Chapter 173: The Wager

Wu Feng looked at Ding Longyun and sneered. “You, old man, are quite the brute. It seems you think highly of your own abilities, bringing your skills here. Brothers, surround them—”

At his command, his group roared in unison. Ding Longyun’s attitude had enraged them. They brandished their weapons. The surrounding rafts were quickly jammed together. The men leaped across the rafts, forming a semi-circle around Su Li’s group.

Ding Longyun chuckled. “It’s about time. My rod is itching for a fight.” He raised the steel rod in his right hand, ready to strike.

Gong Xiao, Gu Mingfeng, and Luo Jun also gripped their weapons, preparing for the fight.

Su Li extended his hand, signaling the others to hold back. He said, “No need for the trouble. I can handle this alone.”

As he spoke, he reached both hands toward his chest. The Seven-Star Bracer on his right wrist appeared. Two sword hilts emerged from his chest. He grabbed a hilt with each hand, drawing out two swords with blinding flashes of light.

This action instantly stunned the advancing crowd. Wu Feng froze, a look of sheer horror on his face, staring intently at Su Li’s left hand.

The sword Su Li held in his left hand was the translucent Ice Python Sword—a weapon Wu Feng had seen before.

It was Ding Shijie’s weapon.

Ding Shijie had become the leader of the Golden Eagle Alliance by fighting and defeating him and Gao Shupeng. The Ice Python Sword had once wounded Wu Feng. There was no way he didn’t recognize it. But how could Su Li be holding an identical sword?

Su Li swung the two swords, ready to engage. Wu Feng suddenly roared, “Stop!”

Su Li halted, looking at him.

“Where did you get that sword in your left hand?” Wu Feng pointed at the Ice Python Sword, his voice trembling with agitation. His usual composed demeanor was gone.

The hook-nosed man and the others, who had all seen Ding Shijie’s ice sword, were equally shocked to see Su Li holding dual swords, one of which resembled the deadly Ice Python Sword. A terrifying thought rose in their minds.

“Are you talking about this sword?” Su Li asked, seeing their reactions. “This is Ding Shijie’s Ice Python Sword. He lost it to me.”

Su Li only said Ding Shijie lost it, but everyone understood. If the sword was in his hands, it meant Ding Shijie was almost certainly dead by Su Li’s hand.

This news shocked the Golden Eagle Alliance members. They all gasped.

Ding Shijie was the strongest man in the Golden Eagle Alliance. That was universally accepted. Now, a man stronger than Ding Shijie had appeared, had taken his sword, and was here to take over the Golden Eagle Alliance.

“No wonder you claim you want to take over the Golden Eagle Alliance. If you truly killed Ding Shijie with your own skill, you certainly have the right to say that.”

Wu Feng smiled bitterly. He paused, then looked up. “The flood submerged this city, and only a few survived. Every person is precious, and I truly don’t want a conflict that leads to meaningless bloodshed. Ding Shijie insisted on uniting the three buildings and leading the alliance. I agreed to his terms: if he could defeat me, I would submit. Today, my terms are the same: if you can defeat me, I will lead the Shimao Center’s people to join you. As for the people in the A-Building and B-Building, they are not under my command, so I cannot speak for them.”

One of the eleven men from Gold Eagle One B-Building suddenly shouted, “I agree! Whoever wins, we will follow them.”

“Exactly! I feel the same way.”

“Right, whoever wins will be our leader.”

The eleven men all readily agreed with Wu Feng. Their morale had completely collapsed when Su Li drew his dual swords. To them, as long as they had shelter and food, and could survive, they would follow any leader.

In this new world, survival was paramount.

Among the crowd, only the hook-nosed man’s face was ashen. His body subtly trembled. The news of Ding Shijie’s death was a thunderclap that left his mind reeling.

The members of the Golden Eagle Alliance all agreed to Wu Feng’s proposal: whoever won would be the new leader. Only the hook-nosed man clenched his hands in silence.

Hearing the consensus, Su Li smiled faintly. This was exactly the result he wanted. If not necessary, he didn’t want to slaughter. Fully taking over the Golden Eagle Alliance with minimal casualties was the best outcome.

