Chaos Heaven-Dominating Technique

"What... what just happened?" The crowd stared at the unconscious Viper, exchanging bewildered glances. No one knew what had occurred. They had clearly seen Viper advancing toward the summit, but just as he reached the halfway point, he had suddenly vomited blood and been sent flying without warning. Now, his body was covered in dark bruises, as if he had been crushed by some immense force.

Viper was renowned for his defense. In fact, he was ranked among the top twenty on the Hidden Dragon List for that very skill. What kind of energy pressure could be so powerful that even he couldn’t withstand it, getting repelled in an instant? At that moment, the Martial Artists who had just claimed the Divine Martial Venerable’s pressure had faded couldn’t help but swallow nervously. A trace of fear flickered in their eyes as they gazed at the summit.

"Next? Who else wants to give it a try?" the Divine Martial Elder asked nonchalantly, ignoring the crowd’s mood. A faint smile played on his lips.

Hearing this, the crowd members just looked at one another, none daring to step forward and try. After seeing what happened to Viper, they were all a little scared.

"I’ll go!" After a long moment, another Martial Artist finally stepped forward. He stood before the stone steps with a solemn expression.

"That’s Zhu Tian, ranked thirty-second on the Hidden Dragon List. I wonder how far he’ll get?" Seeing the slender Martial Artist, the surrounding crowd began to murmur amongst themselves.

"You may begin," the Divine Martial Elder said coolly, seeing that Zhu Tian was ready.

The moment the Divine Martial Elder finished speaking, Zhu Tian’s figure shot forward. In the blink of an eye, he had already covered several dozen meters. His speed was a notch faster than Viper’s.

"As expected of a powerhouse ranked thirty-second on the Hidden Dragon List. He’s so fast!" one of the Martial Artists at the base of the mountain exclaimed in admiration, watching Zhu Tian dart forward like a lightning bolt.

"Zhu Tian’s strength surpasses Viper’s. He’ll probably make it farther than him," a Martial Artist muttered.

Shen Haoran and the others also watched Zhu Tian’s rapid advance, observing him carefully.

When Zhu Tian sprinted to the spot where Viper had fallen, his body came to a sudden halt. Sweat dripped down his cheeks, and his expression twisted in pain.

"It’s happening again. Is Zhu Tian going to fail in the same place?" The crowd watched Zhu Tian’s trembling body, their hearts in their throats.

However, after pausing there for a long moment, Zhu Tian finally took a step forward. He then began to trudge onward with great difficulty. From that point on, every single step seemed to drain a massive amount of his strength. Judging by his beet-red face, it was clear he was not having an easy time.

THUD...

In the end, Zhu Tian managed to go about a hundred meters farther than Viper before he could no longer hold on and tumbled down from the mountain peak.

"Sigh, so he couldn’t make it either? Just how strong is the Divine Martial Venerable’s pressure? Not even Zhu Tian, ranked thirty-second, could handle it."

As the crowd sighed in unison, Shen Haoran’s eyes narrowed. ’After watching Zhu Tian and Viper’s attempts,’ he mused, ’I see it now. The Divine Martial Venerable’s energy pressure is concentrated above the halfway point. Below that, it’s just the residual aura leaking down. The real trial must begin at the midway mark.’

"Next!" Seeing Zhu Tian’s failure, the Divine Martial Elder’s impartial voice rang out once more. This time, however, no one dared to try.

"Hmph. A bunch of losers. I’ll go!" Seeing that no one else was stepping up, Ouyang Shaoyu snorted with contempt. With a single leap, he landed at the bottom of the stone steps.

"Begin!" The instant the Divine Martial Elder spoke, Ouyang Shaoyu’s figure vanished from his spot. When he reappeared, he was already hundreds of meters up the path.

"Worthy of being Ouyang Shaoyu! The power of the fourth-ranked expert on the Hidden Dragon List is truly on another level compared to Viper and Zhu Tian," the crowd cried out in shock at his astonishing speed.

Even Shen Haoran was a little impressed. ’As obnoxious as Ouyang Shaoyu is, his strength is undeniable,’ he thought. ’He wouldn’t be fourth on the Hidden Dragon List if he didn’t have some real skill.’

Ouyang Shaoyu sprinted all the way, quickly reaching the point where Viper had fallen. Yet, his figure didn’t pause for even a second. As if he were walking on flat ground, he instantly passed through that barrier.

"So powerful! The energy pressure that stopped Viper and Zhu Tian doesn’t seem to affect Ouyang Shaoyu at all!" A look of adoration appeared on the faces of the crowd as they watched him continue without slowing down.

On the stone steps, a wicked smirk touched Ouyang Shaoyu’s lips. He increased his pace again, rapidly approaching the summit!

At this point, his speed finally began to slow. The closer he got to the summit, the stronger the pressure pouring down from the mountain became. At this altitude, the pressure was no longer something Ouyang Shaoyu could simply ignore.

Ouyang Shaoyu’s pace had now slowed to a crawl. He began to ascend one deliberate step at a time. The higher he climbed, the slower he became, until, by the time he was near the summit, his speed was comparable to a snail’s.

By now, Ouyang Shaoyu’s face was flushed red. The pressure from the summit had become almost tangible, forcing his body to bend over. His bones began to creak and pop as his frame trembled uncontrollably.

Seeing this, the crowd’s hearts leaped into their throats again. Although they didn’t know how intense the energy pressure Ouyang Shaoyu was enduring was, judging from his condition, it had to be terrifying.

’Damn it!’ At this moment, Ouyang Shaoyu felt as if an entire mountain was pressing down on him. It was so heavy, so immense, that it felt completely insurmountable.

"You’re already dead, and you still think you can suppress me? Get lost!" After a moment, Ouyang Shaoyu roared. An extremely cold, dark aura erupted from his body and began to clash with the energy pressure pouring down from the summit. Ripples, visible to the naked eye, formed in the air before him as his body slowly straightened up.

"That aura... it’s so strong! It must have reached the level of a Tier Nine Spirit Marquis Peak!" Ouyang Shaoyu’s aura washed down from the mountaintop, causing the crowd to gasp in awe.

"He’s moving forward again!" a Martial Artist shouted.

High on the mountain, Ouyang Shaoyu once again pushed forward. The dark, cold aura from his body battled against the energy pressure in front of him, sending countless sparks flying in an exceptionally fierce-looking confrontation.

But as terrifying as the energy pressure was, it couldn’t stop an Ouyang Shaoyu who was going all out. After a long moment, he finally set foot on the blood-red summit.

The moment he stepped onto the summit, the surrounding pressure vanished instantly. Ouyang Shaoyu’s whole body relaxed. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked down at the crowd below, his eyes filled with contempt...