Chapter Eighty: Awakening

  With a loud crash, the Rising Sun Wind Thunder Sword and Zhang Kuang's fist collided. The purple electric light wrapped around the sword first retracted, then suddenly expanded, and as soon as it came into contact with the black aura on Zhang Kuang's fist, a dazzling light burst out, followed by a violent explosion that erupted between the two men.

  A burst of smoke and dust erupted between Li Yan and Zhang Feng, with an invisible force field expanding in a ring shape in all directions. The loose soil was blown into the air by this force, and then pushed outward together by the continuously expanding ring-shaped air wave. From a distance, it looked like a circular earth wall moving forward.

  Li Yan and Zhang Feng were the first to be affected, immediately blown away by the explosive force, involuntarily flying in opposite directions for hundreds of meters before stabilizing their figures.

  The two of them were not doing well, and the Eastern Overlord Tian and others who had escaped far away were even more miserable. The few of them now had not recovered their powers, they were only slightly stronger than ordinary humans, but the shockwave produced by the explosion was extremely fast, and in the blink of an eye it had caught up with them.

  A few people who hadn't recovered from their injuries encountered this force, and the outcome can be imagined. Fortunately, I saw that things weren't going well, so I secretly helped them out. Otherwise, these few people, including Tingting, would have all become resentful ghosts here.

  The grassland that had been ravaged by the explosion was once again a mess, and the earth mounds that had risen up during the chaos of heaven and earth were all flattened by the shockwave produced by this explosion.

  The two men who had cleared the area flew back, glaring at each other from a distance of tens of meters, but did not make another move.

  Li Yan's image was extremely wretched, his Tang suit had been torn to shreds in the previous explosion, and with the dust stirred up by the blast, he looked no different from a beggar, even his eyebrows and hair were dyed yellow.

  But compared to him, Zhang Kuang wasn't much better off either. The snow-white bone armor had been dyed a yellowish-brown color and was covered in fine cracks, looking like it wouldn't last much longer. Adding to that, he had lost an arm, making his appearance even more pitiful than Li Yan's. Li Yan glared fiercely at Zhang Kuang, who was right next to him, but in his heart, he couldn't help but feel a pang of pain. The thunderbolt had exploded directly in his hand, so the damage he suffered was naturally greater than Zhang Kuang's, who had quickly retreated after seeing that things weren't going well.

  Now he only feels his blood churning, his chest tight and suffocating, his whole body feeling like it's about to fall apart, every movement causing bone-piercing pain, let alone taking action again, even running away might be a problem.

  Zhang Feng stretched his muscles and bones, and in the midst of the crackling sounds of his joints, the dark energy that had been lingering around him suddenly surged forth, shooting straight up into the sky like a dark pillar. Even the clouds in the sky were dispersed by its power, and the air around him was filled with flying sand and pebbles, creating a dramatic scene reminiscent of a TV drama hero's entrance.

  After a series of intense battles, Zhang Kuang's understanding of the dark energy of the monster's origin finally reached a new level.

  "What method should I use to kill you?" Zhang Feng stretched his neck, smiled at Li Yan with a smile on his face. The dark energy around him slowly expanded and grew, like a black fog, and there were countless sharp wailing voices coming from it.

  "First break your limbs, then use your hands to tear off your flesh piece by piece?"

  Zhang Feng looked at Li Yan, and for a moment, his eyes flashed with a light that made Li Yan feel a chill run down his spine.

  "What? You don't like it? Then let's change to another one, maybe letting the Qingming worm have a good meal is not a bad choice!" As he spoke, Zhang Kuang flipped his left hand, and a ball of green mist immediately appeared in his palm. The green mist wriggled in his palm, emitting bursts of ear-piercing sounds that made people's teeth ache.

  Li Yan looked carefully and found that it was formed by countless small green insects gathering together, but because of their tiny size, they would be mistaken for a green mist at first glance.

  "You're crazy!" Li Yan shouted, his back already completely drenched in cold sweat. He had been cultivating for several hundred years, during which he had fought to the death with countless demons and monsters, but never once had he felt so clearly the approach of death.

  Zhang Feng's smiling face, paired with his cold and ruthless eyes, gave him an unprecedented sense of oppression, a feeling of trepidation in the face of death.

  "Am I crazy? No, no, my feeling is unprecedentedly good." Zhang laughed loudly with his head raised high, but there was not a hint of smile in his eyes. "I only now know what it means to have an exhilarating and refreshing feeling. Compared to this life that has power and can manipulate others' lives at will, I was previously living a useless life. Only this kind of life is the one I want."