“Good.” Su Li nodded at Wu Feng. He had activated the “Peering Rune” and saw that Wu Feng was the only Level 7 Wielder among them and the leader of the Shimao Center. The fact that he dared to challenge Su Li, even seeing his dual Spiritual Source Weapons, showed he was very confident in his own abilities.

The young woman beside Wu Feng looked worriedly at him. “Brother Feng, be careful.”

She saw Su Li draw a pair of formidable swords and knew that even Ding Shijie had lost to him. She was now deeply worried for Wu Feng.

Wu Feng reached out, gently pinched her cheek, and smiled. “Silly girl, why worry? I will be careful.”

He then leaped, landing on an empty raft. He extended his hand toward Su Li and said, “I still don’t know what to call you.”

Su Li, also moving to the empty raft, replied, “Su Li.” He noticed Wu Feng was unarmed. “You’re not using a weapon?”

Wu Feng shook his head. He used his foot to hook a wooden paddle onto the raft, picked it up, and grabbed it with his right hand. Suddenly, the paddle crackled. Cracks appeared on its surface, and flames erupted from the fissures, completely enveloping the paddle except for the part he held. It was fiercely burning.

Su Li’s heart stirred. “Is this guy’s ability similar to Xu Haishui’s, related to fire?”

Wu Feng sneered. “This is my weapon. Be careful.” He held the burning paddle. His left hand spread open, and the flames suddenly separated, forming several football-sized fireballs that hovered in front of him.

Su Li leaped, charging toward Wu Feng.

Wu Feng waved his left hand. One of the hovering fireballs shot toward Su Li.

Su Li swayed, dodging the fire ball. The fireball flew past him, striking the water surface in the distance, exploding and splashing fire and water everywhere.

Su Li avoided the first fireball and rapidly closed the distance to Wu Feng. Wu Feng sneered. The second and third fireballs followed.

Su Li dodged the second fireball, but the third was unavoidable. He swung the Dragon Rhino Sword in his right hand, hacking down.

The Dragon Rhino Sword struck the fireball. The fireball exploded like a firework, spraying sparks. Su Li had anticipated this. As he struck the fireball, he activated “Spider Walk.” He darted sideways, closing in on Wu Feng.

Wu Feng quickly retreated, shouting. The fire on his right-hand paddle intensified, and more fireballs separated from it, hovering all around him. In a glance, there were seventeen or eighteen massive fireballs.

Seeing Su Li’s speed, Wu Feng’s heart sank. He suddenly clenched his left hand and flung it out. The seventeen or eighteen gigantic fireballs surrounding him all shot toward Su Li.

In an instant, Su Li was engulfed and surrounded by the fireballs.

The combined explosive power of so many fireballs was unimaginable. Ding Longyun, Gong Xiao, and Jiang Shuijue’s faces all turned pale. They never expected Wu Feng to be so powerful. His single attack was comparable to the sword technique of a Spiritual Source Weapon.

Gong Xiao rushed out at the same moment, activating “Storm Shield.”

Having advanced to Level 7, her “Storm Shield” had evolved into its second form, gaining greater defensive and offensive power. Three shields formed instantly. They could not only protect her but could also be controlled to attack. The power was nearly doubled.

She activated “Storm Shield,” intending to rush to Su Li’s side and intercept the terrifying barrage of fireballs.

It all happened in a flash. Wu Feng unleashed his full power, controlling the seventeen or eighteen giant fireballs and launching them at Su Li.

Su Li suddenly stopped. He was surrounded by the giant fireballs. Even “Spider Walk” couldn’t get him out of the encirclement. Wu Feng’s strength had completely exceeded his expectation. His single move was almost as powerful as Ding Shijie’s.

With a long cry, Su Li immediately unleashed the sword technique within the Ice Python Sword in his left hand.

“Ice Python Tyrant’s Devour.”

The dormant soul of the Ice Python Tyrant within the sword was awakened. Driven by Spiritual Source energy, the power of the Ice Python Tyrant erupted. The translucent ice sword seemed to come alive.

(End of Chapter)