Chapter 99: Surrender

Dragon Mountain City was in trouble.

Flames spilled down from the sky, and chunks of molten lava rained down on the city.

Even though the city was built very high in the air, the residents of the city could not possibly avoid destruction that rained down from the sky itself.

Flames raged incessantly all around them, the frighteningly powerful waves of energy destroying everything in their reckless path. Anything that could be burned was burned to ashes.

The yells and cries of Harpies could be heard throughout the city as they all tried to flee. The ones who were slower were incinerated into nothingness.

The ones who were lucky enough to escape turned around only to find that the entire city had been consumed by a sea of flames.

Yes, the entire city had been destroyed.

This was what happened when two powerful experts exchanged blows. Even the residual fluctuations from the battle were more than enough to destroy the entire city. And in the first place, Dragon Mountain City was only a small city, so it couldn’t possibly withstand a battle of this scale.

The collision between two Eighth-Ring Arcana Techniques could essentially be equated to a clash between two massive armies; the potential destruction was astronomical. It was not particularly surprising that this outcome had occurred.

For this reason, the various races had agreed to not have fights near cities when the combatants reached a certain power level.

Unfortunately, there were always people who refused to follow the rules.

Su Chen was a human. To him, all other races were foreign, and therefore, he didn’t need to worry about them. They could die for all he cared, so he was never particularly scrupulous with his actions.

Flaming Femme was a Harpy, but she was also a member of Fate’s Hands, a terrorist organization. It was only natural that she didn’t have any apprehension or fear for mass destruction.

When neither side had any reason to be cautious, it was only natural that this catastrophe would happen.

Dragon Mountain City was doomed to a terrible fate. Of course, this naturally included the Wind-Gathering Clan.

They had watched the situation unfold from the beginning right in front of their very own eyes, but all they could do was run!

As they fled the city and watched it burn from a distance, they could only mourn and sigh in their hearts.

Their whole clan had gone up in flames, just like that.

Even so, the battle continued to rage on, showing no signs of stopping.

Four figures danced through the sky, unleashing attacks at a furious rate.

The flames of battle were burning brighter than ever before. Neither side wanted to back down.

Both sides unleashed powerful Arcana Technique after powerful Arcana Technique in rapid succession, each of them with their own unique shape and form. Su Chen relied on his flames as per usual, occasionally deftly throwing other Arcana Techniques into the mist, including Whitetower Teleportation, Flowing Light Forcefield, etc. His strength was a great surprise to Flaming Femme and the Chaotic Wind Brothers.

More importantly, as the battle progressed, Flaming Femme found that her strength was beginning to run out.

Yes, she was running out of energy.

Even though her Nirvana Phoenix was powerful, its energy toll was quite high. As she used it repeatedly, Flaming Femme found that her rate of expenditure was reaching an unsustainable point.

Su Chen, however, continued to swing his sword as if he was oblivious to any such issue. His Flowing Gold Blade’s expenditure was naturally lower than Flaming Femme’s phoenix, and even if it were the same, Su Chen’s physical strength was more than enough to fuel his moves.

This battle of attrition was one that Flaming Femme was fated to lose.

She knew that she was in a dire situation. After unleashing one final Nirvana Phoenix, she flew backwards at full speed in an attempt to retreat.

When Su Chen saw this, he grinned and yelled, “Trying to run now? Do you not think that it’s too late?”

As he spoke, he slashed his sword at Flaming Femme.

Flaming Femme’s eyes glowed mysteriously as her body erupted into flames. Her body turned into a pyre of flames that shot through the air, desperately attempting to escape from the battlefield.

Su Chen scoffed disdainfully when he saw this. “You can’t compete with me in a war of attrition, and in terms of maneuverability…… the gap is even larger.”

The Flowing Gold Blade slashed through the air at his opponent.

