Fighting in Shackles

Before the words were even finished, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's giant claws were already upon them.

Bai Yushan dodged the attack with Lightning Flash Step to its limit, narrowly avoiding the claw. But the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's attack followed immediately, its two giant claws swinging in turn, creating a dense web of claw shadows that completely sealed off the space around Bai Yushan.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, with its six thousand years of cultivation, was not only stronger and faster, but its combat instincts had also improved significantly. It seemed to have figured out Bai Yushan's movement patterns, anticipating each attack on Bai Yushan's evasive path.

Pfft.

Bai Yushan was caught off guard and his thigh was struck by the claw. A deep, bone-revealing wound instantly opened up, and blood gushed out.

He staggered, his movements slowing down considerably.

In that brief moment of respite, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's other massive claw slammed down.

Just then, Bai Yushan finished the last dish on the table, wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth, and slowly stood up. He looked at Long Hengxu, who had a troubled expression, with a straightforward and helpless look, as if he were looking at a slow-witted elder.

"Director Long, your thinking is too rigid. What's the point of having me go on stage and fight a bunch of people my own age? What's so interesting about a fight where everyone gets slapped one by one?"

"Just send the complete recordings of my two trials at the Spirit Ascension Platform to all board members. Especially the final battle against the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, that's far more convincing than the showy match in the Class Promotion Tournament."

After saying that, Bai Yushan gently shook his head, a hint of helplessness in his eyes.

"You couldn't even think of such a simple solution? You must have been too busy with work lately."

After speaking, Bai Yushan didn't linger. He casually put his hands in his pockets, slowly turned around and walked out of the cafeteria, intending to return to his dormitory to rest and recuperate, and to regulate the nascent Magnetic Field Power within his body.

Long Hengxu was standing at the dining table, froze for three seconds before his thoughts, which had been frozen in place, suddenly cleared up completely.

He had been trapped by preconceived notions, believing that only public offline competitions could convince the board of directors to recognize Bai Yushan's talent. However, he completely overlooked the significance of the two actual battles on the Spirit Ascension Platform.

Yes!

Rather than letting those ignorant board members watch Bai Yushan fight against those new students whose strength is far inferior, it would be better to show them a more realistic, bloody, and shocking video of the Spirit Ascension Platform.

Especially the final battle against the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear; Long Hengxu, who was watching it live, was absolutely thrilled!

Witnessing such a battle, I believe even if they died, it would have been worth the price of admission!

Back in his dormitory, Bai Yushan quickly washed up, cleaning off the lingering smell of food and the dust brought by the evening breeze, before sitting cross-legged on his single bed.

He didn't immediately circulate his Soul Power for regular cultivation, nor did he deliberately activate the Bioelectricity in his body to increase the Electric Current Push value. He simply closed his eyes, focused all his mind on his mind, and replayed the entire battle between himself and the Thousand-Year Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear over and over again.

He was savoring the most unique state he had been in during that desperate battle. Whether hunting the Flame Demon Lion or training with Electric Current Push, he always maintained a casual and relaxed state, with a loose mind, making moves at will, and always leaving room for maneuver.

But when he faced Ferocious Beast far stronger than himself, locked in by its ultimate beastly might, and suffered severe injuries such as a severed arm, a cracked face, and a shattered sternum, he inexplicably entered a state of complete absorption and flow.

That state was quite wondrous. He didn't need to consciously control the high-voltage current in his meridians; the 87,000 volts of Bioelectricity would flow autonomously along with the surging fighting spirit in his heart. Every angle of the Hell Stab attack and every body movement during a dodging maneuver perfectly matched his transparent Electromagnetic Clarity perception.

The Spiritual Power, physical body, and electric current merged seamlessly into one, with no waste of Soul Power and no hesitation in movement.

The ultimate fighting state forced out by desperate circumstances is several times stronger than any deliberate training or exertion.

Bai Yushan wanted to take control of this flow state and no longer rely on the pressure of life-or-death situations to unlock his strongest combat power. He wanted to figure out what exactly was supporting him so that he refused to retreat even when his physical body was completely collapsing and his spirit was on the verge of exhaustion.

He immediately activated the remaining mental computing power of the Electromagnetic Clarity, his brain worked at high speed, and his super intelligence was fully deployed to actively Simulation the battlefield environment, allowing himself to once again immerse himself in that scorched and bloody battlefield of the Spirit Ascension Platform.

