Chapter 8: Two Types of Attack, Both Harder Than Hard

… With the warning, everyone craned their necks to look. Soon, exclamations of shock broke out among the crowd.

“There are skeletons in the river of blood!”

“So what? With the senior’s combat skills, aren’t they easy to handle?”

“But it’s too late. The senior has already set foot on the bridge—there’s no turning back.”

“Sigh…”

“Save your sighs,” said the brave soul who had first pointed the way, striking a somber note. “Do you think those skeletons are so easy to deal with? Let me share an inside tip: these skeletons were created by the oldest of the Six Kings of the Eastern Wastes—the Skeleton King himself. Each one is at commander level, and their bodies are even tougher than most commanders…”

Silence fell among the warriors.

The same speaker continued, “And that’s not all. Do you even know how many skeletons are in this river of blood?”

How many? Not just a handful…

All the warriors were at a loss. With a little imagination, they could picture a warrior plunging into the river, swimming against the current, only to have a whole host of skeletons—every one at commander level, their defense surpassing even that—suddenly surge forth and attack en masse…

The mere thought made their hair stand on end and their spirits tremble with dread.

Crossing realms was not something mortals should attempt.

“But at least, there’s still a chance,” sighed the brave one, gazing intently at the Celestial Bridge and murmuring, “When the senior returns, I’ll tell him the method. Maybe it’ll give him a better chance of success, help him fulfill his wish.”

Everyone nodded thoughtfully. The thunderous sounds still bombarded their ears.

Crackling—crackling—booming—rumbling—keeping as low as possible, pressed flat against the bridge, trying to make the most of the cover from the rain of arrows, their minds taut with focus, Duguyu Bieli began to inch forward.

Thanks to his clever use of force against force, the brilliance was no longer flawless; many areas now lay exposed. Although endless light still surged from behind, the explosions worked tirelessly to create openings. Those exposed spots appeared and vanished in unpredictable locations, ever shifting, full of uncertainty.

This, too, left Duguyu Bieli rather helpless. Under the constraints he faced, disrupting the surging waves of power was already his limit; he could not hope to fix the openings in place as he wished.

All he could do was to catch those fleeting gaps amid the dazzling explosions and, bracing himself against the “stray blasts,” dash through.

If no gap appeared, he could only redouble his efforts, force one open, then wait for his chance.

What Duguyu Bieli didn’t know was that, just as explosions rocked the Celestial Bridge, a sudden flash appeared in the inky heavens above.

Thunderbolt!

It wound across the sky like a dragon or serpent, taking a path all its own—a bolt of lightning.

And, as always, thunder followed close behind.

There really was thunder! It was as if the clashing brilliance, brimming with power, echoed and reverberated, gathering overhead. From the depths of the sky came a distant, rolling peal of thunder, drawing ever closer.

Crash!

The sound turned crisp, like the wrathful hand of the heavens lashing out, transforming into a ball of thunderfire that plummeted downward.

Then, it merged with the brilliance.

The power of lightning, too, was at tenfold strength—the standard for a commander.

But it had a special property.

Paralysis.

Luckily, this paralyzing effect did not spread to the brilliant force of the bridge itself.

At that moment, the Celestial Bridge was a wild chaos of streaming light and surging lightning, all tangled together.

Hundreds of warriors stood dumbfounded.

“What kind of situation is this?”

“I’ve never heard of lightning attacks during a bridge crossing.”

“I actually think it makes sense,” mused one warrior. “After all, has anyone ever heard of someone making it across the Celestial Bridge? Under this kind of suppression, let alone a warrior—even commanders would be helpless. Even a sovereign would be overwhelmed by these double assaults from bridge and sky, forced to drink their defeat in bitterness.”

“True.”

“Too bad we couldn’t contact the senior. Now that he might perish and return to reality, who knows when we’ll see him again.”

“Yes, a real shame.”

