Cultivation Makes Me Stronger: Chapter 35

On the boundless expanse of silvery alloy ground stood only a solitary alloy arena.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Luo Shen and Candice appeared on the arena out of thin air.

"Please select your weapons and combat uniforms!" A majestic voice echoed through the space, deafeningly loud. At the same time, countless images of weapons and equipment appeared before them, in every conceivable style and type.

Though it was his first time entering virtual space, Luo Shen quickly chose the Ghost Shadow Battle Blade and combat uniform he was familiar with.

Once he had equipped them—

He looked across the arena and saw that Candice was still putting on various pieces of protective gear.

It was clear that Candice's desire to win this battle had reached its peak. Fifty billion was an enormous sum for anyone, so it was understandable that he did not want to lose!

Of course.

Not wanting to lose did not mean he would not lose.

"Please select a battle scene!" the voice of the virtual space rang out again.

Eight map scenes appeared before Luo Shen. As the challenged party, he could choose whichever one he liked as the setting for today's wagered battle.

"Then the grasslands."

Luo Shen casually selected the grasslands, just like the lush green grass growing atop Candice's head.

He even thought maliciously, If I win, will Jeanette, whom Candice has been pursuing, launch a fierce offensive to pursue me, just like Jeanette pursued Luo Feng in the Original Work?

But Candice had no idea what Luo Shen was thinking.

Seeing Luo Shen choose the grasslands, he could not help sneering. "If you had chosen another battle scene, you might have had a chance of winning. But the grasslands are one of my favorite battlefields!"

As he spoke, he drew his longsword and flourished it through the air.

Specks of Cold Light!

A droplet of dew blown into the air by the gusts was effortlessly split in two by the sword light.

Luo Shen glanced at it, then cooperatively applauded. "Not bad, not bad. That was a fine performance. Once the challenge ends, I'll reward you with fifty cents."

"Courting death!" Candice was thoroughly enraged.

He was the first heir of the Polainas Family, yet Luo Shen was treating him like some street performer begging for tips. Did he really take him for someone who earned rewards by performing tricks?

"Battle begins!"

Perhaps sensing the subtle tension in the air, the electronic voice echoed above the grasslands.

Whoosh! Candice's figure flickered, as though he had merged into the endless prairie. Carried by the fierce wind, he charged toward Luo Shen like lightning, killing intent bursting from his eyes.

"So impulsive. I think you're more suited to practicing the blade than I am." Luo Shen charged forward just as swiftly.

Screech!

Cold Light flashed, and the sharp sword tore through the air!

Candice's gaze was icy. He was like a savage wolf on the grasslands, his longsword carrying the momentum of a charging pack as it suddenly stabbed toward Luo Shen's head. At the same time, he planted his right foot into the ground and violently kicked upward!

Grass and dirt flew straight at Luo Shen's face, blocking his vision.

"Don't bother with such cheap tricks!"

As he spoke, Luo Shen advanced rather than retreating!

At the same time, a silver-white streak suddenly lit up. Under the 4.2-fold power burst of the Nine Heavens Thunder Blade Fifth Level, the blade light of the Ghost Shadow Battle Blade was as slender as a crescent moon, yet as dazzling as lightning and light.

Screech!

The turf and soil were cleaved in two.

Cold Light collided!

Clang! Luo Shen's battle blade precisely struck Candice's thrusting longsword. With a sweeping motion, a strange force traveled up the blade, making Candice feel indescribably uncomfortable.

Whoosh! The Ghost Shadow Battle Blade slid along the sword's edge and swept sideways.

Luo Shen stepped forward, his eyes blazing. He looked as though he meant to slice Candice's head clean off!

Fortunately, Candice's movement technique was not bad.

Faced with Luo Shen's sudden burst, he actually remained calm. The longsword in his hand was like a shark lurking beneath the sea, flickering strangely again and again until it finally dispersed the impact contained in Luo Shen's slash.

He then retreated dozens of meters in rapid succession, widening the distance between himself and Luo Shen.

"Your blade technique! Your force generation!" Candice stared at Luo Shen with an ugly expression.

He finally understood.

Why Luo Shen had been specially recruited into the Training Camp. This perfect-level blade technique and this terrifying force generation—combined, not just him, but probably not many people in the entire Elite Training Camp could compare to Luo Shen!

In terms of blade technique, Luo Shen and he were both at the level of "balancing hardness and softness."

But in force generation, Luo Shen's was at least above 4, while his was only 2.5 times. The difference was more than double!

In a head-on clash, Candice did not even have the slightest chance of winning!

"I refuse to believe your movement technique can be this strong too!"

Candice assumed a stance, attempting to suppress Luo Shen's blade technique through a combination of movement and swordsmanship.

However, Luo Shen's response was—

Screech! His movement was like lightning, his slash like a howling gale, like a meteor chasing the moon. This strike, which fused movement and blade technique into one, left Candice completely dumbfounded.

Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do?

The soul's three great questions!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

A rapid series of metallic clashes rang out.

Riiip! Candice's longsword was knocked away by a sudden burst of force, leaving his guard wide open. If Candice had not suddenly come to his senses at the crucial moment and fiercely dodged to the left—

That slash would have cut him open from chest to belly!

Even so.

Luo Shen's battle blade still left an indelible scar on his body—a wound so deep that bone was visible, stretching from his right hand to his chest before being stopped by the combat uniform.

"Your movement technique!"

Candice looked at his powerless, dangling right arm, then at Luo Shen, and spoke with difficulty.

"Artistic Conception Level."

Luo Shen grinned and gave him a fact he found impossible to accept. "I broke through when I fought Li Yao that day. Otherwise, what did you think I relied on to hold out against him until the inspector arrived?"

Only now did Candice finally understand why even his uncle-in-law, acting personally, had failed to kill Luo Shen.

This guy was not normal at all!

What kind of normal person could train for just a few months and bring their movement technique, blade technique, and bodily force generation to such profound levels? Even Renatus might not necessarily be a match for Luo Shen!

Retnas was considered the strongest among this batch of European students, with strength roughly on par with Chu Qiang from China.

"I lost. I actually lost!"

Candice muttered.

He could already imagine how those old fossils in the family would reprimand him after he lost those fifty billion. They might even take advantage of the fact that both he and his aunt and uncle-in-law had fallen from power to strip him of his position as first heir!

"Damn it, I refuse to admit defeat!"

But with his right hand injured and only his unfamiliar left hand able to wield the sword, how could Candice possibly avoid defeat?

He could not even withstand the second slash!

Luo Shen's gaze was blazing.

His figure appeared before Candice in a flash like a ghost. He slashed out, blade light gleaming. Candice only felt an irresistible and terrifying force surge through his longsword, sending it flying from his grasp!

The battle blade was like light and fire as it instantly swept through space!

Splurt! A large head flew into the air, its eyes filled with regret!

Candice was defeated!

"Challenge complete. Luo Shen wins!" An electronic voice echoed through the hall.

Everyone in the hall fell silent.

Their eyes turned toward the door of the Challenge Room.

The first super rookie in Training Camp history to defeat an old student ranked among the top fifty immediately after joining the Training Camp had appeared, and his name was—Luo Shen!

Click!

The door to the Challenge Room opened, and Luo Shen walked out with a beaming smile.