Amazing Skill: Tossing the Wok

"Send me on my way? Me?"

Jiang Lingfeng pointed at his own nose, then burst into unrestrained laughter.

"Hahaha..."

"You're sending me on my way? With that broken Tang sword of yours?"

Facing his enemy's mockery, Zhou Yue casually tossed aside the purple Tang sword in his hand—its durability already depleted—letting it clatter to the ground.

Then, from a nearby soul tomb, he rummaged out a plain white Tang sword and gave it a few experimental swings.

This move left the crowd of cultivators behind him utterly stunned.

What difference could a white Tang sword possibly make compared to a chipped purple one?

Besides, the biggest problem right now was that Zhou Yue couldn’t even break through his opponent's defenses!

All he got were endless deflected strikes!

Zhou Yue raised his head, gazing at the thunder-churned sky, then clasped his fists with a smirk. "Zhou thanks the elder for this gift!"

As the onlookers stood bewildered, Zhou Yue dropped into a horse stance, ready to fight again.

At this moment, the Fireborn’s ultimate state hadn’t yet faded. The flames covering Zhou Yue’s body burned fiercer, as if alive.

Suddenly—

His robes transformed into black-red armor, and two phantom-like dark dragon horns sprouted from his forehead.

His hair, swaying with the rhythm of the flames, turned a blazing crimson.

He looked like a dragon god cloaked in fire.

......

......

Meanwhile.

Beneath the Celestial River Valley.

Du Cheng controlled a colossal rune-carved hand, crushing Li Moran tightly within its grasp.

He had tried to simply squeeze her to death, but the illusion’s rules strictly limited the Great Buddha’s attack methods.

He had only two choices:

Slam her into the ground or hurl her away.

Between the two, Du Cheng chose the latter—the one that would leave his opponent utterly hopeless.

"Little girl... go repent in the Dark Domain, hahaha!!"

With a maniacal laugh, Du Cheng flung her with all his might toward the edge of the Netherbone Continent.

There lay the endless Dark Domain.

Even if Li Moran didn’t die from the fall, without healing items, she’d never escape.

And even if she did, all she’d see were the countless soul tombs littering the Celestial City.

What could be more despairing than that?

Li Moran coldly observed the Demonic Cultivator’s every move.

Like an arrow loosed from a bow, she was hurled through the air.

As the Celestial River Valley and her comrades shrank in her vision, she still struggled to act.

But—

She was locked in the thrown state, powerless to free herself.

All she could do was watch helplessly as everything faded away.

Survival probability...

Zero.

‘If it were him... what would he do?’

Just as she resigned herself and closed her eyes—

A crisp, unmistakable sound of a grappling hook rang out from the depths of the valley.

The hook struck true, and Li Moran’s body jerked to a sudden halt, instantly breaking free from her trajectory.

She flipped midair and landed gracefully on a tree branch.

Below her stood a familiar figure, the ID [White Veil] displayed above his head, smiling up at her.

"Still need more practice."

The young man shook his head with a light chuckle.

As "White Veil" appeared, cheers erupted across the Celestial River Valley.

"Wh-White Veil?!"

"Another top-tier player! That demonic immortal is done for today!"

"Only White Veil could land a hook on a target moving that fast..."

"We’re definitely winning this!!!"

......

Li Moran glanced at the distant Demonic Cultivator, then down at "White Veil."

Lu Ze understood her unspoken question: "Together?"

"You can handle it alone."

He shook his head.

Slaying a god was most meaningful when done by the players themselves.

That last sequence—

Zhong Yi leading the charge against Du Cheng, players sacrificing themselves to block grabs and clear a path, Li Moran freezing the Great Buddha with precision—

It was already a flawless victory.

But the opponent’s hacks were too much: infinite ranged punches, immunity to freeze...

As the illusion’s designer, he had to offer just a little help.

"Don’t worry. You’ve got this."

Lu Ze smiled.

At the same time, the arrogant Du Cheng remained oblivious—the runes covering his body had already dimmed, their power fading.

Without hesitation, Li Moran acted.

Grappling hooks shot from her sleeves, propelling her toward the Great Buddha at blinding speed.

"Hah! Coming to die again?!"

Du Cheng raised his arms in triumph.

"You, that White Veil guy—you’re all just ants!!"

