen's courage in challenging practitioners in the Elite House had piqued Fred's interest. He was only a nature creature then, but he already had that confidence in himself. The Elite House disciples had taken Zen's confidence as arrogance and they were offended by his lack of respect towards those who had reached a higher level of cultivation.

But later, Fred had learned from a trusted source that Zen didn't want to challenge the Elite House disciples just because he felt like it. He wasn't acting on his free will. The so-called “challenge” was designed by the head of Cloud Hall.

But whether it was arrogance or confidence, his competence wasn't something anyone could underestimate. It was indeed rare for a nature creature to challenge Illuminating Soul Realm disciples, but Zen wasn't the first one to do so. However, the disciples that Zen had challenged were not ordinary Illuminating Soul Realm practitioners. They were the disciples of Elite House–the creme of the crop. They were the chosen few from over ten thousand practitioners in Cloud Hall.

No one expected that a nature creature would ever challenge the disciples from Elite House.

However, after Zen won many challenges, he suddenly disappeared, and no one knew where he went.

The chief rune master was devastated and angry at the turn of events that he quarreled with the head of the hall several times and insisted on finding Zen back.

The Cloud Hall had sent someone to look for Zen. No rock was left unturned, but to no avail. Zen was out of radar. Everyone had lost hope in finding him.

Of all places, Fred didn't expect to see Zen again in the Dragon Soar Arena. The last time he had seen Zen, the latter was only a nature creature. But now, Zen had already reached the third grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm. Fred wasn't surprised at how strong Zen became, but he was sure that the latter had a lower cultivation base than Mason. But despite that, Zen was still able to inflict great damages to Mason.

'What happened to him in the past three months? How was he able to improve so much in a short time? It's amazing! He's really an interesting subject. It's either his competence has significantly improved or the practitioners at the pinnacle of the Illuminating Soul Realm have become weak. Either, Zen has proved his incredible strength once more!' Fred wondered. He could defeat Mason himself, but not with just one blow as Zen did.

Back in the day when Fred was still in the Elite House, he had already sensed something different in Zen. Fred had seen the great potential in Zen and believed that the latter was no ordinary disciple. He had foreseen that Zen would outperform him in the next three or five years.

Fred was right on everything about Zen. However, it didn't take Zen three or five years to do it. Just after three months, Zen was able to improve himself. And now, he had become what Fred had thought of him.

Fred had always believed in the spirit of martial arts. But just now, he started to doubt it. He felt frustrated to see Zen defeating Mason so easily, but there was nothing he could do but to bury his frustration in silence.

When Mason finally hit the ground unconscious, Zen glanced at the rest of the practitioners in front of him. He could see the fear in their eyes and knew that no one would dare to attack him. But he continued to taunt them,“Any other volunteers? I'm just warming up!”

Bevis of the Mysterious Luna Hall was speechless. He froze and felt cold sweats coming out from his body.

He had just missed the fate that Mason had suffered. If it weren't for Fred who blocked his attack aimed at Zen, he might be the one knocked down by Zen. He wouldn't be able to dodge that attack. 'What on earth was that? What kind of fist attack technique did he use on Mason and how was it so powerful?' ɌаNо𝐛ЕṦ

Bevis was left confused.

Bevis was smart, but it was only natural that he couldn't completely comprehend the fight attack technique that Zen had used on Mason.

The Virtual Tribulation Realm masters like Saint Morphens even needed to destabilize the space before using the Mystical Pace, but he was still unable to comprehend the complete first level of Space Law. Neither the broken stone carving on the Cloud Road nor the one in the Cloud Hall was the complete Space Law! Hence, no practitioner was able to comprehend the complete first level of Space Law.

Zen, on the other hand, had completely comprehended the first level of Space Law when he was in the Upper World.

In the Upper World, the best cultivation resources were within Zen's reach. The cultivation resources in the Upper World were much better than those in the Central Region. It was also the reason why many high-ranking practitioners from the Central Region wanted to go to Dragon Soar Arena.

Afraid of what might happen to them, no practitioner dared to challenge Zen. They all took a step back in the hopes of avoiding the same fate as Mason. Catching Zen would be extremely beneficial for them however, they would be putting their lives on the line by doing so. They knew that even if they could catch Zen, they wouldn't be able to enjoy the fruit of their labor if they were dead.

“Zen, it's a pleasant surprise to see you here! Of all places, I didn't expect we'd meet again in Dragon Soar Arena. I should tell you that our Cloud Hall leader has gone crazy looking for you!” Fred said with a smile. Despite the trouble he had caused the head of Cloud Hall, Fred was sure that the latter would be so proud to know that one of her disciples had entered the Dragon Soar Arena. It would be the best thing that could happen to Cloud Hall.

“I know,” Zen nodded. He immediately recognized Fred. They had met back when he was still in the Elite House. “Can you tell me where am I? How come the Dragon Soar Arena has been moved here?” he asked.

It had been a long time since Zen came into the Dragon Soar Arena. He noticed the many gorgeous buildings in the nearby area and thought that he might be in a big city right now.

Fred could understand the confusion that Zen was in now, but there was not the time for him to answer his question. He said,“It's a long story. For now, let's leave here right now. Our leader is in the Oracle City, too.”

“Right! Let's go!” Zen said in agreement. When they were about to leave, Zen noticed that though the practitioners had stopped attacking him, they still didn't want to let him go. They were still blocking Zen's exit. It was starting to get annoying for Zen, but before he could lose his temper, he calmed himself down. “Don't do anything foolish or I won't hesitate to kill you all!” he threatened.

The practitioners from Bloodwood Cliff, Black Mountain Sect, Ethereal Spirit Sect, and other grade four sects were already scared of Zen after he easily defeated Mason. However, it didn't mean that they would just give up. Since they could not afford to catch him, they could at least not let him go at any cost.

They could buy time until reinforcement could come.

With the upcoming Martial Arts Contest, the masters and disciples of different sects had gathered in Oracle City. While Zen was busy with Mason, someone had secretly burned the message rune and sent the message out. Once the reinforcements had arrived, it would be difficult for Zen to escape. These practitioners believed that Zen would be no match for either the Internal Elixir Realm masters or the Virtual Tribulation Realm masters.

“Everyone, listen up! Zen is a disciple in Cloud Hall. If you treasure your lives, you'd make way for him. Or suffer the consequence…” Fred said coldly.

Fred chose to stay neutral at the beginning because he didn't know that Zen was in the Dragon Soar Arena. But now that he and Zen had finally met, he wouldn't just standby anymore. Anyone who dared to challenge Zen was challenging the Cloud Hall.

Though fear in the practitioners had intensified, no one backed down.

“I guess you all chose to die! I'll make it quick!” Zen shouted. He didn't want to waste any more time in this place. He had a rough time to come back to the Central Region. Now that he was about to step out of the Dragon Soar Arena, he wouldn't let anyone stand in his way. But these practitioners were getting into his nerves and they left him no choice but to fight. When he raised his leg, space began to vibrate. Then like a ghost, Zen floated away.

Now, Zen was completely out of the Dragon Soar Arena. He was about to attack the practitioners who were blocking his way when he suddenly heard a voice. The voice said,“Don't be such a big mouth! Maybe the one to be killed is nobody, but you!”

The voice was sweet and gentle that it made Zen stop momentarily.