Chapter 411: Chen Che VS Saito Hiroki

Saito Hiroki rubbed his lower abdomen, the pain easing. He gazed at Chen Che and said sincerely, "Truly, heroes are born in youth. Although I did indeed receive help from Zanpu Dunzhu in the Martial Dao, I also considered myself to have a certain amount of talent."

"It's just that I didn't expect that after crossing hands with you today, I would realize that geniuses are not actually rare. Perhaps my talent is merely the threshold to meeting you."

Saito Hiroki gave a self-deprecating laugh: "Come to think of it, I really am somewhat unwilling to accept this."

Chen Che smiled: "Being praised by the Ninja God, I can't bring myself to be happy."

Saito Hiroki held his hands upright before his chest, fingers intertwined, his Dharma seal already formed: "Praising you is sincere, and wanting you dead is also sincere; the two are not contradictory."

"Then... thank you," Chen Che replied.

Saito Hiroki's smile faded, black Qi swirling around his body. The half-World Tree pattern on his forehead emitted an eerie, dark purple light.

Strands of dark purple blood lines spread downward from his forehead. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his pupils were an eerie, scarlet red.

Chen Che saw steam rising from Saito Hiroki's body, his momentum also climbing, and could not help but turn his expression serious.

This state change, almost identical to that of Zanpu Dunzhu, meant that Saito Hiroki's strength had now broken through to the Acquired Heavenly Master Realm.

In this way, the strength between the two was now equal.

Must not be careless!

Chen Che took a deep breath, his ten fingers moving nimbly. His posture was upright, his gaze as resolute as an eagle's, staring fixedly at Saito Hiroki.

The two locked eyes, and without any warning, the battle drew back its curtain.

"Xun Wind Break!"

Chen Che's figure was like lightning, his hands dancing at high speed, his mouth chanting. In an instant, a wild wind rose from the flat ground, sharp wind blades whistling and weaving through the air, heading straight for Saito Hiroki's vitals.

The Ninja God, however, was unhurried. He formed a seal with his hands, and a layer of eerie dark purple light emerged around him. The light transformed into several streams of water circling his body; the wind blades struck the water streams, inciting only a few ripples before disappearing without a trace.

Seeing this, Chen Che's eyes turned sharp, and he stomped his foot hard against the ground: "Gen Earth Mountain!"

"Boom—"

The earth trembled violently, and several thick earthen pillars rose from the ground, crashing toward Saito Hiroki.

Saito Hiroki sneered, his figure retreating violently, instantly merging into the mass of black Qi.

Immediately following, several blood-colored giant hands reached out from the shadows, like ghosts from hell, ferocious and mocking, shattering the incoming earthen pillars one by one, sending stone fragments flying.

"Again!"

Chen Che shouted, spreading his palms: "Purgatory of Li Fire!"

His palms instantly ignited with raging flames. The fire was a cyan-blue color, its temperature extremely high, causing the surrounding air to distort and deform.

Chen Che waved his hands, and waves of fire rolled forward; wherever they passed, the ground was scorched black.

Saito Hiroki appeared from the darkness, his hands quickly forming seals. The black Qi condensed into a black barrier before him. The flames struck it, making a crackling sound, but were unable to break through.

Immediately after, Chen Che shifted his figure, and the humidity of the surrounding air increased abruptly: "Kan Water Condense!"

Countless water droplets condensed out of thin air. Under Chen Che's control, they transformed into sharp water arrows, shooting toward Saito Hiroki like a downpour.

The Ninja God let out a loud shout, the black Qi around him surging and transforming into a giant black tiger.

"Roar!!!"

The tiger let out a deafening roar, baring its fangs and brandishing its claws as it pounced toward the water arrows, swatting them down one after another.

Chen Che took a deep breath, his gaze profound. He pressed his palms together, and a moment later, he pulled them apart violently. A golden bolt of lightning shot from his palms, fast as lightning, heading straight for Saito Hiroki.

Saito Hiroki's expression changed, and he quickly summoned a black vortex beneath his feet; the lightning was sucked into it and disappeared.

"Dong—hum, hum, hum—"

Suddenly, a large golden bell descended from the sky.

Having just dealt with the lightning, the Ninja God had no defenses and was covered by the bell, trapped underneath.

But this was not over!

