I Pick up a Lost Godhood

Chapter 178 - 176: Seeking Victory in Peril

Song Zhong didn’t stand on ceremony. He took out two Hanging Talisman Compasses—one for Attack Talismans, the other for Defense Talismans. This meant that no matter how fierce the attack, his Defense Array could be continuously deployed.

"Damn, Song Zhong actually brought out something so shameless."

"Last year, he used this to advance two places in the individual tournament!"

Qiao Qian and the others couldn’t help but mutter. Their voices weren’t loud, but in such a quiet moment, they naturally reached Song Zhong’s ears. His expression didn’t change, and he grew even more certain. ’Those two morons, Qiao Qian and Jia Shidao, must be doing this on purpose. Trying to provoke me? In their dreams!’

Hu Jing was completely unaware of what was happening outside. As her Water Wave Technique and Flame Technique circulated, Elemental Power flowed out of her continuously. The Flame Power and Ice Flame Power in her hands were also surging, but the energy wasn’t spreading. Instead, it was spinning and contracting.

A never-before-seen magic!

A faint smile touched Wang Meng’s lips. ’Regardless of success or failure, based on her recent epiphany and the pressure she’s under, Hu Jing has reached a new level of understanding of the Ice-Fire Skill.’

Across from them, Song Zhong was also in the middle of preparing his talismans. The strength of Fire Cloud Hall’s Senior was naturally no small matter. He had sixty-four talismans in total, with Bursting Fire Talismans making up the majority!

His power was a whole level above the other disciples of Fire Cloud Hall.

With the Array Talisman Bow in hand, Song Zhong had made the most thorough preparations. ’Attack? Or not attack?’

Song Zhong really couldn’t make up his mind. Hu Jing still had her eyes closed. ’What kind of scheme is this? Is she trying to bait me into attacking?’

Suddenly, Hu Jing brought the fire and ice flames in her hands together. Everyone’s eyes went wide. Was she going to cancel the two forces out, or was she trying to blow herself up?

Song Zhong was also stunned. ’Is she trying to self-destruct?’

But in an instant, the two forces neither canceled each other out nor exploded. Instead, they merged, remaining clearly distinct yet combined.

Following her Cultivation Technique, Hu Jing’s hands moved in continuous circles. It was completely instinctive, but with every rotation, the sphere combining the two types of magic grew a little larger.

In just a moment, it had grown to be several feet in size. The Five Elements Balance in the surrounding area seemed to shatter, and energy began to swarm into the ball in her hands.

And Hu Jing’s eyes were still tightly shut.

Elder Zhu’s composure finally shattered. ’This... is this still Thunderlight Hall!?’

Song Zhong suddenly understood. ’Damn it, I’ve been had! If Hu Jing tried to compete with me on fundamentals, she wouldn’t stand a chance. She was pulling a bluff! And I gave her all this time to prepare.’

SWISH...

Streams of Fire Talismans shot out.

With her eyes still closed, Hu Jing instinctively met the attack with the Ice-Fire Ball she controlled. The whistling Bursting Fire Talismans... failed to burst. They were sucked right in.

The tense atmosphere created by Wang Meng had a compounding effect at this moment. Everyone assumed Hu Jing must be preparing a more profound magic; otherwise, why would Wang Meng have her fight last?

Everyone knew Hu Jing had a special talent for combined ice-and-fire magic, but how could it have reached such an unbelievable level?

Even Jia Shidao was starting to wonder. ’When she fought me, was she just putting up a smokescreen, all to fool Song Zhong?’

Watching the Ice-Fire Ball grow even faster thanks to his "contribution," Song Zhong felt a surge of panic.

Without another moment of hesitation, he unleashed all the talismans from his Hanging Talisman Compass.

Hu Jing continued to naturally control the massive Magic Ball to meet the attack. Crucially, it had already "eaten" enough to grow large enough to completely shield her petite frame.

