Chapter 40: The Exhibition Match Ends, Recruiting Disciple Dover

Tonghu was momentarily stunned; he hadn't expected such a shameless ultimate technique. Yet the Lushan Hundred Dragons Supremacy in his hands did not diminish in the least—on the contrary, it grew even stronger. Behind Tonghu, the image of a fierce tiger materialized, and his other secret art, the All-Encompassing Nature, manifested directly.

“Since you stripped it from me, I simply won’t wear it anymore!”

Tonghu laughed heartily, completely unfazed. Incredibly, the cosmos burning within him visibly intensified. Such Saints, whose power only increased as their cosmos swelled, were truly the most difficult to handle. Especially Tonghu, whose own Cloth had always been like a shackle; once removed, he could push his cosmos to the very limits—a true prodigy.

“How could I have forgotten this about Master Tiger?” Feng Zhe nearly wanted to slap himself. He should have let Tonghu keep his Cloth on, but his own meddling hands had stripped it away. Wasn’t this just riling him up?

As expected, the Lushan Hundred Dragons Supremacy instantly broke through the triple sevenfold sonic punch barrier and struck Feng Zhe squarely, sending him flying backward.

“It seems this is the end!” Many Saints foresaw Feng Zhe’s defeat, for under Tonghu’s ultimate move, where could anyone find the courage to stand again?

“No! Teacher! You cannot lose!”

A voice reached Feng Zhe’s ears. He looked down and saw it was that accursed star, Defteros! At this moment, not only did Feng Zhe hear it, but even Gemini Aspros looked at him in shock, as if unable to believe his own ears.

Feng Zhe smiled at Defteros, then rose to his feet. Suddenly, he shouted, “My disciple Defteros, your teacher will not lose!”

Sacrifice!

Sacred Fire Healing!

Once more, the Sacred Fire merged into his cosmos, and together they formed a burning ring, within which his wounds healed swiftly. The cuts on his skin visibly began to close.

With this, even Baili stood up in astonishment. Since Odysseus, the Sanctuary had once again seen a Saint capable of healing. This was of immeasurable importance to the Sanctuary—this revelation was even more significant than Feng Zhe’s earlier announcement that he would take Defteros as his disciple.

Defteros appeared flushed, as if intoxicated. On the other side, Gemini Aspros wore a warm expression, for finally, his brother had emerged from the shadow of the accursed star.

The Sacred Fire by Feng Zhe’s side shifted again, gathering around him.

“Receive my most powerful ultimate technique!”

Sacrifice!

Ghostly Azure Flame!

A storm of Sacred Fire erupted, encircling Tonghu from all sides. Pope Sage, wary of any mishap, was already poised to intervene and save Tonghu at a critical moment.

Lushan Hundred Dragons Supremacy!

Everyone knew this would be the final clash. The flames of Sacred Fire collided again and again with the emerald dragons. This time, however, the force of the Ghostly Azure Flame seemed even stronger. The divine dragon suddenly appeared to ignite, and then began to burn. The process was so rapid that even Sage had no time to act.

Just as the Ghostly Azure Flame was about to engulf Tonghu, a streak of golden light shot forward, shielding him.

“The Libra Gold Cloth!”

Even Sage had not anticipated the sudden appearance of the Libra Gold Cloth.

“But wasn’t its core already damaged?” Baili could hardly believe his eyes.

Tonghu sensed something within himself, and his body flickered as if calling out to the Libra Gold Cloth. He gave a mighty shout. The Celestial Dragon constellation glimmered behind him, then transformed into the Libra constellation.

“It’s actually possible?” Even Feng Zhe was astonished by Tonghu’s transformation.

In the next instant, the Libra Gold Cloth disassembled, split into pieces, and clad itself upon Tonghu. The moment he donned the Gold Cloth, Tonghu felt an unprecedented surge of strength—his cosmos evolved yet again.

Lushan Rising Dragon Supremacy!

With the amplification of the Gold Cloth, Tonghu unleashed the Lushan Rising Dragon Supremacy! The lifelike emerald dragon brimmed with an invincible power, which even Feng Zhe dared not confront head-on. Instead, he dodged aside, and the colossal dragon shattered a hundred-meter stone pillar at the edge of the square.

The shattered debris scattered, injuring many Saints and soldiers alike. Tonghu, seeing this, scratched his head in embarrassment. Now that the Cloth had chosen its master, there was no longer any point in continuing the fight.

Pope Sage then officially announced Tonghu as the Libra Gold Saint. In the setting sun, Sage personally conferred the title. All the Saints cheered, celebrating the birth of the new generation’s Libra Saint.

As for Feng Zhe, the defeated, everyone recognized that he was a Silver Saint with the power of Gold. Meanwhile, the accursed star, Defteros, under the eyes of Pope Sage, formally became the disciple of Altar Saint Alex. For the first time, Defteros felt kindness—something he had never experienced before.

Afterward, to encourage Feng Zhe, Pope Sage, before the assembled crowd, named Alex as the Elder-in-waiting, who would assist the Pope alongside Baili. This decision was unexpected, but in many eyes, the Altar Saint seemed destined for such a role.

…

The next morning, Defteros brought Feng Zhe his breakfast early, though it was only a piece of dark bread. Feng Zhe was nonetheless delighted, and thus their training officially began.

Initially, Feng Zhe intended to repeat the explanation of the cosmos as he had once done for Eagle Marin. Unexpectedly, Defteros immediately crushed a stone in his hand, and the Gemini constellation appeared behind him. Feng Zhe was stunned on the spot. Defteros knelt slightly and said, “Teacher, I have always concealed my true strength…”

Feng Zhe quickly understood; labeled an accursed star, Defteros had always lived in darkness—concealing his power was a matter of survival. Feng Zhe was not displeased, merely saying, “Come, let’s spar a little.”

However, Defteros could only throw a few clumsy punches; he seemed to know no techniques, let alone any ultimate moves. Thus, Feng Zhe taught him the ultimate secret of the Sonic Punch, explaining that as long as his cosmos was strong enough, the Sonic Punch would ultimately become the Light Speed Punch.

Of course, with Feng Zhe’s current strength, he could at most use the sevenfold Sonic Punch or the variant triple sevenfold Sonic Punch.

Defteros studied the Sonic Punch with great focus, and in no time, he mastered it. Within a single day, he even achieved the triple Sonic Punch—already the level of a Silver Saint.

Indeed, the Saints of this era were overall stronger than those of his own time, let alone a genius like Defteros.

At sunset, the master and disciple sat side by side atop a shattered pillar, watching the last rays of daylight, savoring a rare moment of peace.