Even though it seemed like his attack had slashed through empty air, Flaming Femme suddenly cried out in pain as her flames slammed into the Flowing Gold Blade seemingly of their own volition. It was obvious how seriously Flaming Femme had been wounded just based on the fact that this was an Eighth-Ring Arcana Technique.

The flames rapidly reformed into her body. She spat out a large mouthful of blood as her face paled significantly.

When the Chaotic Wind Brothers saw this, they glanced at each other before suddenly turning into two streaks of black and white wind which mingled together like usual. The two streaks of wind had braided themselves together into a tornado as they flew off into the distance. Su Chen slashed at them with the Flowing Gold Blade, but his attack passed right through the wind. He was actually unable to hit them.

“They can ignore physical attacks?” Su Chen squinted his eyes in surprise.

These two brothers were indeed tricky to handle.

The specific Arcana Technique they were using was called Chaotic Wind ⁠— the namesake of these two brothers, and their unique innate Arcana Technique. They could turn themselves into wind and ignore any physical attacks, allowing them usually escape with ease. They could even teleport through the air while flying, to some extent. This skill was obviously one that excelled at escaping.

“Save me!” Flaming Femme yelled.

The two brothers, however, completely ignored her cries and continued to run away. They were terrorists, after all. When faced with a life-or-death situation, there was no loyalty to speak of.

Su Chen chuckled. “Don’t worry. They won’t be able to get very far.”

As he spoke, he pushed his hand towards the sky, causing the air around him to congeal.

Sumeru Void.

Truthfully speaking, this was another risk he was taking. Sumeru Void wasn’t a particularly well-kept secret. If a person who knew Su Chen well was present, they would have easily been able to guess Su Chen’s true identity.

However, Flaming Femme and the Chaotic Wind Brothers obviously did not know the real Su Chen well, and he was not planning on letting them live to tell the tale anyways. The bystanders could only watch the battle unfold from afar. And since it was totally impossible for them to get any closer, they wouldn’t be able to determine exactly what technique Su Chen was using. In addition, Sumeru Void’s effects were quite potent against this kind of a wind technique.

As soon as Su Chen activated Sumeru Void, the Chaotic Wind Brothers immediately felt that it had become much more difficult to move.

Not only that, but when Su Chen clenched his fist, the space around him contracted, pulling the tornado back in his direction.

The Chaotic Wind Brothers struggled valiantly in their attempt to escape, but Su Chen was able to slowly and steadily pull them back. Sumeru Void not only stopped their advance but even prevented them from teleporting.

This was an example of where the student had surpassed the master. Shi Kaihuang probably would not have been able to suppress these two Sixth-Ring Arcana Masters like how Su Chen was.

But Su Chen could.

Su Chen forcefully dragged the Chaotic Wind Brothers all the way back to his side as he playfully mused, “The Flowing Gold Blade might not have been able to damage you, so why don’t we try this one on for size?”

As he pressed down with his left hand, a pitch-black flaming phoenix appeared in the sky. This black phoenix was much smaller than the ones he had previously unleashed, and the flames from the Flowing Gold Blade completely covered it, making it so that no one else could see it. The Chaotic Wind Brothers, however, could sense the raw power emanating from the phoenix. The corrosive flames spilled through the sky, making it clear that this kind of attack was nothing like the Flowing Gold Blade and could not be ignored, even by the Chaotic Wind Brothers.

The Chaotic Wind Brothers yelled in fright, “NO!”

Even though they could turn into wind, they had no way of escaping from their opponent’s grasp. There was nothing they could do to defend themselves against the corrosive flames.

The Chaotic Wind Brothers then discovered that they weren’t even able to revert back to their physical bodies. Su Chen’s Sumeru Void was forcefully compressing them, holding them together to the point that it was impossible for them to separate. As such, they could only endure the intense roasting of the black flames.

“AHH!” The ball of wind shrieked with pain, causing Flaming Femme’s heart to tremble violently.