  "How is it? Have you thought of which way to die?" Zhang's mad laughter suddenly stopped, his face suddenly sank, and he asked coldly.

  Li Yan remained silent. The massive explosion earlier had caused him to lose his grip, and even the Xuanri Fenglei Sword in his hand was blown away, leaving him unarmed. Now, as he listened to Zhang's words, which were increasingly filled with killing intent, it was clear that he was about to make a move. His gaze involuntarily shifted towards the Xuanri Fenglei Sword lying tens of meters away, and in his heart, he quietly sent a message to it: "Return to my side."

  Spiritual directive.

  The Rising Sun Wind Thunder Sword trembled slightly on the ground, just rising a few meters, and Zhang suddenly let out a loud shout: "Break!"

  Li Yan only felt a buzzing in his ears, the entire world seemed to be spinning around him, his chest was stuffy, and a bloody smell immediately gushed up from his throat. The Xuriang Fenglei sword paused slightly in mid-air before falling back to the ground with a clang.

  Zhang Feng glanced at the Xuri Sword with a faint gaze, then turned to Li Yan, his face smiling warmly as he asked, "What? Still not giving up, wanting to catch me off guard?" He smiled and wagged his finger, "I advise you to give up on that idea. Even if you retrieve that broken sword, with your current injuries, you're no match for me."

  Li Yan's heart sank, just now he was indeed planning to quietly summon the Xuri Fenglei Sword for a final blow, but unexpectedly it was seen through by Zhang Kuang, not only breaking his connection with the Xuri Fenglei Sword, but also giving him an extra hit, now he is wounded and unable to resist, just as Zhang Kuang said.

  Li Yan had been practicing for hundreds of years, experiencing over a hundred battles big and small, but he had never felt as helpless as he did today. His heart was filled with uncertainty and confusion when suddenly, a voice called out from beside him - "Zhang Feng!"

  Li Yan didn't dare to turn his head, fearing that Zhang Kuang would take advantage of his distraction and launch a sneak attack. If that happened, he wouldn't even have a chance to die with dignity. For now, he could only slightly tilt his eyes, keeping an eye on Zhang Kuang's movements while looking in the direction of the sound. That was when he discovered a girl running towards them - it was the same girl who had been lying unconscious beside Dongfang Baotian when Li Yan first arrived.

  Zhang Feng didn't take advantage of the opportunity to launch a sneak attack, instead he turned his face sideways, towards the girl who was running over, his expression calm and unreadable, it's unclear what he was thinking.

  Seeing him like this, Li Yan was shocked. The person in front of him had entered a demonic state, with a cruel and murderous nature. Having cultivated his true self for many years, how could he just stand by and watch an ordinary girl come to her death? At that moment, he didn't care if it would provoke Zhang Kuang's attack or not, and turned his head to shout at the girl: "Don't come over, this place is very dangerous!"

  The girl was stunned for a moment, and after a slight pause, she actually ran over again. Li was so anxious that he scratched his ears and cheeks, really hating to rush up and kick this ignorant girl out with one foot, but he didn't dare to act rashly.

  As he watched the girl running closer and closer, Li Yan could only sigh silently, thinking to himself: "Forget it, I've already warned her. She refused to listen to my advice, so it's just her fate. Let her die here then."

  "Zhang Feng, are you okay?" The girl rushed forward and exclaimed with surprise.

  Li Yan felt a slight sense of wonder in his heart, could it be that this girl and the demonized person in front of him were originally acquainted? However, he deeply knew that demonized people annihilate human nature, even if they were acquaintances, after being demonized, they probably wouldn't recognize each other anymore. Therefore, he could only turn his head away, unable to bear seeing her tragic state with flesh and blood flying everywhere.

  "Ah, how did you end up like this! You... your arm?" The girl only then discovered that Zhang Yue's right arm was gone and couldn't help but let out a sharp cry, her concern evident in her words.

  Zhang looked at her with a tilted head, his face expressionless, but the puzzled look in his eyes was very intense. In his heart, perhaps some memories of being an ordinary human still lingered, so he didn't immediately launch an attack, but instead looked at her in confusion.

  "Zhang is crazy!"

  That girl, also known as Tingting, called out again and was about to rush forward when Zhang's crazy eyes suddenly changed. With a swing of his left arm, a black light flashed like lightning, followed by a loud rumbling sound. A deep ditch immediately appeared in front of Tingting, almost affecting her where she stood.

  "Zhang Fēng?" Tingting, who had been shocked and sat down on the ground, gazed at Zhang Fēng with a bewildered expression as he turned his face away. Even the most foolish person could understand that the previous attack was not benevolent.

