Chapter 639: Thunderous Nine Heavens

Chapter 639 -306: Thunderous Nine Heavens

After making a circuit of the island, Chen Cheng arrived at the highest point of the cliff behind the cave. He scanned his surroundings but found no trace of other Martial Artists.

But this was clearly only temporary. The Lake Heart Island was located at the Kan Palace Array Hub, so other Martial Artists would arrive soon. If Chen Cheng wanted to occupy the island, he would inevitably have to fight a few battles.

‘I hope it’s not Ji Lingxiao who shows up. That would be a real problem!’

‘It would also be troublesome if the Kunlun Divine Son, Ning Hao, came. His Sun and Moon Mirror Light Sword is a Yellow Tier Spiritual Artifact, after all. I might not be a match for him.’

‘Of course, with my strength, even if I can’t win, I’m fully confident I can retreat with ease!’

Muttering to himself, Chen Cheng returned to the cave in a few leaps.

There, he saw the two Demon Rats, side-by-side, staring eagerly into the cave!

Chen Cheng was quite surprised at how well-behaved they were.

When they sensed Chen Cheng’s return, the two critters scampered back into their respective holes.

Once Chen Cheng stepped into the cave, they both snuck out again, standing at the entrance and peering inside with looks of intense longing.

‘Huh, they really didn’t dare to steal my Demon Crocodile Meat.’

Seeing the Demon Crocodile’s carcass lying untouched by the cave wall, Chen Cheng felt a little sheepish.

‘These two Demon Rats are so well-behaved. It’d be completely unjustifiable to make a meal out of them now!’

‘After all, the Demon Rats helped guard the cave. Even if they didn’t achieve anything, they put in the effort. They didn’t even steal food; they’re surprisingly honorable. Eating them now would just be bullying the weak.’

‘Ah, forget it. What can I say? I’m just too kind-hearted. If I’m ever going to eat you, I suppose I should at least establish some karmic connection first!’

With a long sigh, Chen Cheng drew his Long Saber, made a few quick cuts on the Demon Crocodile, and sliced off two pieces of meat, each weighing about a hundred pounds. He casually tossed them toward the cave entrance.

The two Demon Rats immediately squealed in delight and pounced on the Demon Crocodile Meat.

They had Spirituality, yes, but their intelligence seemed quite limited. Even though there were two pieces of Demon Beast Meat, they didn’t think to divide them. Instead, they instinctively fought over the piece that had been thrown first.

As a result, each bit into a corner of the same piece of meat and refused to let go.

When their tug-of-war proved fruitless, they angrily pounced on each other, tumbling into a ferocious brawl.

“Sigh…” Chen Cheng sighed softly, once again dismissing the idea of making a meal out of these two.

‘Who knows? If I ate their meat, I might become as simple-minded as them. I could turn into an idiot.’

The cave was only about fifty or sixty feet square. The walls and floor were pitted and uneven, making it uncomfortable to live in. It was also unsuitable for Cultivation or for detecting other Martial Artists who might arrive on the island.

Therefore, Chen Cheng decided to renovate it. He planned to carve out a private cultivation chamber and dig a tunnel leading to the highest point of the cliff behind the cave.

Having made his decision, Chen Cheng began to excavate the cliff wall with his Long Saber.

CLANG!

The Ink Gold Long Saber, which could cut through iron as if it were mud, easily sliced off a chunk of rock, but the impact produced a sharp ringing sound, as if striking metal.

‘Whoa! This ordinary-looking rock is surprisingly hard!’

Chen Cheng was momentarily startled, but then a wave of delight washed over him.

‘If the rock is this hard, I can dig a few secret passages. They could be used to slow down a fleeing enemy, or to make my own escape if I encounter a powerful foe.’

Of course, this also meant the excavation was rather slow. After digging for quite a while, he had only managed to create a tunnel about ten feet deep.

‘At this rate, digging out the chamber and tunnels I envision will probably take two or three days. That’s a real waste of time.’

‘Forget it. I’ll just dig one simple tunnel.’

Just then, the two Demon Rats ran into the cave. They squatted nearby, their round eyes watching Chen Cheng excavate the tunnel.

They had apparently finished their squabble and finally split the two pieces of Demon Crocodile Meat, each carrying one back to its hole.

But it seemed they were reluctant to eat the meat right away, so after stashing it, they came back out.

Having received such a generous gift from Chen Cheng, they seemed to have warmed up to him.

Seeing Chen Cheng struggling to carve the rock, the two creatures found it amusing. They huddled together, chittering as if whispering to each other. Occasionally, they would puff out their large bellies and let out a strange cry, which sounded suspiciously like a laugh.

“Hah!”

Seeing their behavior, Chen Cheng’s eyes lit up. He came out of the tunnel and started making gestures at them.

But the two critters were clueless and didn’t understand at all. They just stared blankly at Chen Cheng with their wide eyes.

Chen Cheng had no choice but to go back into the tunnel and demonstrate, carving the rock wall and carrying out the stones.

After he demonstrated twice, the two Demon Rats finally, belatedly, understood. Chittering, they charged into the tunnel.

They began to gnaw at the rock wall with their sharp, foot-long fangs. CRUNCH, CRUNCH.

