Battle with the Silver Dragon
Spring passed and autumn came.
In the blink of an eye, another half a year had passed.
In his third year in the Magical Beast Forest, Luo Feng sat cross-legged beneath an ancient tree, training diligently. Battle-qi surged through his body, and his bloodline and heart were strengthened once more.
Peak of the Eighth-level Warrior rank.
In three years, he had advanced from the peak of the sixth-level warrior rank when he first entered the Magical Beast Forest to the peak of the eighth, crossing two whole ranks. What a terrifying cultivation speed! A peak eighth-level warrior at nineteen, Luo Feng had shown everyone through his own example what hard work meant. Luo Feng had never considered himself a genius; a true expert needed only a heart that would never give up.
Having comprehended Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy, Luo Feng was now even more terrifying in battle. Swift Wind was a move he had created by combining his understanding of the speed of the Laws of Wind with Battle-qi. How powerful was it now? Luo Feng didn't know, but a few months ago, he had used it to seriously injure the Black-Striped Giant Python, a Level Nine Magical Beast.
The Black-Striped Giant Python was considered a superior existence among pythons. A mature Black-Striped Giant Python was generally a Level Nine Magical Beast, comparable to a hydra. Among pythons, the Black-Striped Giant Python was known as a war machine.
In the original story, Linley had encountered one of these Level Nine Magical Beasts while fleeing during the Day of Destruction. Linley had still been a seventh-level warrior then, and his Dragonblood Warrior transformation had brought him to the early stage of the ninth rank, but he hadn't even broken through its defenses.
Having read the original story thoroughly, Luo Feng naturally wanted to test how far he was from Linley when he saw the Black-Striped Giant Python. He then discovered that he could easily break through its defenses. Delighted, Luo Feng fought the Black-Striped Giant Python and beat it until it fled. He couldn't be bothered to pursue it, since he had only wanted to test the extent of his strength.
All in all, however, Luo Feng had overlooked one thing: Linley had only been seventeen at the time, and even after his dragon transformation, he had only reached the early stage of the ninth rank. Most importantly, he had fought entirely with Battle-qi. Luo Feng himself was now nineteen and a late-stage eighth-level warrior. The gap between a ninth-level warrior and a late-stage eighth-level warrior wasn't large, and Luo Feng had comprehended Wielding Something Light as Though It Were Heavy and created his own move, Swift Wind. The two hadn't been on the same starting line at all.
Luo Feng had never been a genius. Everything he had achieved today was entirely the result of more than ten years of constant hard work. Even so, compared with Linley's talent and cultivation speed, Luo Feng still paled in comparison.
At this point in the original story, Linley had also comprehended Wielding Something Heavy as Though It Were Light. In magic, he had reached the eighth rank in two elements, and after transforming, he was a peak ninth-level warrior. Luo Feng, meanwhile, was a peak eighth-level warrior. He had a talent for magic, but had never cultivated it. Luo Feng was self-aware enough to know that Linley's progress in magic had been so rapid because of Flat Blade carving, while he himself had nothing. If he tried to follow Linley's example and cultivate both magic and martial arts, he would probably be hovering around the sixth rank as a mage, just like Dixie, and have even less time to cultivate Battle-qi. So Luo Feng made a clean break.
"Wa'ersi, come out. I know you've been waiting a long time for this day. Now it's finally here. So, are we still going to fight?" Luo Feng asked with a mild smile.
How could he not guess what Wa'ersi was thinking? Wa'ersi had even brought him that Nine-Leaf Red Crabapple Fruit. How could Luo Feng not know that Wa'ersi had already acknowledged him in his heart? Otherwise, why would he have given Luo Feng a natural treasure he had kept for hundreds of years?
"Cry! Cry!" Dragon cries rang out from the sky, and a magnificent, noble silver-white dragon appeared above Luo Feng. Though his bearing was arrogant, it was easy to see a trace of delight in the silver dragon's eyes.
"Wa'ersi, you rascal, you've finally come out. It's been half a year, hasn't it?" Having broken through to the peak of the eighth-level warrior rank, Luo Feng was in excellent spirits as he smiled at Wa'ersi.