The terrifying aura of the Ferocious Beast crushing everything once again enveloped him. The suffocating feeling of impending death firmly enveloped his consciousness. The excruciating pain of his right arm muscles being torn apart by sharp claws, the piercing pain of half of his face being ripped open, and the dull pain of his chest bones breaking one after another were all precisely etched into his nerves, no different from when he was actually fighting.

A barrage of negative feelings Impact his consciousness, with fear, excruciating pain, and a sense of powerlessness following one after another.

But Bai Yushan clearly sensed that the more danger and pain he was subjected to from the outside world, the more fiercely his hidden will awakened.

Physical pain can torment the body, the pressure of a powerful enemy can restrict movement, and the threat of death can be imminent, but none of these things can shake his heart in the slightest.

The desperate situation was merely an external catalyst; his unwavering fighting spirit, determined to fight to the death, was already deeply rooted in the depths of his soul.

At this point in my thoughts, long-buried memories of my past life suddenly broke through the barriers and flooded my mind.

In his previous life, Bai Yushan never had a peaceful and smooth life. He did not finish primary school and relied on an orphanage to live from a young age. When he was still very young, the orphanage closed down completely, and he lost all his support at a young age. He wandered the streets alone, leaving school early and struggling to survive at the bottom of society.

In the years that followed, he was constantly surrounded by the coldness of human relationships and the darkness of the world. He witnessed the indifference of passersby in the face of the weak and suffering, the malice of the lower classes fighting each other for a bite of food, and the bullying and harassment without any reason.

Countless days and nights, he walked on the edge of life and death, and could die silently in some unknown corner at any moment.

In the dead of winter, he huddled in a cold, damp bridge arch to Yu Feng; in the sweltering heat of summer, he sought refuge in an abandoned recycling station with its stale air and pungent smell. He had no stable source of food, no warm clothing, and no one cared about his life or death.

Every time he was on the verge of despair and about to give up, a strong sense of resentment would rise in his heart.

He asked himself countless times why ordinary, insignificant people had to die in such a wretched state.

He didn't want to perish so silently and miserably.

During his leisure time while wandering, he often rummaged through discarded old books and comics at recycling stations. Qiao Feng, caught in a dilemma between his country and his family, refused to live a life of compromise and ultimately committed suicide by breaking an arrow at Yanmen Pass, using his own life to quell the conflict, remaining proud and unyielding until death. Guo Jing, knowing that the fall of Xiangyang was inevitable, still defended the isolated city to the death, ultimately dying alongside Huang Rong on the city wall, knowing defeat was certain but refusing to retreat for survival.

Surrounded by powerful enemies with no way to retreat, Xiao Shiyilang still stood tall with his sword, refusing to bow his head and beg for mercy; Li Xunhuan, severely injured and greatly weakened, faced with his mortal enemy pressing closer and closer, always chose to fight to the bitter end, never fleeing in a sorry state.

In addition, he had also read the tattered "Legend of the Son of Heaven," in which Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, died exhausted at the Wu River, refusing to cross the river to survive; Yin Shang King Zhou, deserted by his followers, still defended his isolated city and fought to the death, never bowing his head until his death.

Every character in these stories who refused to yield and met a tragic end became his spiritual support during his dark years of wandering.

He slowly came to understand the obsession etched into his blood.

"Good... good..." Bai Yushan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes shining with an alarming light. "Now that's more interesting."

He took a deep breath, and the 110,000 volts of electricity in his body surged wildly once more. Electric Current Push, the wounds healed rapidly, and the broken bones cracked as they were set anew.

But this time, the healing process was noticeably slower.

The continuous high-intensity combat had pushed his body to its limits.

While Electric Current Push can accelerate recovery, each recovery consumes his life force.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear wouldn't give him a chance to breathe.

It strode heavily toward Bai Yushan, each step causing the ground to tremble slightly. Its head was lowered, its bloodshot eyes fixed on Bai Yushan as if watching a dying prey.

"What, scared?" Bai Yushan grinned, revealing his bloodstained teeth.

He slowly raised his arms and crossed them in front of his chest.

"Purple Lightning Fierce Slash!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the electricity between his palms suddenly changed color. The arcs of electricity, originally silvery-white with a hint of indigo, quickly turned into a deep purple. The purple lightning seemed to be alive, churning and condensing in his palms, emanating a terrifying aura of destruction.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear seemed to sense the threat as well, stopping in its tracks and watching Bai Yushan warily.