As Li Moran closed in, Du Cheng sprouted six additional arms, attacking at full force.

"Even if you try a hundred, a thousand times, you’ll never—"

His words froze mid-sentence.

Li Moran’s blade flashed.

Her body became a streak of cold light, piercing through the air.

Another flawless slash—

The Demonic Cultivator turned into an ice statue.

But this time, no matter how desperately Du Cheng activated his formation, he couldn’t break free!

"Three seconds..."

"More than enough to kill you ten thousand times over."

A frosty breath escaped Li Moran’s lips, her gaze icy.

Her robes shimmered under the glacial mist, transforming into an elegant light-blue dress adorned with delicate aquatic orchid ornaments.

Li Moran blinked in surprise, then smiled faintly.

This was the new skin Lu Ze had mentioned not long ago—[Fragrant Snow, Water Orchid].

Sword in hand, she dashed up the Great Buddha’s frozen arm.

The blade scraped against the ice, sending shards flying.

Amid the swirling frost, the sword itself morphed, taking the form of [Frostmourne].

Sprinting upward, Li Moran slashed relentlessly, carving wounds across the Buddha’s massive body.

"No... NO!"

Du Cheng watched in horror as the merciless goddess whittled away his health, his voice thick with despair.

Li Moran leaped—

Frostmourne struck true, piercing the weak point on the Great Buddha’s forehead...

......

......

Jiang Lingfeng frowned as he listened to the distress calls in the squad channel.

"Your friends seem to need help."

Zhou Yue grinned.

"Dealing with you won’t take more than—"

Before Jiang Lingfeng could finish, Zhou Yue—engulfed in flames—charged at him with terrifying speed.

"Hmph! Overestimating yourself!"

Jiang Lingfeng swung his blade.

With his godlike attack speed, Zhou Yue’s strike was deflected once again.

"Ha! You can’t possibly—"

Again, he was cut off.

Another wave of scorching heat surged toward him.

Instinctively, Jiang Lingfeng slashed.

Because two consecutive normal attacks would trigger the deflection mechanic.

Thanks to the formation, his speed surpassed everyone else’s, allowing him to counter any basic strike.

And charged attacks? The formation’s second effect—"100% Perfect Parry"—would nullify them.

In a duel of blades, he was invincible.

No one could stagger him!

But this time—

The heatwave didn’t carry a weapon.

It was Zhou Yue himself, lunging in with a devastating punch!

BAM!

Jiang Lingfeng’s sword was knocked aside.

For the first time, he staggered.

And in that split-second opening—

Zhou Yue seized it.

"Finally..."

"Got you!"

Zhou Yue enunciated each word deliberately, his eyes blazing with fury.

He crouched, then swung upward—Dragon Rise!

Jiang Lingfeng’s body, momentarily locked in stiffness, was sent airborne.

He tried to move, but couldn’t.

The underlying mechanics of the illusion couldn’t be altered!

He had thought that once he landed, he could start over.

Given another chance, he would surely dodge that bizarre straight punch.

But—

While still suspended mid-air, Jiang Lingfeng suddenly realized that Zhou Yue, who should have been rising alongside him, had vanished in a flash of flames!

His gaze dropped downward, only to see Zhou Yue already standing at his landing point.

That familiar crouch!

That familiar upward swing!

That familiar Dragon Rise!

Jiang Lingfeng was launched again, trapped in another cycle of aerial helplessness!

No movement—utterly paralyzed!

This technique of chaining Dragon Rises was a concept Zhong Yi had proposed shortly after the release of Naraka: Bladepoint.

By exploiting Ji Canghai’s terrifying physical prowess during his ultimate ability, one could cancel the recovery frames of the Dragon Rise, executing an infinite aerial combo.

Zhou Yue had long mastered it.

He just hadn’t considered using a straight punch to secure an absolute opening—until that moment in the illusion, when a supreme expert gave him a hint.

Only then did he perfect this infinite Dragon Rise.

Once, twice, thrice!

Jiang Lingfeng’s body showed no sign of stopping in mid-air!

On the fourth Dragon Rise—

The Tang blade in Zhou Yue’s hand suddenly ignited, transforming into a gleaming golden ladle.

"A ladle… like flipping a wok?"

Zhou Yue chuckled inwardly.

Honestly, it was a fitting image.

"Then I’ll call this move Wok Toss!"