Half a year ago, while Luo Feng had still been absorbed in training, Wa'ersi had brought him a Nine-Leaf Red Crabapple Fruit. Seeing the pained look on Wa'ersi's face, Luo Feng had easily guessed the value of the little plant in his hand.
After dropping the Nine-Leaf Red Crabapple and roaring something at Luo Feng, the silver dragon had flown away. Luo Feng knew Wa'ersi was reminding him that he had only half a year left, telling him to train hard and that he would return in half a year. In truth, Luo Feng could also tell that the silver dragon Wa'ersi had long since accepted him; it was only the dragon race's damned pride that kept him from admitting it. Perhaps the silver dragon had accepted Luo Feng when Luo Feng risked his life to save him, fighting desperately to get him out.
"Cry, cry!" The silver dragon made a sound, and Luo Feng, who had spent so long with him, naturally knew what he meant.
"Still won't admit it, huh? In a moment, even if you want to cry at my place, you won't be able to. All right, let's fight. If you lose, you won't have anything left to say, will you?" Luo Feng said with a smile.
"Cry! Roar!" The silver dragon roared at Luo Feng, seemingly angry that Luo Feng was looking down on him.
"But let's agree on this first: don't go flying up into the sky. That wouldn't be any fun. I'm neither a Saint Domain expert nor a Wind Element mage, so there'd be no point in fighting," Luo Feng said, apparently having seen through the silver dragon's intentions.
The silver dragon looked at Luo Feng with disdain and said nothing. There was no telling whether he agreed or objected.
Before long, the battle between Luo Feng and the silver dragon Wa'ersi began. In an instant, the leaves around Luo Feng rose into the air. Under his control, countless leaves shot like arrows toward the silver dragon overhead.
The silver dragon was no less ready to fight. Beating his wings, he lashed out with his tail, crushing all the leaves shooting into the air. Then he withdrew his tail like lightning and landed on the ground.
At that moment, Luo Feng appeared directly in front of the silver dragon. As he threw a punch, fist shadows filled the sky, and piercing shrieks spread in every direction.
A silver-white wall of light appeared in front of the silver dragon in an instant: the ninth-rank light-element spell, Wall of Protection. At the same time, silver-white light rose from the surface of its body, and it quickly collided with Luo Feng's flying fists. "Bang! Bang!" Deafening, terrifying impacts rang out again and again.
Whoosh! Luo Feng instantly flew back more than a hundred meters.
"Ha, Wa'ersi, what do you think? My Swift Wind is faster than before, isn't it?" Luo Feng said with a smile.
The silver dragon looked at the small cracks in the Wall of Protection before him, astonished by Luo Feng's strength. He had improved so quickly in just a few short years?
"Wa'ersi, let's continue. Let's both go all out and have a good fight!" Luo Feng declared boldly.
The silver dragon Wa'ersi also dismissed the Wall of Protection in front of him and turned into a streak of light as he charged toward Luo Feng. Luo Feng went all out as well, and the two clashed in an instant.
Swift Wind, accompanied by countless sounds of air being split, collided with Wa'ersi's dragon claws. Luo Feng and the silver dragon both attacked madly. Fist shadows flashed, sounds of rushing and whistling air filled the surroundings, and afterimages flickered constantly in the air. Their movements were impossible to see.
The surrounding trees and boulders continued to suffer, but Luo Feng and the silver dragon Wa'ersi still couldn't decide a winner.
Several hours later, Luo Feng and the silver dragon Wa'ersi finally separated. Luo Feng was covered in blood, while the silver dragon had lost the nobility and elegance he had possessed when they first met. His scales were broken, and his face was bruised and swollen. With none of a dragon's pride left, he looked pitifully at Luo Feng.
"Do you concede?" Luo Feng asked with a faint smile. Although the two of them had yet to decide a winner, he dared to say that, given his own ferocity, the silver dragon definitely wouldn't dare continue. He had been frightened by Luo Feng's madness.
"Roar!" Wa'ersi suddenly let out a cry of grief and indignation.