Chapter 451: Completely Shattered

Awe-inspiring power roared downward, filling the arena with the sound of meteoric fire and crushing wind pressure. Many in the stands could be seen covering their ears and screaming with mouths agape, but amidst the howling winds, no other sounds could be heard.

Truth be told, until just moments ago, Tianzhe Yifeng had remained absolutely confident, his face maintaining an aura of effortless calm. But now, even after countless life-and-death trials, he couldn’t help but finally change his expression.

What loomed above him was no longer just overwhelming power—it was a chokehold of impending doom!

Danger!

Almost instinctively, all the surrounding thunderfire crystals redirected themselves, shooting fiercely toward the calamitous meteor of fire in the sky.

Fourth Order versus Fourth Order.

The result? Like a mantis trying to stop a chariot—utterly futile!

Not only did it fail to shatter the meteor, it couldn’t even slow its descent. Tianzhe Yifeng’s eyes widened in shock. At this life-or-death moment, he forcibly pushed past the limits of his Five-Gate Witch Armor, unlocking the Sixth Gate—an unrefined, perhaps even defective Sixth Gate.

His eyes instantly filled with bloodshot veins, his skin turning crimson all over. Just like when Winnie had endured power beyond her body’s limits, his blood vessels began bursting. Yet, his soul force doubled in that instant, and an enormous purple-fire soul shield ballooned outward.

Tianzhe—Six-Gate Soul Shield!

Soul force at full power, defenses at full strength. And at that very moment, the calamitous meteor of fire crashed down onto his shield.

For a brief instant, the scene froze in a deadlock.

"AAAAAHHHH!" A guttural roar burst from him—Tianzhe Yifeng’s capillaries seemed to explode all over his body. But the next second...

Old Wang casually flicked a finger downward, as if adding an extra force to the meteor...

BOOM!

In an instant, the sky shattered; the earth heaved. The arena was engulfed in chunks of stone and plumes of dust, with flames and shockwaves soaring over ten meters high, completely obscuring everyone’s vision.

Not only did everyone feel the ground beneath them quaking, even the arena’s soul-energy shield—capable of withstanding peak spectral-tier attacks—emitted a piercing hum under the terrifying impact, swaying precariously. Many covered their ears and screamed, curling up in terror at the world-ending force. Those who had instinctively tried to flee the arena earlier now found their legs trembling uncontrollably, frozen in place.

The aftershocks rumbled on for a solid two minutes before finally subsiding.

The dust and smoke in the arena gradually cleared. When the state of the battlefield finally became visible, all screams and movements around the stands ceased, replaced by a tomb-like silence.

The once-massive, several-thousand-square-foot coliseum now lay in ruins.

Countless small craters from scattered debris dotted the surroundings. The ‘meteor’ was pure energy—no physical mass; Fifth Order energy couldn’t materialize solids. But at the center of the arena, a massive bowllike crater, a hundred meters in diameter and seven or eight meters deep, was unmistakable.

The enormous crater, the countless pockmarks, even the way half the arena seemed slightly warped upward from the impact...

Everyone couldn’t help but suck in a collective breath.

What kind of destructive power was this? Mercifully, the arena had a soul-energy shield—otherwise, the scattered debris alone might have killed half the audience!

Only now did Wang Feng’s figure drift down, feather-light, from midair into the crater.

At the center of the semicircular crater, beside Wang Feng’s landing spot, Tianzhe Yifeng’s upper body was buried deep in the ground, as if planted there. His clothes had long been incinerated, revealing a raw, pulped mess of flesh. His arms lay limp on the ground, his head lolling to the side—more corpse than man.

The arena remained silent for a long while.

Had anyone claimed before the match that Wang Feng could defeat Tianzhe Yifeng, out of the tens of thousands present, perhaps only Xiao Bang and Gui Zhicai—just a handful—would have believed it. Everyone else would’ve howled with derision. Yet now, Wang Feng had actually done it! To the crowd, it felt like a dream—unwilling to believe, unable to believe, many even pinching themselves.

The Skyblade’s faction stood in shell-shocked silence.

On the Rose section, Su Yue, Famier, and the other girls covered their mouths in excitement, their eyes brimming with tears, while Ning Zhiyuan, Patu, and the other boys stood up with mouths agape, standing on tiptoes to see the scene in the arena.

By the passageway, Yinfu clenched her fists tightly to her chest, Xuecai widened her eyes and grabbed her sister's hand, Mo Tong and Aota locked arms over each other's shoulders, and Fantexi, barely conscious, struggled to turn his head to see what was happening outside, only to have his view completely blocked by Wu Di, who was supposed to be taking care of him but was now utterly stunned.

"What... what happened? What happened to Feng...?" Fantexi murmured weakly, his voice barely a whisper, but neither Wu Di nor anyone nearby heard him.