  "Little girl, he's already a possessed person, someone who has been taken over by an evil spirit will only become a bloodthirsty monster. His past life and friends have long been forgotten, now in his eyes, you're just a stranger. It's better to leave here quickly!" Seeing Tingting's sorrowful face, Li Yan, who was treating the wound beside her, couldn't bear it and hurriedly comforted her.

  "No, I don't believe he will forget me!" Tingting stood up and exclaimed excitedly, her lovely face already covered with sparkling tears.

  "I don't believe he would really hurt me." Tingting exclaimed excitedly, taking a step forward, her voice trembling as she asked: "Zhang Kuang, answer me, do you still remember me? Do you still remember those happy days when we were together?" Seeing the hopeful look on her face, Li Yan let out a light sigh and turned his head away without saying anything.

  "Zhang Feng, answer me!" Tingting cried out in a sobbing voice, her large tears falling down her pale face like jade, evoking sympathy from all who saw her.

  Zhang's face flashed a hint of confusion, seeing the girl in front of him who had no impression in his memory, watching her cry in front of him, for some reason, he suddenly felt a strange feeling in his heart, a kind of unfamiliar and unusual emotion surged up.

  "Have you forgotten? Last time I met those thugs, it was you who protected me, using your body to block their punches and kicks for me."

  Have you forgotten? Half a month ago, we went to the park for fun, I twisted my foot, and it was you who carried me on your back and ran more than a mile to find the hospital.

  Have you forgotten? Two months ago, when I was throwing a tantrum and accidentally hit your head with something, you were laughing while stopping the bleeding and said it was a good opportunity to get rid of the toxins in your blood.

  Have you forgotten? Half a year ago, I casually complained that walking to school was too tiring. You immediately took out some of your savings and bought me a motorcycle. Later, the bike was stolen, but you comforted me with a smile, saying "old things go, new things come".

  Have you forgotten? We've known each other for so long, and it's always been you taking care of me, caring about me.

  Have you forgotten everything? Those happy days we spent together, can it be said that those warm and joyful pasts in my eyes are not worth mentioning, can you really forget all of this so easily?

  Ting Ting sobbed and wailed, her face covered with tears and the flying dust making her look black and white in streaks, looking very disheveled but also strangely beautiful.

  Witnessing this scene, Li Yan, who was standing beside him, suddenly felt a sourness in his nose, and he quickly turned his head around, quietly wiping away the tears that were rolling down from the corners of his eyes.

  Zhang's crazy eyes kept flashing with black light, and his only arm was raised and lowered from time to time. The surrounding dark energy also shrank and expanded, sometimes bright and sometimes dim. Apparently, he was extremely confused at this moment.

  Seeing his abnormality, Li Yan's heart moved, and the hopeless heart unexpectedly gave birth to new hope. Can a person who has entered the devil also restore their humanity?

  Ting Ting also noticed Zhang Feng's abnormality, and with a joyful step forward, she didn't even bother to wipe away the tears on her face. She loudly called out: "Zhang Feng, I know you can do it! Try hard to recall, try hard to remember our happy days together! I know you won't forget me! Zhang Feng, come on! You must remember, I can't live without you!"

  In the midst of Tingting's cries, the dark energy surrounding Zhang Kuang was frantically shaking, constantly contracting and expanding, with an invisible force pushing Li Yan and Tingting to retreat. Despite this, Tingting refused to give up, using all her might to shout loudly, recounting every warm and memorable day she spent with Zhang Kuang.

  "Ah!" Zhang Feng covered his head with one hand, letting out a painful roar. The dark energy surrounding his body suddenly expanded violently, blowing Li Yan and Tingting off their feet amidst the swirling dust. Then, like a tidal wave, the inky black energy surged back into Zhang Feng's body, disappearing from view without a trace.

  The flying dust gradually dispersed, Zhang Feng stood there motionless with his head in his hands, while Tingting was so excited that her eyes were brimming with hot tears, staring at him fixedly with a hopeful expression.

  The air around him seemed to suddenly become heavy, pressing down on Li Yan's heart, making him feel panicked. He only knew that his heart had never beaten so violently in his life.

  Whether Zhang Feng can recover normally is also related to whether he can leave here alive.

  Li Yan has lived for several hundred years, but he still doesn't have the intention of dying on the spot. Being able to continue living is naturally the best outcome.

  In the midst of their anxious and tense gazes, Zhang Yue slowly lowered his arm and lifted his head, his facial muscles twitching uncontrollably. After a while, he vaguely muttered a few words: "Ting... Tingting..."

  "You remembered! You remembered!" Tingting excitedly jumped up, "I knew you wouldn't forget me, I knew..."