And wouldn’t you know it, rats are natural burrowers. Tier Four Demon Rats were even more formidable; they gnawed through the hard rock wall as easily as if it were tofu.

The speed at which they excavated the tunnel left Chen Cheng completely in the dust.

With these two laborers doing the work, Chen Cheng’s job became much easier. He just had to stand behind them and shout directions.

“Wrong, dig upwards!”

“Dig over here! Go deeper!”

“Good, good, stop! We need to dig a chamber here. Dig out all sides!”

“Don’t just stand there, keep digging!”

“Hurry up and move the excavated rock out of here, don’t block the tunnel. That’s right, pile it up in the main cave.”

…

Two hours later, the chamber was finally complete.

However, directing the Demon Rats was quite exhausting. In the end, they only dug two tunnels. One led directly to the highest point of the cliff, while the other went toward the Cold Pool, stopping at a point where the Cold Pond Water began to seep through.

The Demon Rats had worked so hard, so Chen Cheng couldn’t be too stingy. He rewarded them with some more Demon Crocodile Meat.

Lunch was roasted Demon Beast Meat as usual. After eating and taking a short rest, Chen Cheng spent an hour on his Cultivation of the Iron Armor Demon Suppression Skill before heading up the tunnel to the top of the cliff.

Here, Chen Cheng had specifically dug out a stone platform for practicing the Nine Heavens Thunder Shocking Hammer Technique.

The platform was surrounded by rock walls over ten feet high, so he didn’t have to worry about anyone seeing him from a distance.

‘Alright then, let’s see if I can use the Demon Seed to draw out the lightning!’

Chen Cheng stood tall, holding the Military Dao Combat Killing Hammer. He tentatively withdrew the Cyan Heaven Dharma Thought Power that enveloped the Demon Seed, exposing one of its arms!

As the aura of the Demonic Thought spread out, the Celestial Dome Barrier constructed by the grotto’s Array immediately trembled slightly. Then, in the sky above his head, thick, arm-like streams of lightning energy suddenly began to surge.

The power was just as immense as when Chen Cheng had fully released the entire Demon Seed.

‘Whoa!’

Chen Cheng was startled and quickly re-enveloped the entire Demon Seed with his Telekinesis.

The lightning energy swiftly dissipated along with it.

Chen Cheng could clearly sense that the lightning energy had dissipated into the vicinity of the Lake Heart Island.

In other words, because the Demon Seed’s location was closest to the Lake Heart Island’s Kan Palace Array Hub, when he drew out the lightning, he was primarily mobilizing the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi from that Array Hub.

‘So that’s how it works?’

He muttered to himself, then slowly withdrew the Cyan Heaven Dharma Thought Power again, this time exposing only a single finger of the Demon Seed.

The sky trembled slightly once more. Immediately, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi gathered, condensing into chopstick-thin streams of lightning energy.

‘A bit weaker.’

The Demon Seed exposed another finger, and the lightning energy intensified!

‘Still not enough!’

The Demon Seed extended another finger…

He continued until the Demon Seed’s entire palm was exposed, and the streams of lightning energy in the sky had grown to the thickness of a thumb.

‘I should be able to handle this!’

Chen Cheng raised the Military Dao Combat Killing Hammer and waited quietly.

The lightning energy gathered more and more densely. Flashing Thunder Arcs intertwined, radiating a ferocious and violent aura as they smashed down toward the Demon Seed within Chen Cheng!

Chen Cheng didn’t dodge or evade. He activated all his body’s Qi Blood Power and swung the Military Dao Combat Killing Hammer forcefully to meet the lightning head-on.

“First Strike, Thunderous Nine Heavens!”

The goal of the Hammer Technique was to pour all one’s strength into it, so that every swing was like a clap of thunder, its sound shaking the nine heavens.

The Hammer Technique resonated with the same frequency as lightning, its power matching the thunder itself. Anyone who tried to block it would be swept aside. This was Thunderous Nine Heavens!

To achieve this effect, one had to face the lightning head-on and truly experience its might!

BOOM!

The Thunder Arc exploded against the Military Dao Combat Killing Hammer. Chen Cheng felt his entire body go numb. He stiffened, nearly losing his grip on the hammer’s handle.

He activated his Qi Blood Power again, his True Force surging wildly to dispel the paralyzing sensation.

But the second Thunder Arc was already crashing down!

“Again!”

Chen Cheng roared and swung his hammer with all his might once more!

BOOM!

This time, the lightning energy was even more ferocious and violent. It slammed into the Military Dao Combat Killing Hammer, unleashing an incomparably powerful shockwave that instantly spread through Chen Cheng’s entire body.

It made him tremble violently, and he nearly collapsed.

And a third, even more ferocious bolt of lightning, was already threatening to strike.

‘I can’t take it!’

Chen Cheng couldn’t possibly withstand another direct hit. He hurriedly mobilized his Cyan Heaven Dharma Thought Power to heavily envelop the Demon Seed once more.

The lightning energy in the sky slowly dissipated!

‘No good. I have to take it easier!’

After resting for a good while, Chen Cheng exposed the Demon Seed’s aura again, this time revealing only four fingers.