The crowd held its breath, waiting, until the head referee An Nanxi swiftly flew into the arena to check Tianzhe Yifeng's injuries, then quickly signaled an 'X' with her arms to the crowd.

"The winner is—Wang Feng of Rose!"

Wang Feng had defeated Tianzhe Yifeng, and the overall score was now tied at two wins, two losses, and one draw. The match was even!

Won? They won? They really won?

From down 0-2 to tying 2-2, from a seemingly hopeless situation to a tie, Rose had not lost—they had forced a draw against the strongest Holy Sanctuary in history... no, the most disgraceful Holy Sanctuary! They had completed the Eight-Sanctuary Challenge!

When Old Wang of Rose first declared the challenge against the eight great Holy Sanctuaries, how many had waited to mock them? How many had mocked the Temple disciples? No one knew how much Rose had endured? No one knew how much these brave heroes had suffered?

Honor? Did Rose even have such a thing? If they had never had it, that would be one thing—but the truth was, Rose had once held the highest honors...

A century-old prestigious school, the leader in rune studies, with its Foundry and Martial Arts departments once renowned among the 108 Holy Sanctuaries. At its peak, Rose had even ranked in the top 20 of the Holy Sanctuary rankings, its halls lined with glory.

But look at its performance over the past century—either ranked in the bottom three or sliding toward it. The Temple disciples could only gaze at the honor wall and imagine the pride and brilliance of being part of Rose. Whenever they participated in the Heroic Tournament, they couldn’t shake their inferiority...

Yet all of that was shattered today! Even the top-ranked Heaven's Peak Holy Sanctuary couldn’t defeat Rose—who would dare say Rose was weak now?

But still, how could this be real?

Every Rose member fought back tears. Emotions long suppressed needed release, yet their throats tightened with unspoken emotion. The venue remained eerily quiet—until Old Wang calmly glanced toward the passageway.

That was also the direction of the Rose stands. Old Wang understood the lack of cheers—this outcome was too unbelievable for them. Everyone must still feel like they were in a dream, afraid that loud shouts would wake them from this beautiful illusion... because even if it were a dream, they wanted to linger in it a little longer.

Old Wang let out a quiet sigh, then clenched his right fist and shook it firmly toward all the Rose members and supporters in that direction. "What are you all gaping for? Doesn’t this victory deserve some praise?"

Wang Feng called out to them, and perhaps they were more accustomed to their goofy president’s antics: "Where are Rose’s cheers?"

Same old Wang—this was real, all of it was real!

At that moment, tears burst from the eyes of every Rose member.

"Ahhhhhh!"

Patu was the first to explode, so excited he nearly lost his mind. He leaped onto the railing of the stands, wildly waving the red Rose banner with both hands: "Who can match us now? Only our President Wang!"

That explosive shout finally ignited the passion of everyone in the Rose stands and passageway, unleashing all their pent-up emotions.

The girls sobbed and jumped like petals in a storm, while the boys screamed and roared with tear-filled eyes. Fans waved their arms wildly, even throwing their clothes into the air.

Cheers, shouts, banners waving, clothes flying—the entire Rose stands instantly became a sea of jubilation.

"Rose forever! Long live Old Wang Squad! Long live Captain Wang Feng!"

"We won! We won! Who the hell dares look down on us now?"

"Taking down Heaven's Peak’s failures, we are the true number one Holy Sanctuary!"

The passageway where Rose’s injured rested was also filled with celebration.

This was where Old Wang’s "inner circle" gathered—Xue Zhiyu’s group, Yinfu, Mo Tong—their joy spoke for itself. Even the two Li brothers, who had once despised Wang Feng, now relaxed their brows in relief.

"The chance my little sister risked her life for... If that kid had dared to lose just now, I was ready to wring his neck..."

"Ha! Third Brother, you wouldn’t dare even with ten times the guts." Li Fusu laughed, lowering his voice to whisper in his ear, "Didn't you see how Little Sister looked when she was talking to that Wang Feng just now? If you really dared to lay a hand on Wang Feng, I bet Little Sister would turn her blade on you..."

Li Xuanyuan froze, then his expression turned to shock. "You mean..."

Li Fusu nodded faintly.

"Holy shit..." Li Xuanyuan couldn't help but glance at Xue Zhiyu and the others, laughing and jumping nearby, then at their unconscious little sister lying beside them, and finally at that Wang Feng, looking like he’d won the lottery. His face twisted in disbelief. "Him... He dares to be an old bull grazing on young grass? My Li family's tender grass?!"

"Where did your mind go?!" Li Fusu said, half-laughing. "I think his sibling-like care for Little Sister is genuine, no ulterior motives. But I’m afraid Little Sister might have fallen for him without realizing it herself..."