  Ting Ting yelled incoherently with joy, quickly pouncing on Zhang Chu and wrapping her arms around his neck, laughing uncontrollably. Zhang Chu stood there woodenly, letting her use him as a couch to rub against back and forth.

  If Dongfang Ba Tian and the others were still here, they would never believe that this harmless-looking person in front of them was the demonic cultivator who had heavily injured them. The current Zhang Ye looked more like a tolerant boyfriend.

  Li Yan quietly let out a breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand, and knew that he had finally managed to save his life. At this moment, thinking back to the intense battle just now, he felt a hint of fear, today's battle was probably the most dangerous and closest to death in his entire life.

  Looking at Tingting who was still jumping up and down with tears all over her face, Li Yan's mouth also curled up into a faint smile.

  It's great to be alive.

  Just as Li Yan relaxed, a cold voice suddenly sounded - "What a pity, it seems that I still have to end this."

  "Who is it?" Li Yan was startled and quickly turned his head to look around, but he didn't find any suspicious person nearby.

  "I originally thought that one demon would be enough to capture you all, but who knew I'd get to see a romantic play instead. It seems it wasn't a wasted trip after all." Just then, a black flame suddenly burst forth from a nearby location, reaching a height of nearly three meters.

  "But in the end, I still have to be the one to wrap things up. What bad luck! I hate trouble the most."

  The sound came again, and this time Li Yan discovered that the sound was coming from within that cluster of black flames.

  "Who are you? Come out, don't hide your head and tail like a mouse!" Li Yan guessed the mysterious person's identity while intentionally provoking him.

  "What's strange, am I hiding? I'm clearly standing here. Is it your old eyes that are blurry and can't see me? What does this have to do with me?" The voice asked in surprise, then suddenly turned: "If you want to talk about shrinking heads and tails, there are two over there." Then coldly said: "Hey, you two have been watching for a long time, aren't you satisfied yet?"

  "Ah, Ao Tian Gege, we've been discovered!" Just as if responding to his words, a loud and coarse voice rose up from the other side.

  "No choice, since they've already discovered us, let's go out and greet them." Another clear voice immediately followed, full of laughter.

  Not far from Li Yan, the air rippled and two faint figures gradually appeared. In the blink of an eye, a nearly two-meter-tall sturdy man and a slender young boy were standing there with big smiles on their faces.

  Li Yan was shocked, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets. His group was making a ruckus here, and yet there were three onlookers beside them, the most terrifying thing being that he hadn't even noticed they existed.

  If any of the three people were to launch a sneak attack when they were fighting with Zhang Fren, they would probably be able to take them down without much effort. Thinking about this, he couldn't help but break out in cold sweat.

  "Brother Long, Brother Wu Chen!" Tingting exclaimed sweetly as she saw the newcomer.

  "Great!" The two of them waved at her with a casual expression, as if they were just out for a stroll, and the ones who finally appeared were me and Wú Chén Zǐ.

  The person who came was recognized by Tingting. Li Yan's stone in her heart was finally put down a bit, after all, acquaintances should be easier to talk to.

  "Hmm, is this the infatuated boyfriend Zhang Chu?" I ignored the black flames not far away from him and walked straight to Zhang Chu's face, carefully examining him, then turned to ask Tingting who was holding his arm.

  "Uh-huh, that's right, it's him." Tingting nodded vigorously and excitedly, but her face fell again in an instant, "But look at his right arm..." She said, unable to hold back tears again.

  I took a closer look at Zhang Feng's wound on his right shoulder, seemingly nonchalant, then shook my head and said: "He used high temperature to treat the wound, although the blood vessels have closed due to this, it will be difficult to reattach his arm."

  Upon hearing my words, Tingting's crying grew louder and I felt a severe headache coming on. I had no choice but to comfort her by saying: "But I'm not a doctor, so don't take my word for it. Let's try another hospital later." In my heart, I made up my mind that when we get back, I will use every means possible to make Zhang Fu's right arm recover its original state, just so people would stop crying and whining in my ear.

  Tingting finally calmed down a bit, and her sobbing subsided.

  I secretly sighed and comforted her a few more sentences, but in my heart I was quite curious. That strange flame had been quiet since I came out with Wú Chénzi, and I didn't know what it was up to. It seemed that I still needed to make an extra effort.

  "Alright, since you've also found a boyfriend, let's head back now." I said with a relaxed smile, beckoning to Tingting and turning around to lead her away, while Wuchenzi followed behind me in confusion.

  "Halt!"

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, the mysterious figure hiding in the black flames finally couldn't help but speak up.