Chapter 3545: Chapter 3545: The Second Form

The space at Hawley's front and back was misplaced, and he became caught in an invisible wall.

He couldn't retreat, neither could he advance, nor dodge. He was forced to bear the brunt of Zen's fists head on!

In the forest glade, some Eternal Realm warriors who had the sharpest eyes were able to see what was unfolding before them. The astonishment in their eyes intensified.

“Did the human just utilize a space theurgy?” one of the creatures questioned in utter shock.

The phenomenon of overlapped spaces was quite similar to that created by many of the space theurgies.

However, they knew using space theurgy involved the facilitation of energy, which was forbidden in this area. If Zen had used a space theurgy, the maple leaves in the Flaming Maple Forest would already have launched their attack on him.

It was common knowledge that these maple leaves possessed a miraculous feature. They would pursue their targets with a relentless speed to the very ends of the world.

In the past, someone had used a theurgy at the edge of the Flaming Maple Forest and had triggered the attack of the maple leaves before fleeing at full speed. About thirty seconds later, though, the maple leaves had easily caught up with their target and exploded.

Others had used the spatial transference at the edge of the Flaming Maple Forest to cross a great distance in a single breath. However, the maple leaves still had caught up with them within a mere thirty seconds. It appeared that the distance had no effect on the leaves' pursuit time.

Up till now, the only known way to avoid the maple leaves' attack was to leave the Other Shore.

It seemed that it was virtually impossible for the maple leaves to reach beyond the Other Shore.

“It didn't look like a space theurgy,” another creature commented, shaking his head. “It was a unique wave of power. One so formidable that it was able to manipulate the space in an unexpected manner!”

“I didn't know the human race possessed someone of that genius!” another warrior shouted in utter shock.

At this time, an Eternal Realm warrior who had just come here from the Grand Plain Stage said, “He must be the famous Zen. Both the Nihility race and the Element Spirit Civilization have offered tempting rewards to recruit him, but he refused them both.”

Zen was famous in the Grand Plain Stage. All the forces coveted his great potential and extraordinary talent.

When the ensemble heard of Zen's background, their eyes soon filled with envy.

In addition to the indigenous races that inhabited in the Three Purities Stage, the Nihility race and the Element Spirit race were regarded as the strongest. With the protection of these two forces, many things would become greatly simplified.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Under Zen's continuous assault, Hawley found almost no chance to strike back.

Dents constantly formed on the surface of his dark black body. Zen's fists had such formidable force that the punches penetrated through his body, causing his back to bulge.

It wasn't long before Hawley's body was raked with wounds. His arms and legs became contorted and misshapen, and he was powerless to support his body.

However, the space walls Zen had created with his attacks fixed Hawley to the spot. It wasn't until Zen withdrew his fists that Hawley finally collapsed to his knees.

Hawley's large, distended body slumped forward to the ground like a heap of mud. He looked miserable.

A deafening silence roared through the air of the Flaming Maple Forest.

Wheeler and the other warriors from Misty River race stared blankly at Hawley lying on the ground, utterly bewildered.

They found it difficult to comprehend what was unfolding before their eyes, and they wondered if it was a dream.

Could Hawley have been defeated so easily?

On the other hand, Fuxi, the Snake Goddess, Yasamin, and Eastern Emperor Taiyi all heaved a collective sigh of relief.

Zen's victory was really no surprise to them.

Even the mighty Hawley had been defeated by Zen. They couldn't help but wonder at Zen's actual strength.

The warriors from the other races in the forest were all overjoyed at Zen's victory. Upon defeating Hawley, Zen would become the new ruler of the Flaming Maple Forest. In fact, regardless of who would rule over the Flaming Maple Forest next, they believed that things could only be better than when the Misty River race was in power! ṝ𝔞ɴоᛒΕš

They had all been milked dry by the members of the Misty River race, and they hated them to the core.

However, the silence only lingered for a few seconds.

