Chapter 798
The Death of Zhu Chongba
On the main peak of Luoxingdun, Chen Jie and Zhu Chongba were exhausted from their fight. They were both barely holding on, with Chen Jie using the Shennong power he had stored up to fight Zhu Chongba.
Zhu Chongba was gambling with his life.
At this moment, Zhu Chongba gripped the sword with both hands, and the Xuanyuan Sword emitted a deep hum, like an ancient bell echoing in the abyss.
He closed his eyes, and suddenly a pale golden blood mist gushed from the pores of his body—this was not ordinary blood essence, but the "blood of the human emperor" that had condensed in his body after he had mastered the Xuanyuan Technique. Every drop contained his insights from twenty years of fighting and observing the people's lives, and carried the hopes of the people of Huaixi, the soldiers and civilians of Jinling, and even the suffering people of Jiangnan.
The blood of the Emperor must be condensed through the achievements of the Emperor; these are all manifestations of Zhu Chongba's lifelong struggle.
Zhu Chongba was not an individual, but the representative of the will of all the people of Jiangnan. This will was absorbed by the Xuanyuan Technique, transformed into Dao Fruit, and then into the blood of the Human Emperor.
At this moment, Zhu Chongba is fighting with the blood of the human emperor burning and the will of the people burning!
The spray of blood mist did not dissipate; it swirled and gathered around him, transforming into nine fist-sized golden flames.
The flames were not scorching, but rather warm, like the morning light piercing through the thin mist, carrying the warmth of everyday life.
"I, Zhu Chongba, rose from humble beginnings. I have witnessed countless deaths from starvation, cannibalism, and the tyranny of the court, where officials were like tigers." He opened his eyes, which were no longer filled with murderous intent, but only with a compassionate clarity. "For the past twenty years, I have led my army into battle, killing countless people and saving countless lives. Today, with this crippled body and this remaining blood, I do not seek to become king, nor to dominate..."
He pointed his sword at the sky, and nine golden flames rose into the air at the same time, converging and merging at the tip of the Xuanyuan Sword, transforming into a crimson-gold fire lotus the size of a millstone.
The lotus petals slowly rotate, and with each rotation, an image appears in the lotus heart:
During a famine in Fengyang, beggars shared half a moldy steamed bun in a dilapidated temple.
The wounded soldiers on the walls of Chuzhou used broken spears to prop themselves up and roared, "We will hold out to the death!"
Beneath the walls of Hongdu, Zhu Wenzheng, naked and covered in blood, laughed and scolded, "Your nephew hasn't disgraced his uncle."
On Poyang Lake, warships burned, soldiers fell into the water, yet their hands still clung tightly to the tattered flag bearing the character "Wu."
And then there's the girl standing by the lake, longing for her return...
This was not an illusion created by a cultivation technique; it was a series of real events, deeply imprinted in Zhu Chongba's memory.
It is the blood and fire that led him all the way, and also a microcosm of the struggles of people all over the world to survive in this chaotic world.
These people were willing to burn themselves to gain their last strength. Zhu Chongba pointed his sword at the heavens and roared:
"Just to tell the world that it's time for a change." Zhu Chongba's voice suddenly rose, and the crimson-gold fire lotus shone brightly, "The Final Form of the Xuanyuan Technique: The Flame Passes On!"
The fiery lotus exploded, transforming into countless sparks, but instead of scattering, they converged into a crimson-gold river of light, warm like the smoke from a twilight kitchen, slowly flowing towards Chen Jie. From within the river of light, faint songs could be heard—not war songs, but folk ballads, lullabies for mothers to lull their children to sleep, and the familiar accents of elders recounting their past.
There was no murderous intent, no sharp edge, only a vast, warm, and irresistible "wish"—a wish for peace in the world, for farmers to have their land, for residents to have their houses, for the young to be cared for, and for the elderly to have a peaceful end.
This is the power of the human heart, the minimum expectation of hundreds of millions of people for "living," converging into a torrent powerful enough to change the world.
Chen Jie felt this power, and his pupils shrank sharply. He could feel the terror of this power. This power wanted to break Chen Jie's fighting will, wanted to make him submit with peace, and wanted to tell him that only when the world belongs to Zhu Chongba can there be peace. If you fight with me, you are fighting against all living beings in the world!
To fight me is to defy the heavens!
With its majestic divine might, the legitimate succession of the Human Emperor, and the ultimate secret of the Xuanyuan Technique, it actually seeks to subdue the enemy without a fight!
They actually wanted to undermine my fighting spirit. Didn't Shennong fail in this scene of universal harmony back then? But he was wrong. I, Chen Jiu Si, have seen a real paradise on earth. Do you, Zhu Chong Ba, know what the new China is?
Do you, Zhu Chongba, know what it means for the people to be the masters of their own country?
You dare tell me that the world belongs to you and that you can lead the people to a good life? Dream on!
To expect me to submit is utterly absurd, utterly absurd!
Chen Jie roared, slamming his Shennong staff down so hard that the tip pierced three inches into the rock. "Only when this world belongs to me, Chen Jiu Si, can there be true harmony and peace. I am the rightful ruler!"