“I remember, the senior’s title is just a string of numbers…”

…

“In the end, the senior was a bit reckless.”

“Yes…”

Even from afar, they could sense the ferocity on the Celestial Bridge. The onslaught and suffocating pressure were so intense that none imagined they could survive in his place. The thought of the senior’s likely defeat filled them with regret.

“What’s going on? What’s all that commotion?”

A warrior at the very rear was staring at the bridge when someone beside him shouted a question, startling him. He turned, only to shudder even more—his entire field of vision was filled with a dense mass of warriors, at least ten thousand eyes all fixed on the Celestial Bridge. And more were still rushing over from afar.

“Hey, brother, we’re all in this together—are you ignoring me?” The questioner, left hanging, felt slighted and his tone grew sharper, as if ready to pick a fight at the slightest provocation.

Snapping out of his daze, the timid warrior hurriedly replied, “No offense, brother, don’t misunderstand me. I just got startled by the sight of thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people here.”

“Oh, is that so?” The man glanced back, a glimmer of understanding in his eyes, then repeated his question, “So, what’s happening here?”

“It’s the senior crossing the Celestial Bridge,” the warrior answered succinctly, naturally referring to Duguyu Bieli as “senior.”

The other man was taken aback. “Crossing the Celestial Bridge… Wait, who are you talking about? The senior? Did I hear that right?”

“That’s right.” The warrior looked as if it were only natural, pointing toward the bridge. “The senior is heading for the Commander’s Square, making his way across the bridge as we speak.”

“…What a commotion.” The man grimaced. Watching the flashes of light and the occasional streak of lightning, unable to see what was happening inside, he couldn’t help but marvel. “Who is this ‘senior’ you speak of, to even dare attempt the crossing? Doesn’t he know that since the Arena of Storms was established, no one has ever succeeded?”

“Well… I really don’t know whether the senior knows that or not.” The warrior sounded troubled.

The man laughed. “If he’s a senior, how could he not know? Brother, you’re funny.”

“I really don’t know!” the warrior protested, flustered. “The senior only joined the Arena of Storms recently, just after winning a hundred straight battles and advancing to the warrior rank. Then he immediately set out to cross the bridge. I honestly don’t know if he’s aware…”

“Wait, wait.” Now the man was confused, holding up his hand and shaking his head as he focused on the key point. “Did I hear you right? You said this senior is new, and has won a hundred battles in a row?”

“That’s right.” The warrior nodded, then added excitedly, “The senior’s skills are unmatched. He won a hundred battles in a row, rising from a recruit with no record to a warrior, and then went straight for the bridge.”

“From recruit to warrior—you mean this ‘senior’ of yours?” The man eyed him doubtfully, wondering if he was delusional or simply talking nonsense.

“Of course he’s a senior!” the warrior exclaimed, forgetting his usual timidity. “He even taught us a few skills. Every word he spoke struck right at the heart of things. Listening to him for a few minutes was better than training for a year…” Noticing that a few of the warriors he’d mentioned turned around at the commotion, he quickly added, “You guys, tell him—wasn’t the senior amazing?”

“Yes.”

“Absolutely incredible.”

“Otherwise, why would we call him ‘senior’?”

Voices chimed in, one after another.

The man clutched his head and squatted down, feeling dizzy. Others nearby looked equally confused. Seeing this, some warriors began to recount the series of events that had unfolded since the senior’s arrival…

On the Celestial Bridge.

Duguyu Bieli was deeply frustrated.

He had barely come up with a way to weaken the brilliance, and was just about to dash into one of the vacuum pockets left by an explosion when he collided with a bolt of lightning.

The force nearly blasted him off the bridge. As he struggled to regain his footing and seek another gap, he suddenly felt a mysterious energy surge through his body, stripping him of control. His limbs went numb, even his thoughts dulled.

And at that moment, the tenfold-powered brilliance, followed by another bolt of lightning, showed no mercy and came crashing down upon him…

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