Chapter 397: True and False Rain Level (8/10, Autumn Subscription)

Even so, Chen Lao's condition was far from good—his body was covered in wounds, some of which were permanent and irreversible, clearly showing how cruel and formidable Lord Han's attacks had been.

But as long as the final outcome was his victory, that was enough.

The victor is king, the loser is scum—it's simply that straightforward.

These horrific wounds, if properly nursed after returning, would eventually heal, at least partially.

But the lives lost were gone forever!

As Chen Lao pondered these thoughts, the night sky above roared again, and raindrops began to fall.

By the light, he finally saw the situation below clearly—and… locked onto one person.

"Yese Liming!"

His grand plan had been ruined entirely by Yese Liming.

Without Wang Nu as a pawn, he would have to redraw his path forward.

As he thought, Chen Lao extended his right hand—the last three finger bones remaining—and opened his palm, making a pulling motion toward Fang Yue.

An immediate pulling force appeared on Fang Yue's body.

But when Chen Lao exerted his power, he discovered Fang Yue stubbornly used his ring as a medium to summon a Fire Blade, stabbing it backward into the ground to resist the pulling force.

"A mere ant dares…"

Chen Lao was about to intensify his grip when—crack! —a fissure split one of his finger bones, like an old machine part failing under strain.

He paused, frowning, and slowly descended to the ground.

Meanwhile, the pulling force on Fang Yue ceased.

"Yese Liming, you killed my Wu Yu clan's royal family—do you know what price you must pay!"

Chen Lao clasped his hands behind his back and stepped toward Fang Yue.

"Chen Lao, you destroyed my Gu Yue Cun—do you know what price you must pay!"

Fang Yuejian, sensing the pulling force gone, dispersed the Fire Blade and walked step by step toward Chen Lao!

The old man and the youth walked toward each other on foot beneath the Night Rain!

Boom!

Another thunderclap rang out, and the speed of the Night Rain increased.

Both of them began to display dense, countless -1-1-1-1-1 health loss prompts.

As for any surviving Gu Yue Cun members still clinging to their desire to live, they all hurried to nearby shelters to escape the rain.

Fortunately, the explosion of the bone sphere had scattered a massive bone shell, providing perfect nearby cover—otherwise, under the intensifying Night Rain, they'd have collapsed and died on the road before even reaching the nearest eaves.

"It's Ye Ge!"

Tian Dan Zhi Yuan Wu, dragging the dazed Lin Ling under the bone shell, suddenly pointed forward and cried out.

Only then did the others notice the situation ahead.

Lin Ling, who had been utterly heartbroken and lifeless, saw Fang Yue walking toward Chen Lao with equal resolve.

Lin Ling's eyes gradually regained clarity.

"L-Light Rain? What is Light Rain doing? Light Rain! Come back! Quickly come back! You're no match for him!"

Coming to his senses, Lin Ling's face turned pale, and he shouted urgently.

Yet his voice was drowned beneath the booming thunder and the pattering rain.

Only now did the others notice the change ahead, their expressions shifting variously.

They didn't know what Fang Yue intended to do.

They knew Fang Yue was unusual—he could move normally even in Night Rain.

But they also all knew Fang Yue was a Post-Heaven Realm cultivator!

This fact was undeniable, ironclad.

And a Post-Heaven Realm cultivator could never defeat a Rain Level expert!

Below Immortal Level, Rain Level is invincible!

Even if Fang Yue was extraordinary, even if Lord Han had favored him.

Yet after Lord Han himself had been killed, what could Fang Yue possibly accomplish? Merely trying to stop a cart with his arms.

Everyone will die! Everyone… without exception… will be killed by Chen Lao, by the Wu Yu clan—no one can escape! This is our fate, our fate!

Even though they thought this way, even though it was the truth.

Yet when they saw Fang Yue walking toward Chen Lao through the Night Rain, for some reason, a faint hope, a tiny fantasy, stirred within them.

Boom!

Thunder cracked again.

The rain fell faster and faster.

Across the heavens, the earth, within a hundred li, no one dared expose themselves to the Night Rain, no strange entity dared walk outside.

Everyone, every strange entity, hid within safe shelter zones, motionless, silently waiting for the Night Rain to pass.

Yet the Night Rain continued to intensify! It grew sharper!

Gales howled, lightning flashed, thunder roared.

The Night Rain escalated from 【Light Rain】 toward 【Medium Rain】.

The violent downpour caused dense, countless -1-1-1-1-1 numbers to rise from both men's bodies.

The raindrops came fast and thick, and Fang Yue's steps grew faster and faster!

Yet Chen Lao, opposite him, began to slow his pace—his expression shifted from initial calm, to confusion, to anxiety, and finally to a dark, grim scowl.

As Fang Yue's steps toward him grew increasingly urgent and swift, Chen Lao finally came to a complete stop.

He was afraid.

Because the human before him could actually withstand the erosion of the Night Rain in such a violent downpour, without any external aid, just like him, and remain completely unfazed!

This wasn't something a Postnatal Realm martial artist could do!!

There was only one kind of martial artist who could do this, and that was... a Rain-Rated martial artist!

Yese Liming was actually a Rain-Rated martial artist?!!

Chen Lao refused to believe it with every fiber of his being.

But the Night Rain before his eyes was the best quality inspector.

Anyone who couldn't endure the Night Rain didn't deserve to be called a Rain-Rated powerhouse.

Conversely, anyone who could move freely within the Night Rain was unquestionably a genuine Rain-Rated powerhouse!

Rain-Rated — invincible beneath the Immortal-Rated!

Chen Lao, who had just crossed hands with the half-step Rain-Rated Lord Han, understood all too well the terror of a fellow Rain-Rated.

That kind of overwhelming strength was something the current him — exhausted, covered in wounds — could never hope to oppose!

So, Chen Lao was afraid.

He was afraid... that Fang Yue really was Rain-Rated! And that he had no strength left to fight a second Rain-Rated powerhouse!

If Fang Yue had shown even the slightest hint of retreat under Chen Lao's pressure within the Night Rain, he wouldn't have thought Fang Yue was a Rain-Rated powerhouse.

But Fang Yue didn't.

Fang Yue was like one defying the heavens — no obstacle, no pressure, could make him stop his steps.

He was like someone holding a breath, striding forward!

"No, it's impossible! It makes no sense! How could a mere Gu Yue Cun possibly produce another Rain-Rated powerhouse! Absolutely impossible!"

Chen Lao muttered to himself, but his heart was deeply shaken.

Because the Night Rain never lies.

And also because Ma Ling'er of the Blood-Rated had died at Fang Yue's hands.

If... Fang Yue had Rain-Rated strength and had been playing the pig to eat the tiger all along.

Then all the confusion at present seemed to be explained perfectly!

(End of chapter)