To everyone's astonishment, Hawley's prone figure stirred on the ground, and suddenly he began moving again.

A red round light about an inch wide glowed in Hawley's right hand. Following that, a band of red light emanated up from the red glowing orb to Hawley's shoulders, then it wrapped his chest, neck, spine, back, legs…

Before long, the glowing light seemed to have consumed Hawley's whole body.

Buzz!

Suddenly, something miraculous began unfolding.

It was as if someone began blowing air into Hawley's shrunken body. The parts that had caved in from Zen's punches quickly swelled up like inflating balloons. The wounds all over his body recovered, and his contorted limbs assumed their normal shapes after being wrapped by the glowing red light.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

With a series of crisp sounds, Hawley's body completely healed from all injuries.

Seeing that Hawley now lay on the ground unscathed as if from a dream, Wheeler became so excited that he suddenly raised his arms and roared, “Hawley!”

The other warriors of the Misty River race instantly followed suit and shouted, “Hawley!”

“Hawley! Hawley! Hawley!”

The deafening cheers of the Misty River race echoed throughout the Flaming Maple Forest. Even the forest seemed to react to their exuberance as the leaves on the maple trees rustled in response.

Those from the other races were overwhelmed by the unison of the roars, and none of them could find the words to say.

Amidst the roars of his kindred, Hawley slowly climbed to his feet. With a trace of regret in his eyes he took a deep breath and said, “What a pity that I'll have to fight you in my strongest form...”

The Misty River race was known to possess extremely strong physical bodies. According to their unique talents, the stronger their bodies grew, the darker their skin became.

The average members of the Misty River race had bodies that shone with a golden color. Upon reaching a certain level, their bodies turned bronze.

If one's physical body reached an extreme level of cultivation, it would then be in the same dark cyan color as Wheeler's, which was believed to represent their limit.

Wheeler had always regarded Hawley as having reached a higher plane, hoping that he could surpass his limit and cultivate to Hawley's level. Unfortunately, even though he had tried all sorts of methods, his body had reached its limits of strength and didn't improve any further.

Only Hawley knew that the secret source of his extraordinary strength was the mysterious scorched arm he had found by chance.

After absorbing that arm, his physical body had undergone an astonishing metamorphosis. The arm had easily helped him surpass the limits of his race and attain a new level!

He had always been curious as to who the owner of that arm had been.

Since it had such a tremendous effect, the owner of the arm must have been a truly powerful being. But who possessed the strength to cut an arm from such a formidable creature...

The awe in Hawley's mind grew every time he contemplated on it. Nonetheless, he was aware that the source of the secret lay at the uppermost reaches of the Divine River, which was in the Jade Pure Realm, in the deepest part of the Three Purities Stage!

Just like the other races in Stage Thirty-three, Hawley had always held the entering of the Jade Pure Realm as his ultimate goal. Therefore, he never revealed his true strength, hoping to use it at a more critical moment. He would never have expected he would be forced to use it while fighting a human today.

Whoosh!

Having spoken, Hawley suddenly stretched forth one hand and grabbed Zen's arm. With a flip, he hurled Zen to the ground, pinning him down. Then, the band of red light covering his body congregated near his right arm.

Boom!

He launched a massive punch.

An immense wave of power pulsed forth from him, spreading through the ground. Even the densely interwoven roots of the Flaming Maple Trees failed to dampen the heavy vibrations.

The creatures standing close to the Flaming Maple Trees could keep a semblance of balance, while those who stood on the open ground were all sent reeling to the earth. As waves of power spread, they found it virtually impossible to regain their footing.

Boom!

Hawley landed a second punch.

A huge gaping crater appeared beneath Hawley and Zen, devouring them in a cloud of dust. Larger tremors of power radiated from them, rocking everyone with the force of an earthquake.

Boom!

A third punch!

A massive area suffered severe tremors like rolling waves, and the Flaming Maple Trees nearest the epicenter were razed to the ground. Even the members of the Misty River race were cast aside by the earth-shattering vibrations.