But Hu Jing didn’t plan to hold on like this forever. She could feel it was about to exceed her control, and with a sudden push—

The spinning Ice-Fire Ball BUZZED, shot forward several feet, and then hung motionless in the air. In that instant, a bone-deep chill rose in Song Zhong’s heart. He knew exactly what would happen if he got hit by that thing. ’But thankfully, Hu Jing hasn’t fully mastered it yet!’

A look of wild joy appeared on Song Zhong’s face, but it lasted only for a fleeting moment. After pausing, the Ice-Fire Ball let out a WHOOSH and shot toward him.

Song Zhong was an experienced fighter, but when had he ever suffered such a blatant, open scheme? The most critical point was that magic and array techniques were ineffective against the spell itself.

’Dodge, or use the Defense Talisman Formation?’

His Defensive Compass was fully loaded. ’Dodge... no, defend!’

All of his Elemental Power erupted. At this moment, Song Zhong finally stopped holding back. His Elemental Power shattered the calm of the Nineteenth Layer, advancing to the stage of Twenty Layers!

Twenty was a major threshold. Once crossed, a whole new world of possibilities opened up.

Song Zhong’s Elemental Power had clearly increased enormously. Another Defensive Compass appeared, and at the same time, he released the Jade Balance Array. Instantly, a radiant array technique materialized.

This was an Advanced Array that could be stacked. One could begin cultivating it at the Nineteenth Layer, but unleashing its true potential required the ample Elemental Power of the Twenty Layers stage. The effect of a stacked array technique was worlds apart from using one on its own.

This was Song Zhong’s true trump card!

Using his full strength, Song Zhong stared deathly at the incoming attack. ’I am Song Zhong, the Senior of Fire Cloud Hall! Don’t compare me to trash like Qiao Qian and Jia Shidao!’

Qiao Qian and Jia Shidao were secretly shocked. They had been forced to strengthen themselves in other areas precisely because they had failed to break through to the stage of Twenty Layers. They never expected that this guy, Song Zhong, had quietly, sneakily advanced to the stage of Twenty Layers in Elemental Power!

Hu Jing’s eyes were still closed. Right now, she was operating purely on instinct.

—Ice-Fire Melting Break!

His composure vanished in that instant. The Defense Array flared with Elemental Power, and the collision produced a sharp, ear-piercing shriek.

The Ice-Fire Melting Break slammed into Song Zhong’s defense system.

Hu Jing had completely relinquished control. Her body went limp, and she remained standing through sheer willpower alone. She opened her eyes. Success or failure would be decided in this single exchange.

Song Zhong was furious. ’This is how I was truly tricked! If I had just attacked from the start, I could have defeated this version of Hu Jing effortlessly. Instead, I forced myself into this embarrassing predicament.’

BANG... BANG BANG BANG...

One Defense Array after another was broken through. Song Zhong didn’t dare to stop, continuously feeding Defense Talismans into his compass and releasing them. He was so fast that one could only see the flickering shadows of the talismans. At this critical moment, Song Zhong was using every trick up his sleeve. Even Hu Jing watched with admiration.

Since entering the Holy Hall, this was the highest level of talisman usage she had ever seen. His speed was nearly double her own. This was Song Zhong’s absolute strength.

However, the power of the ice-fire fusion was too immense. Once it involved the Five Elements, it was actually borrowing external force to exert its own. Its might came not just from Hu Jing’s Elemental Power, but from the borrowed Celestial Power.

Song Zhong’s Defense Talismans were about to fall behind. The immense ice-fire power was pressing in, and the pressure of the confrontation was further exciting the energy of the ice and fire.

BUZZ...

The true power of the Ice-Fire Melting Break was about to erupt.

In an instant, Song Zhong’s Hanging Talisman Compass exploded. He made a split-second decision and immediately dodged.

A figure appeared in the arena, blasting out streams of talismans.

POP...

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE...

The heavens shook and the earth trembled. This massive explosion was truly terrifying. It wasn’t just a deafening sound; you could actually feel the ground shaking violently. The disciples were sent stumbling and falling over one another.