Combat Skill Ranking Appears, Shocks the Continent (Part 2)

In the center of the valley stood a middle-aged man in a Dark Iron Patterned Outfit. The outfit's fabric was tough, with fine silver thread sewn along the collar and cuffs, glinting coldly in the faint light. His sleeves were tightly bound around the middle of his forearms, exposing healthy bronze skin. His muscles were as solid as the roots of an old tree, every inch of his physique radiating the explosive force forged through years of training.

A wisp of pale violet lightning quietly flowed above his palm. The lightning was not a single pure shade. As it spilled from between his fingers, it carried a faint lotus-purple hue; by the time it reached the center of his palm, it deepened into a rich eggplant violet, its edges wrapped in an extremely faint silver gleam, like silk steeped in moonlight.

Unlike ordinary electricity, it was not frenzied, but possessed a certain liveliness—at times darting through the lines of his palm like a swimming snake, at others condensing into tiny motes of light that bounced gently. Each leap came with a crisp crackle. The sound was not as deafening as thunder, yet it carried a quality that pierced the heart. Listening closely, one could even make out a faint sizzling beneath it, as though the air itself had been forcibly ionized into a new form.

At the same time, the pale violet lightning in his palm suddenly surged! It no longer flowed docilely, but burst forth like a colossal beast breaking free of its restraints, spreading upward from his fingertips. Within a single breath, it had enveloped his entire wrist, then transformed into lightning pillars half a meter thick, spiraling around both fists. The pillars were not solid, but woven from countless fine currents. Their outer layers glowed with a deep purple halo, while their cores shone silver-white. With every rotation, tiny sparks scattered, landing on the fallen leaves below and instantly scorching small black marks into them.

"Thunderstorm Fist!"

The man shouted in a low voice. It was not loud, yet it carried a deep power that penetrated the heart, as if the entire valley trembled faintly beneath that cry. Before his words had even faded, his fists slammed into the ground like cannonballs fired from their barrels—the force of his punches ripped through the air with a sharp howl, and the lightning pillars around his fists swelled in response, their purple radiance instantly illuminating the whole valley.

"Boom—!"

The first to suffer beneath the lightning web was a Millennium Camphor Tree on the right, so thick that three people could barely wrap their arms around it. Its trunk was massive and hard, its bark covered in dark brown patterns. Yet the instant the lightning web touched it, a sharp crack rang out—the bark first blackened in an instant, wisps of greenish smoke rising from it. Then, a gash deep enough to expose the wood spread from the middle of the trunk. Accompanied by a thunderous crash, the entire tree snapped in half at the waist, its upper portion smashing heavily into the ground and sending fallen leaves and soil flying everywhere. The wood at the break had been completely carbonized, black as charcoal, with fine smoke still curling from its edges. The air was instantly filled with the strange mingled scent of camphor and burning wood.

Even more alarming were the countless fine currents mixed into the thunderstorm. Those currents were as thin as ox hairs, yet carried tremendous destructive force—when they struck a slab of granite nearby, a muffled bang sounded, and the granite exploded at once, fragments scattering in all directions. Even the largest pieces were no bigger than a fist, and they still gave off heat after falling to the ground. When they struck a thicket on the left, its branches and leaves curled up instantly before bursting into scarlet flames. The fire crawled up the branches and devoured the entire thicket, leaving only the crackling of burning wood echoing through the valley.

"Mysterious Tier High Rank... and it possesses such power! If every member of Spirit Hall's Soul Master legion learned this technique..." The Special Envoy's heart pounded wildly as the image of a battlefield arose in his mind—countless Soul Masters unleashing Thunderstorm Fist at once, purple lightning webs blanketing the battlefield and completely shattering the enemy's formations. With Spirit Hall's Titled Douluo added to the equation, the defenses of the two great empires would surely collapse at a single blow. "By then, their combat power could increase by at least thirty percent. Unifying the continent would no longer be a fantasy!" He unconsciously touched the Spirit Hall token at his waist. Its cold touch did nothing to quell the burning heat in his heart—Spirit Hall had to obtain this Battle Skill!

On the hillside opposite, Ning Fengzhi stood beneath a pine tree, the hem of his green robe swaying gently in the wind.

"Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Support Soul Skills ultimately still have their shortcomings..." Ning Fengzhi's gaze rested on that scorched patch of earth, his eyes full of mixed emotions. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Support Soul Skills were unrivaled across the continent, greatly enhancing a teammate's Soul Power, speed, and attack power, but they could not improve the "quality" of Soul Skills themselves. When facing a wide-area, high-damage Soul Skill like Thunderstorm Fist, even Assault System Soul Masters enhanced to their limits would find it difficult to evade completely, while support Soul Masters themselves would have no ability to fight back. Over the years, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had always relied on powerful Assault System sects. Though it remained among the Upper Three Sects, it had always lacked a measure of confidence.

"But if support Soul Masters could learn this technique..." Ning Fengzhi's eyes suddenly lit up, and an intense desire welled up in his heart. If support Soul Masters could master Thunderstorm Fist, they would not only be able to enhance their teammates in battle, but also defend themselves when ambushed, or even strike back proactively—then the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would completely cast off its fate of "relying on Assault System sects" and become a sect truly capable of standing on its own! He unconsciously clenched his Jade Folding Fan, the ink-wash design on its surface blurring slightly beneath his grip. "No matter what, I have to find a way to obtain this Battle Skill, even if I must pay any price!"

Meanwhile, atop a massive boulder on the northern side of the valley, Yu Tianxin of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan crouched halfway down. His blue fitted outfit clung tightly to his body, while the silver dragon patterns embroidered along its hem glimmered in the faint light. A fiery gleam erupted in his eyes as he stared fixedly at the lingering purple glow in the man's palm. His hands unconsciously tightened around the Thunder Pattern Jade at his waist—the jade pendant was a treasured artifact of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, its surface engraved with intricate lightning patterns. It was warm to the touch, but now he gripped it so tightly that it grew faintly hot, his knuckles turning white from the force.

"The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul already excels at lightning. If it could be combined with the force-generating techniques of Thunderstorm Fist..." Yu Tianxin's heart raced as an image of lightning's power doubling appeared in his mind—normally, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's Lightning Soul Skills were mostly straight-line attacks. Though immensely powerful, they were easy for opponents to dodge. But if he could learn Thunderstorm Fist's dispersal technique, the lightning could transform into a web and cover a vast area, its destructive power surely surpassing anything from before!

"Then the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan will surely surpass the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and become the foremost of the Upper Three Sects!" A trace of resolve flashed through Yu Tianxin's eyes. He gently stroked the Thunder Pattern Jade at his waist, feeling the warm smoothness it gave off—the Thunder Pattern Jade was a supreme treasure used by the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to store Lightning Soul Power, and the entire clan possessed only three. "We must obtain this Battle Skill! Even if we have to trade every Thunder Pattern Jade in the clan, it will be worth it!"

Just then, the scene abruptly shifted. The valley faded away like a receding tide, replaced by a towering mountain—a mountain a full thousand meters high, its slopes rising from the foot to the summit in tiered layers, like a gigantic sword thrust straight into the clouds. The peak was covered in thick snow, which gleamed dazzlingly silver beneath the sunlight, as though the mountain wore a snow-white crown. From time to time, the wind swept past, lifting fine snow grains into white arcs through the air before they slowly settled back onto the snow and vanished.