"Go."

Bai Yushan suddenly swung both arms.

Two intersecting purple lightning strikes flew from his palms, carrying the power to tear through space, and slashed towards the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. Wherever the purple lightning passed, the air was scorched and crackled, and two deep furrows were plowed into the ground.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear roared, slamming out its two giant claws simultaneously, its dark gold Soul Power condensing into a thick shield in front of it.

Bang! Bang!

Two bolts of purple lightning struck the dark gold shield one after the other, producing a deafening explosion. The purple arcs of electricity collided and annihilated with the dark gold Soul Power, and the violent energy Impact spread in all directions.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear grunted, its massive body jolted back two steps. Two deep gashes appeared on the dark gold shield in front of it, almost cleaving it in two.

Bai Yushan's face also paled slightly.

This powerful Purple Lightning Fierce Slash nearly drained about 30% of the electrical current from his body.

But that's not enough.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's defense was stronger than he had imagined.

Just as Bai Yushan was preparing to gather electricity again, the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear moved.

It stomped the ground and its massive body shot forward like a cannonball. The speed it unleashed from its six-meter-tall frame was astonishing.

Bai Yushan's pupils suddenly contracted.

He tried to dodge, but found that his body was momentarily sluggish due to the strain from the previous Purple Lightning Fierce Slash.

That momentary hesitation determined the outcome.

Pfft.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's giant claw slammed down on Bai Yushan's body.

The sharp claws easily tore through the remaining Lightning Armor, ripping through muscle and bone. Bai Yushan's body was ripped to pieces like a rag doll, blood and bits of flesh flying everywhere.

"Well..."

Bai Yushan took one last look at the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, a slight smile seemingly lingering on his lips.

The next moment, his body turned into specks of white light and dissipated into the air.

The rules of the Spirit Ascension Platform state that death results in teleportation away.

The battlefield suddenly fell silent.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear stood still, panting heavily. It was covered in wounds: charred paw prints on its chest, bloody holes in its abdomen, scratches on its face, and a wound on its left arm joint, all of which were bleeding profusely.

But the most serious injury was to its right arm.

Just moments before, as the Purple Lightning Fierce Slash collided with the Dark Gold Shield, Bai Yushan, taking advantage of the explosion's cover, used his last ounce of strength to unleash Hell Stab - Three-Finger Spear Hand. Those three fingers, imbued with all the remaining electricity he possessed, pierced through the Dark Gold Shield like incredibly sharp spearheads, severing the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's right arm.

Blood gushed from the severed arm, Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear trembled with pain.

It glanced down at the severed arm on the ground, then at the spot where Bai Yushan had disappeared, and for the first time, fear welled up in its bloodshot eyes.

Almost there.

It was just a hair's breadth away from dying.

That Electric Current Man... that terrifying human child...

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear's heart was pounding.

This human child appears in the Spirit Ascension Platform every so often. Each time he appears, his strength has increased dramatically. The first time they met, he was just a little guy who could barely withstand a few moves from him; the second time, he was able to injure him; the third time, he forced out all his strength... This time, he almost killed him.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear is very intelligent.

It knew that if this trend continued, it would die at his hands sooner or later.

Therefore, it relentlessly hunted other Soul Beast and desperately improved its cultivation. It took an extremely short time to go from five thousand to six thousand years, all so that it would have enough strength to completely tear Bai Yushan apart the next time it encountered him.

But now it seems...

That's still not enough.

That Electric Current Man is progressing at a terrifying rate.

He's a monster.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear picked up its severed arm; the wound was still bleeding, but it could no longer feel the pain. Only a chilling fear remained in its heart—the agonizing countdown to death.

Next time.

Next time, next time.

There will come a time when that Electric Current Man will be so strong that it will be unable to resist.

That day will be its death day.

The Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear raised its head and glanced at the distant Gu Yue.

Gu Yue stood behind a tree, watching this side nervously. Although she was quite strong, she still had no chance of winning against the 6,000-year-old Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear. Especially since this Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear had just gone through a fierce battle and was at its most agitated.

Gu Yue held his breath; his palms were sweaty.

She was considering whether to take the opportunity to slip away.