Lord of Prayer - Chapter 340 - 227: After the Storm

A brilliant flash of light erupted from the ground, illuminating the sky. A thunderous roar that shook the heavens followed, seeming powerful enough to shatter one’s very Soul to dust.

Amidst the terrifying explosion and searing heat, the entire valley was reduced to scorched earth. Everything within it met with the purest form of destruction.

The number of contestants instantly plummeted by 75. Even those who had tried to flee could not escape the blast’s reach and were swallowed by the turbulent, destructive light. Their fates were unknown.

Seven kilometers away, at the Slaying Alliance’s base camp on a snowy mountaintop, violent tremors rippling out from the distance sent countless people sprawling. The Energy detector shot out sparks before exploding with a sharp POP amidst a puff of thick smoke.

Amidst the shaking, one of the contestants struggled to his feet, steadying himself on the edge of a table. He looked up at a screen and shouted in alarm, “The instruments detected Zhou Chen’s Essence Fluctuation! He’s here!”

Everyone grabbed their weapons and rushed out of the tents. The first thing they saw was a mushroom cloud rising against the distant sky. The magnificent, terrifying sight dominated their vision, leaving them all breathless.

’Just what the hell is the yield on that thing?’

Zhou Chen stood at the edge of a cliff, his back to the massive, slowly blooming mushroom cloud. He spread his arms as if flaunting his masterpiece to the world, a bright, joyous smile on his face. “Everyone, did you like my return gift?”

The next moment, a mighty Bailan hurricane swept in from the distance. It was like a charging army, an unstoppable force that swept through the camp, mercilessly ripping tents from the ground. Nearly half of the people there were sent tumbling by the immense wind pressure.

Dust and snow, carried on the gale, rolled in and obscured their vision, reducing visibility to less than two meters.

Suddenly, an authoritative roar echoed out. A tangible soundwave expanded, blowing away the dust that had enveloped the mountaintop.

Philis’s pupils flashed with a golden light. This was her Extraordinary Ability, Dragon Roar. In addition to being a sonic attack, it could also mentally stun her enemies.

The haze dissipated and visibility returned, but where Zhou Chen had just been standing, only a cluster of fading, pale-white flames remained.

Philis suddenly felt a deathly chill. The next instant, a cold blade was pressed against her neck, and a low chuckle sounded by her ear. “Miss, game over.”

Philis shuddered. Her lips parted, but no words came out. She finally let out a sigh. The moment Zhou Chen had appeared before them, the Slaying Alliance’s mission had been doomed to fail.

With a flash of the blade, Philis vanished on the spot, eliminated from the competition.

Zhou Chen turned to face the remaining contestants, their expressions grim. Purple arcs of Thunder Magnetism crackled across his Thunder Strike Blade, and a moment later, a layer of pale Fiery Fire blazed to life over it, lightning and fire twisting together.

Just as the contestants steeled themselves for a fight to the death, preparing to make their last stand, Zhou Chen vanished.

A flicker of pale fire ignited without warning behind the crowd. It swelled in size, and Zhou Chen’s figure materialized within it. Before anyone could react, he swung his blade in a wide sweep.

“Eat my Thunderfire Sword!”

Bursts of blood blossomed in the air. The tattered remnants of their group were instantly routed.

They were the command structure of the Slaying Alliance; their individual combat prowess wasn’t particularly high. Once Zhou Chen engaged them, he cut them down as easily as reaping wheat.

[Remaining Contestants: 187]

Thanks to Zhou Chen’s little stunt, the Slaying Alliance was almost completely wiped out. The few who slipped through the net were of no concern; they couldn’t make any waves. Coupled with the clashes breaking out among other contestants, the total number of participants had now dropped below two hundred.

Zhou Chen gazed at the still-expanding mushroom cloud in the distance, a sense of accomplishment welling up within him. ’It feels like setting off such a spectacular explosion is something to be proud of.’

Truth be told, he hadn’t put much effort into the explosion itself. He had only planted a small “fuse.”

That morning, Zhou Chen and Renie had been out searching for resources when they stumbled upon a vein of volatile metallic Ore. The Ore was called Red Tungsten-Titanium, and it would explode violently upon contact with an open flame.

The Energy released by the explosion of just five kilograms of Red Tungsten-Titanium was equivalent to one ton of TNT. And they had discovered nearly ten whole tons of it!

After that, they found an area with a massive underground natural gas deposit—in that very same valley.

And so, the plan became clear.

Renie took half a ton of the Red Tungsten-Titanium as payment. The two of them then buried the remaining nine and a half tons beneath the valley—since Renie possessed a Storage Artifact, she was able to transport all the Ore in just a few trips.

After that, all they had to do was leave a remotely detonated Alchemy Bomb, spread some false information, and wait for the fish to take the bait.

Once detonated, the Red Tungsten-Titanium and natural gas would react violently, triggering a horrifyingly massive explosion that would wipe out the entire Slaying Alliance in one fell swoop.

“Looks like that’s taken care of?” Renie walked over, clicking her tongue in admiration as she gazed at the distant mushroom cloud. “It’s gorgeous.”

“Thank you,” Zhou Chen said with sincerity. “This plan wouldn’t have gone so smoothly without you.”

“Don’t mention it. Now that it’s settled, we should get going.” Renie pointed into the distance. “I’m guessing you don’t want to pick a fight with the ’Magnetic Field Lunatic’ just yet, do you? If you ask me, that guy is more trouble than the entire Slaying Alliance put together.”

Following the direction Renie pointed, they saw a burly figure striding toward them across the vast, snow-covered plains. He had sharp, stern features and a natural air of intimidation. Despite the extreme cold, he wore only a thin tank top, as if completely unfazed by the biting frost.

Yao Hu looked up at the pair on the summit and cracked a grin. “Second and third place, huh… Making a scene this big, you’ve even got my blood pumping.”