“Spare us! We are willing to serve you!” the Chaotic Wind Brothers howled fiercely.

“I don’t need you,” Su Chen replied coolly.

Su Chen had no desire to take on subordinates who would sacrifice their own allies at a moment’s notice.

As the black flames continued to burn, the Chaotic Wind Brothers’ howls began to die down, eventually disappearing completely along with the black and white streak of wind.

They had been destroyed just like that.

When Flaming Femme saw the fate of the brothers, she felt incredibly stunned, as did the members of the Wind-Gathering Clan who had managed to escape.

How could they not feel shock and fear penetrate deep into their hearts after witnessing such a powerful demonstration with their very own eyes?

This kind of character was more than powerful enough to slaughter them all with a single gesture.

It was precisely for this reason that they didn’t even try to escape.

Since Azure Mark hadn’t given his permission for them to flee, it was possible that they would anger him if they tried to do so, bringing disaster upon their collective heads.

The smartest thing to do was to immediately acquiesce.

Once the Chaotic Wind Brothers had died, all of the Harpies floating in the sky all knelt down fearfully.

They knelt on the clouds, none of them even daring to glance up at Su Chen.

Su Chen ignored them, continuing to focus his attention on Flaming Femme.

“You’re next.”

“No!” Flaming Femme began to plead.

She knew that disaster was about to befall her. There was no way she could defeat Su Chen, and it was equally impossible for her to escape.

Flaming Femme suddenly made a pivotal decision as she watched the Flowing Gold Blade slash through the air. She knelt on the ground and yelled out, “I am willing to surrender!”

“Sorry, not interested,” Su Chen said as the Flowing Gold Blade continued to descend.

“I can hand over all of my possessions.”

“I have no need for them.” The Flowing Gold Blade continued to descend, now only a few feet from Flaming Femme’s scalp.

“I can give you everything I have ⁠— my knowledge, my strength, my wealth, and even my soul!”

The Flowing Gold Blade suddenly came to a halt, just barely an inch from Flaming Femme’s head.

Flaming Femme was sweating profusely.

However, Su Chen still seemed to have no intention of withdrawing his blade.

He insipidly stated, “Your offer is still somewhat lacking.”

Flaming Femme’s willingness to hand over her soul was essentially giving Su Chen a way to ensure her loyalty and give him complete control over her.

Even so, Su Chen wouldn’t agree to accept her so easily.

Controlling another individual’s soul didn’t come without a price. There were certain burdens that would also be placed on Su Chen as a result.

As such, Su Chen needed Flaming Femme to demonstrate her worth.

Yes. Even if you want to become my slave, you need to prove that you have the right to become my slave.

That was Su Chen’s attitude.

That was his unique pride and arrogance.

Flaming Femme felt a surge of bitterness in her heart.

When had she reached the point where she had to beg just to become someone’s servant?

However, she didn’t want to die. It was because she had tasted too good of a life before that she was unwilling to leave this world that uneventfully.

Only by continuing to live would she still have a chance.

As such, Flaming Femme said, “I can help you deal with the issue of Fate’s Hands.”

“Oh?” Su Chen squinted his eyes.

Flaming Femme said, “I admit that you are incredibly strong, but at the same time you are not a legendary Arcana Master. And Fate’s Hands does have some legendary Arcana Masters amongst their ranks. You may have won today, but what if Fate’s Hands sends even more powerful experts after you?”

That was a good point.

Su Chen asked, “So how are you planning on dealing with Fate’s Hands, then?”

“That will be simple. I will write a letter to Fate’s Hands, telling them that I defeated you and captured you. The matter will be resolved that way.”

“But they will eventually uncover the truth, especially since there are so many people here.”

“That’s why our movements need to be quick…… Won’t it be fine if we open Jade Clearmist’s secret realm before they discover that anything is wrong? Of course, if you don’t want things to be that complicated, there’s one other method…… Kill all witnesses,” Flaming Femme chuckled.