At this moment, Chen Jie unleashed a powerful human emperor's strength; this was a contest of wills.
He gripped the staff with both hands, frantically pouring all his inner energy into it. The mountain and plant patterns on the staff lit up one after another, each pattern peeling off the staff and transforming into a physical entity in the void: the phantom of mountains rose from the ground, the phantom of rivers rushed and roared, ancient trees reached the sky, and exotic flowers bloomed... In the blink of an eye, the area ten zhang around him transformed into a miniature, wild "Shennong Secret Realm".
Within this secret realm, life was terrifyingly abundant, yet also chaotic to the extreme. Vines coiled like writhing dragons, poisonous miasma churned like a sea of clouds, subterranean fire erupted from cracks, and weak water cascaded from the void. This was primal creation, untamed by human intervention, the most savage and wildest form of life.
"Fate is merciless, but the course of heaven is constant—" Chen Jiezhang pointed at Zhu Chongba, and the Shennong Secret Realm suddenly expanded, like a primordial maw swallowing the Crimson Gold River of Light. "Watch me use this wild creation to shatter your hypocritical human desires!"
The secret realm and the river of light collided with a deafening roar.
boom!
A violent sound resounded throughout the entire island, which then began to collapse, while the Shennong Secret Realm and the golden river in the sky continued to collide!
The two sides were locked in a fierce internal struggle, and soon their internal energy was depleted. Their resistance weakened, and eventually, they could no longer even exchange internal energy. Both of them were exhausted and reverted to ordinary mortals!
Zhu Chongba wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and roared in a hoarse voice due to internal injuries:
"Chen Jiu Si, I should be the Emperor! I am the one who will lead the Han people, drive out the Tartars, and restore China!"
He spun his sword and slashed at Chen Jie again. This strike was not flashy, but it was a real attack aimed at Chen Jie, representing his most primal power.
Upon seeing this, Chen Jie's eyes widened, and he swung the Shennong Staff in his hand at Zhu Chongba as if it were an ordinary weapon.
"I am the Emperor, only I can bring hope to the people, you cannot!"
boom!
Their weapons clashed violently. At this moment, there were no fancy moves; all techniques became ordinary. They stopped using the power of the Heavenly Dao to clash and instead used the power of the Human Emperor to fight. They began to clash with the most primitive techniques.
When the Heavenly Dao clashes, neither can gain the upper hand; when the Human Emperor's power clashes, there is also no winner.
Then it's up to you to compete.
It was my determination to become emperor; I had to be the emperor.
The two men mustered all their strength and attacked each other frantically. The Xuanyuan Sword and the Shennong Staff, the two divine weapons, were now like the most primitive weapons, clashing against each other.
It wasn't that they didn't want to continue their clashes using the power of the Human Emperor; they were simply exhausted.
Both of them were almost at their limit.
At this point, all talk of popular will and reversing fate is useless; only the most primal form of attack remains.
At this moment, Chen Jie and Zhu Chongba were like second-rate martial artists in the martial arts world, exchanging blows with each other, one with a sword and the other with a staff.
Spectacular moves are always ultimately futile.
No matter how catchy a slogan is, it can't be shouted all the time. At this moment, the two of them reverted to the most naked hand-to-hand combat. In the setting sun, their two shadows were stretched long as they fought each other between the flattened mountain peaks.
They fought for an unknown amount of time before collapsing to the ground from exhaustion.
They stared at each other, and Zhu Chongba looked at Chen Jie and said, "Chen Jiu Si, you can't beat me. Even Shennong was no match for the Yellow Emperor in history."
"You're talking nonsense! I don't believe I could lose to you!"
"Why are you using force again?"
Chen Jie said, "Today I must kill you. If I don't kill you, how can I become the Emperor? I am the future Emperor!" "Hehe, Emperor, the future Emperor's surname is Zhu. I've already thought of the name of the country. My future empire will be called Great Ming. Wherever the sun and moon shine, it will be the land of my Great Ming!"
"You're talking nonsense. The future empire is called the Great Han. Wherever the stars cover the land, it is the territory of the Great Han; wherever the mountains and rivers pass through, it is the domain of the Han family."
Chen finished explaining and then moved!
He used the Shennong staff to support his body and slowly, with great difficulty, stood up.
The knees made a soft "click" sound when I got up, a groan from the joints that could no longer bear the strain.
He swayed for a moment, but eventually regained his balance, his knuckles white from gripping the Shennong staff.
Zhu Chongba also made a move.
He released the Xuanyuan Sword he was leaning on, and the tip of the sword touched the stone surface with a "ding".
Then he took a deep breath—a very deep breath, as if he wanted to expel all the air from his lungs and replace it with fresh air. Then he stood up straight. His back was still upright, though that uprightness was already precarious.
The two looked at each other from a distance.
Their gazes collided in the air, but the previous clash of Daoist principles and ideological conflict was gone, leaving only the most primal, beast-like ferocity and resentment.
"I'll be the emperor!"
There was no burst of internal energy, no change in movement, and not even a decent set of moves.