Chen Che changed his hand seals and slapped the ground with a loud 'clack': "Xun Wood Bind!"

Vines like tentacles drilled through the ground, sharp wooden thorns on them glinting with cold light, tightly binding the bell.

"Hehehehe..."

Saito Hiroki let out a shrill laugh. He shook his head and looked at Chen Che through the golden bell. Veins bulged all over his body, his eyes bled, and the black Qi around him transformed into a sharp black spike, stabbing at the bell and spinning rapidly.

"Crack!"

Finally, the black spike drilled through the bell, cracks spreading from the hole to the surroundings until it collapsed.

Chen Che straightened his arms, his open fingers quickly grabbing. The vines wrapped around the bell tangled and twisted rapidly, the wooden thorns on them scraping against each other, emitting a hair-raising creaking sound.

"Boom!!!"

A loud explosion erupted.

The vines shattered into powder, and Saito Hiroki, wounded by the wooden thorns and covered in blood, was exposed before Chen Che once again.

"You really are hard to kill."

Chen Che snorted coldly, pointing a finger to the sky and waving it forcefully; a bolt of thunder struck down from above.

"Ahhh!!!"

Saito Hiroki quickly gathered the black Qi above his head, forming a black curtain barrier.

"Boom—"

The thunder struck the black curtain barrier; without the slightest stalemate, the barrier shattered instantly like glass.

The lightning swept over Saito Hiroki, who spat out a mouthful of blood, his eyes fierce as he pounced toward Chen Che.

The two sides engaged in a fierce confrontation, trading blows, the battle falling into a white-hot state.

Saito Hiroki's vitality gradually ebbed away, while Chen Che dealt with his attacks with ease.

He became impatient, his face growing even more ferocious and terrifying, and decided to launch a final strike.

Saito Hiroki held his hands high above his head, the black Qi all over his body surging crazily, gathering in his palms to form a giant black energy ball. Countless dark purple lightning bolts were released from the energy ball, striking everywhere, the surrounding space distorted by this evil power.

Chen Che also felt unprecedented pressure. He took a deep breath, his gaze becoming profound, and a wisp of gold like a flame burned softly in the depths of his eyes.

His body slowly rose, and golden Heavenly Book Characters emerged from within him, arranging themselves behind his back into the shape of half a Heavenly Book.

Chen Che danced his hands, chanting an ancient incantation, and the Heavenly Book Characters hummed and trembled, transforming into curtains of golden light that surged toward the black energy sphere.

"Boom!!!!"

Following a heaven-shaking and earth-shattering roar, the golden light curtains collided with the black energy sphere, erupting with world-destroying energy fluctuations.

The light was so blinding that people could not open their eyes, and the powerful shockwave lifted the ground of the Mingzhi Shrine plaza in massive waves, while the surrounding buildings were also shaken to the point of collapse by this force.

After a long while, the light dissipated.

Saito Hiroki was seen lying on his back on the ground, the black Qi around his body slowly fading, and the half-world-tree pattern on his forehead turning into ashes.

From the inside out, his entire body was ruined; the Secret Technique had drained his life force, and at this moment, only a final, thread-like breath remained.

Chen Che knelt on one knee, gasping for air; his exquisite suit was tattered, and a trace of blood hung from the corner of his mouth.

After catching his breath for a moment, Chen Che stood up and came before Saito Hiroki, looking down at him with eyes full of indifference.

Saito Hiroki opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but he could no longer make any sound.

Yet Chen Che understood the meaning in his eyes; he raised two fingers and silently recited a phrase.

Puchi puchi puchi!!!!

Countless wooden spikes shot out from the ground, piercing through Saito Hiroki and turning him into a hedgehog.

Saito Hiroki closed his eyes, yet a trace of a grateful smile hung on the corner of his mouth.

"From this day forth, there is no more Ninja God in Dongying."

Chen Che withdrew his gaze, stretched, and prepared to go reunite with the others.

He turned his head quietly and took a glance at Mingzhi Shrine.

Having suffered collateral damage from the battle just now, Mingzhi Shrine had sustained a certain degree of destruction.

Chen Che suddenly had a flash of inspiration and smiled insidiously: "Since you have to rebuild it anyway, you might as well just build a new one."

Raging fire swept through the entire Meiji Jingu Building, and amidst the flames, Chen Che walked away without looking back.

………