Li Xuanyuan’s face immediately fell with worry. Though the Li family acted domineeringly, they still had some principles. They couldn’t just chop someone up because their little sister fancied them. "Then... what do we do?"

"You can’t cage a grown bird... Let’s wait till Little Sister wakes up." Li Fusu affectionately stroked Winnie’s hair.

………………

The jubilant cheers of the Rose faction stood in stark contrast to the downcast faces of the Sky Dome faction.

In the VIP seats, the high-ranking figures from various factions gradually calmed down after their initial shock.

Hawkland’s grin stretched ear to ear. At this moment, he was truly able to hold his head high.

A draw! Though Rose hadn’t defeated Sky Dome Sanctuary, so what?

According to the original challenge notice issued by the Sanctuary headquarters, Rose would have been disbanded if they lost. But now, after eight matches—ha! Rose didn’t lose! That meant Rose was *saved*! And after fighting eight battles in a row, they still managed to force a draw against Sky Dome. The honor Rose sought had already been more than achieved!

Lao Huo excitedly rubbed his hands, fidgeting in his seat. He had wanted to talk big a little, but after several attempts at conversation, neither Fu Changkong nor Zhao Feiyuan—nor any of the nearby Sanctuary headmasters—paid him any attention. Clearly, they were all part of the Fu faction. The Saint, meanwhile, was busy chatting with Lucky Heaven, Long Jing, and others, leaving no one to engage with him.

Hawkland was practically bursting with frustration.

For fuck’s sake, would it kill these people to let me have my damn moment? Why is it so hard for me to enjoy a little glory?

Beside him, Fu Changkong had completely suppressed his earlier astonishment and anger. He sat calmly in his seat.

He had finally seen through it. Back when Thunder Dragon had remained silent, letting everyone underestimate Rose and ultimately leading to this challenge that had the entire alliance in stitches—there had been a purpose behind it all.

This had been a plan years in the making, dating back to when Thunder Dragon stepped down from Rose. Otherwise, he couldn’t have suddenly produced such an extraordinarily talented personal disciple, nor could he have allowed such a powerhouse to debut under a false identity as a "clown," playing the fool all the way through Rose.

Everything had clearly been an act. Wang Feng—Thunder Dragon’s personal disciple—was now confirmed beyond doubt. From the moment he entered Rose, he had deliberately played weak, tricked everyone into dismissing him, and even despising him, all to set up this masterstroke that would shock the entire alliance and all the Sanctuaries today.

This master and disciple...

While Wang Feng’s displayed strength today was undeniably jaw-dropping, placing him among the true elite of the younger generation, what impressed Fu Changkong even more was the sheer patience and restraint the boy had shown at such a young age. Unless cut down prematurely, his future achievements would be limitless!

As for Thunder Dragon... What seemed like a desperate last stand was actually part of an ultra-long-term plan. Years ago, he had already foreseen Rose’s future—even Aurora City’s future. Whether in terms of strategic foresight or grand vision, Fu Changkong wasn’t even close.

Impressive. Admirable. Terrifying.

A jumble of thoughts spun in Fu Changkong’s mind, leaving him slightly distracted. Beneath his calm exterior, he was carefully piecing together the bigger picture.

Countless people in the venue were waiting for Fu Changkong, the organizer of the challenge, to speak. But he was zoned out.

"Brother Changkong? Ahem... Brother Changkong?" Zhao Feiyuan elbowed him lightly from the side.

"Hm." Fu Changkong jolted back to attention.

Zhao Feiyuan said, "The match result..."

A tie? Can Sky Zenith truly accept this outcome?

Everyone turned their gaze to Fu Changkong's mouth, only to see him smile faintly. "A two-to-two draw. Rose really surprised us with their strength. Sky Zenith Sanctuary was underprepared, fielding only five members without substitutes—a serious miscalculation."

"We could have a tiebreaker!" Zhao Feiyuan immediately chimed in. "Rose still has Wu Di, who hasn't competed yet. Sky Zenith Sanctuary can simply assign a temporary substitute—it's hardly any trouble!"

The principals from Londom's Holy Sanctuary, the Moon Worship Sect, and the Abyssal Abyss all nodded in agreement. "There's never been room for ties in martial contests—this goes against all challenge match traditions! What kind of result is a tie? Naturally, a tiebreaker is warranted."

"Sky Zenith's lack of preparation is an exceptional circumstance. After all, their opponent was merely Rose—who could have anticipated a tiebreaker? It’s understandable."

The crowd buzzed with discussion, all leaning toward one stance. Hawkland, however, immediately saw red.

Damn it! Rose has already cleared the challenge and deserves the ultimate reward. Yet here you all are, spouting nonsense about "no precedent" and "understandable circumstances"—what the hell? Rose’s only remaining substitute is Wu Di, the weakest link. If you just pick someone specifically to counter beastmen, isn't that blatantly screwing us over and rigging the game?