Lord of Prayer

Although Han Danqing had completely given up and fled, refusing to get involved in this mess any further, he at least did one good thing before leaving. He took Yano down with him in a one-for-one trade, eliminating one of their troubles.

Among those remaining, Chengzi represented the Sin of Greed, Liu Ling the Sin of Lust, Yan Wu the Sin of Wrath, and Yao Hu the Sin of Pride.

Among them, Yan Wu was the biggest wildcard—a powder keg ready to explode at the slightest provocation. A simple trick was all it would take for his rage to overwhelm his reason, to be completely dominated by Anger, and even turn against his own “teammates.”

Yao Hu’s arrogance was the perfect catalyst.

The prideful are haughty, viewing everything with disdainful indifference. To the wrathful, this pride was seen as contempt and a personal insult.

The moment he saw Yao Hu’s arrogant and indifferent posture, Yan Wu felt a visceral rage explode in his chest, burning fiercely. The man looked ready to detonate from sheer fury!

With Zhou Chen fanning the flames from the sidelines and Yao Hu’s condescending words, Yan Wu could finally no longer contain his towering rage. Without warning, tangible flames of Anger erupted from his body, turning his pupils red. Veins bulged on his forehead as his expression twisted in fury. With an enraged roar, he swung his Warhammer at Yao Hu.

’Oh? He managed to develop a derivative Ability at a time like this?’

Seeing the tangible flames of Anger burning on Yan Wu, Yao Hu’s interest was slightly piqued. Arcing Thunder Magnetic Light surrounded his Magnetic Gloves as electric currents from the magnetic field rapidly spread out, forming a Thunder Magnetic Realm.

“Magnetic Field Rotation—Rise!”

BOOM! A huge chunk of the ground was lifted into the air out of nowhere by the Thunder Magnetic Power. The rampaging Yan Wu was launched airborne, momentarily losing his center of gravity.

The next instant, a shadow fell over him. Yao Hu had appeared overhead, looking down with an arrogant gaze. He clenched his fist, producing the sound of grinding steel as sparks flew. His entire fist became as bright and searingly hot as red-hot iron.

—Extraordinary Ability: Vajra Transformation!

Passive Ability: Strengthens the user’s physique.

Active Ability: Hardens all muscles in the body and generates terrifyingly high temperatures capable of melting steel.

BANG!

The searing, hardened fist punched downward. A massive boom erupted as a terrifying shockwave spread out in all directions.

A suit of Purple Gold Armor materialized around Yan Wu. It was a defensive Artifact he had forged during the first round of the competition. However, under the terrifying Power of Yao Hu’s punch, this heavy Alloy Armor was effortlessly shattered, exploding into countless flying fragments.

He shot toward the ground like a rubber ball, carrying immense impact force, then immediately bounced back up to meet Yao Hu’s descending fist once more.

This time, Yan Wu roared in fury and met the blow head-on with his Warhammer.

Fist and hammer collided, yet the sound was that of steel striking steel. A violent hurricane of force erupted from the point of impact, instantly clearing the air of all dirt, stone, and dust.

Yan Wu was smashed back toward the ground. The overwhelming Power behind the punch made it impossible for him to adjust his posture in time, and he slammed into the earth, creating a large crater.

Yao Hu landed heavily, stomping a foot down into the crater. Yan Wu’s muscles bulged, and he shot out of the crater in an instant, rolling several meters away before regaining his footing.

The ground trembled from the stomp. Yao Hu’s assault was relentless. His Magnetic Gloves operated at full power, and with a casual wave of his hand, he used Thunder Magnetic Power to form an immense Sword Force—a several-meter-long Thunder Magnetic Celestial Blade that slashed down toward Yan Wu.

Yan Wu let out a thunderous roar. His muscles bulged another size, his face contorting with rage like a furious beast. His Warhammer began to glow with surging lightning as he mustered all his strength and smashed it toward the Thunder Magnetic Celestial Blade.

Explosion!

The collision of lightning against lightning erupted with astonishing power. In an instant, the entire street was engulfed in a blinding flash of light. The Thunder Magnetic Blade Force was shattered head-on by pure, unadulterated Power.

Amidst the roar of the thunderous explosion, the wrathful Yan Wu stepped forward. His blood-red eyes burned with raging flames, his will now completely dominated by Anger.

Yao Hu commented indifferently:

“To be able to take that blow with only seventy percent of your strength… You’re not bad.

But that’s all. I will kill you within ten moves.”

A vein throbbed on Yan Wu’s temple. The fury in his heart left him unable to speak; the only thought remaining was to eliminate Yao Hu.

Suddenly, both men moved at the same time, rushing toward each other. Their speed was incredible as they engaged in a series of ferocious clashes, each impact erupting with a boom like muffled thunder.

The visceral, flesh-on-flesh battle between the two Strength Type Ascenders had countless viewers in front of their screens roaring with excitement, completely absorbed by the thrilling fight.

’He’s actually this strong…’

On the rooftop, Zhou Chen was startled. He mentally raised Yao Hu’s danger Level by several notches.

That guy Yao Hu was clearly only a Tier Two, but from start to finish, he gave off the impression of a Tier Three. Before the Sword Forging Competition even began, he had specifically killed two Tier Three Ascenders as a show of force. He was absurdly powerful.

Furthermore, from the start of the competition until now, Yao Hu hadn’t used or forged any Artifacts other than his Magnetic Gloves. He had steamrolled his way through purely with his overwhelming raw power.

Now, facing a Yan Wu who was only at seventy percent of his strength, Yao Hu still seemed to be holding back. He could probably kill him with ease within ten moves.

One had to know, not a single other contestant in this competition would be confident enough to say they could kill a seventy-percent-strength Yan Wu within ten moves. This just showed how much confidence Yao Hu had in his own power.

Zhou Chen’s expression turned serious. He knew he didn’t have much time and had to hurry.

He looked toward Liu Ling, who was charging at him with her Great Halberd. In a flash of fire, he appeared behind her, but Liu Ling seemed to have anticipated it. She spun around abruptly in mid-air, her Great Halberd sweeping horizontally in an arc like a sliver of the cold moon.