Chen Jie gripped the Shennong Staff with both hands, treating it like an ordinary stick, and staggered towards Zhu Chongba. His steps were heavy and unsteady, like a drunken brute, each step sending stone chips flying. When he was five steps in front of Zhu Chongba, he swung the Shennong Staff and brought it down on his head.
This strike was completely haphazard; the arm trembled from weakness, the trajectory was skewed, and the speed was slow. Any farmer who had learned martial arts for three days could easily dodge it.
Zhu Chongba did not dodge.
He couldn't dodge it either. His legs felt like they were made of lead, and every movement required all his strength. He could only grip the hilt of the Xuanyuan Sword with both hands, holding the sword horizontally above his head to block the Shennong Staff that was about to fall.
clang!
The sound of metal striking wood was dull and muffled, like the clashing of a broken gong.
The Shennong Staff slammed into the Xuanyuan Sword, causing the blade to suddenly sink. Zhu Chongba groaned, his hand splitting open, blood flowing down the hilt of the sword.
He stumbled and took three steps back before regaining his footing, each step leaving a deep footprint on the stone surface.
Chen Jie was also in bad shape. The force of the recoil traveled through the Shennong Staff, making his arms numb, and his already weak fingers could barely grip the staff. He gritted his teeth, refusing to let go, and used the recoil to take two steps back, then swung the staff again, sweeping it across Zhu Chongba's waist and abdomen.
This time, Zhu Chongba did not parry.
He took a step forward—a step that was exceptionally difficult, his left leg even staggering, but he steadied himself. Then, gripping his sword with both hands, he used it as a blade, and met the sweeping Shennong staff with a horizontal slash.
There was no sword energy, no sword aura; it was just the simplest, most basic horizontal slash, like a farmer chopping wood.
clang!
Another impact.
This time, the Shennong Staff and the Xuanyuan Sword were released from his hands at the same time.
Chen Jie's tiger's mouth was completely split open, dripping with blood. The Shennong Staff flew out of his hand, drew an arc in the air, and landed in a crevice three zhang away, where it got stuck.
Zhu Chongba's sword also flew away. The Xuanyuan Sword tumbled several times in the air, crashed onto the stone surface with a "clang", bounced up again, and finally stuck diagonally into a crack two steps away, the blade still humming and trembling.
Both of them had nothing in their hands.
A brief silence.
Then, almost simultaneously, the two pounced on each other.
Without weapons, use fists and feet; without internal energy, use your bare hands; without techniques, use the most instinctive fighting.
Chen Jie threw a punch at Zhu Chongba's face. The punch was soft and slow, like an old woman patting his back. Zhu Chongba didn't even dodge—he couldn't dodge anyway—he just tilted his head, letting the fist graz his cheekbone. Then he threw a punch back, hitting Chen Jie in the chest.
"boom!"
A dull thud from the flesh.
Chen Jie was knocked back two steps by the impact, coughing up blood. Zhu Chongba also staggered backward due to the recoil, tripping over the loose stones and nearly falling.
The two, panting, pounced on him again.
This time it was a close fight. Chen Jie grabbed Zhu Chongba's right arm, while Zhu Chongba grabbed Chen Jie's left shoulder. The two wrestled like street thugs, tearing at each other, pushing, shoving, headbutting, and kneeing. Their movements were clumsy and ugly, completely lacking any semblance of martial arts skill.
Chen Jie bit down on Zhu Chongba's shoulder. He didn't intend to bite off flesh; he was simply too weak and could only use his teeth. Zhu Chongba groaned in pain and also lowered his head to bite down on Chen Jie's arm.
The two remained locked in a stalemate, tearing at each other like two dying wild dogs making their last instinctive struggle.
Blood seeped from the corners of their mouths and wounds, mixing together and dripping onto the stone surface, where it was quickly dried into a dark brown scab by the morning light.
Finally, the two of them simultaneously let go, released their grip, and fell backward.
"Bang!" "Bang!"
With two muffled thuds, the two men fell back to back onto the stone surface, about a foot apart, both breathing heavily, their chests heaving like bellows.
They lay there for an unknown amount of time before suddenly standing up and lunging at each other, each raising a palm—at which point they had both regained some strength.
Chen Jie unleashed a Dragon-Capturing Eighteen Palms strike, while Zhu Chongba countered with a Tathagata Palm strike. However, Zhu Chongba was a beat too slow. Chen Jiu Si's Everlasting Spring Skill recovered faster than Zhu Chongba's, giving Chen Jie the advantage in this exchange.
The "Dragon Soaring to the Sky and Regrets" strike landed heavily on Zhu Chongba's chest, instantly shattering his internal organs.
At this moment, Zhu Chongba's Tathagata Palm came straight at Chen Jie's head. Chen Jie still had the strength to resist, but if this palm struck, Chen Jie would either die or be seriously injured, and might even be unable to reach the realm of a terrestrial immortal in this lifetime!
This is clearly a lose-lose situation.
But just as this palm strike was about to land on Chen Jietian's head, Zhu Chongba stopped! (End of Chapter)