Chapter 10: The Day the Dragon Died
**Three Days Later – The Grand Arena**
The sky above the Azure Dragon Academy was a bruised purple, heavy with storm clouds that seemed to gather unnaturally over the colossal stone amphitheater. Today was not just a duel; it was a spectacle. Every disciple, from the lowest outer member to the highest inner elite, had packed into the stands. Even elders who rarely left their secluded peaks were present, floating on clouds above the VIP section.
The air buzzed with anticipation and gossip.
*"Did you hear? Long Ao has been training in the Ancestral Cave for three days straight."*
*"They say he unlocked the final form of the Azure Dragon Spear Art."*
*"And Chen Feng? He hasn't left his room once. Some say he's too scared to come out."*
*"Or maybe he's already dead from draining all that energy."*
In the center of the arena, the ground had been reinforced with formation arrays capable of withstanding attacks from *Nascent Soul* cultivators. Standing on the eastern side was **Long Ao**.
He looked different today. His white robes were replaced by armor made of shimmering blue scales, and a massive spear, crackling with lightning and water energy, rested in his hand. Behind him, a spectral projection of a giant Azure Dragon coiled, its eyes glowing with murderous intent. His cultivation base had stabilized at *Foundation Establishment Level 6*, radiating a pressure that made nearby disciples tremble.
"Where is he?" Long Ao shouted, his voice echoing across the silent stadium. "Has the 'Supreme Prodigy' fled? Or is he hiding under his bed?"
Laughter rippled through the crowd, led by his supporters.
Elder Liu sat in the VIP box, a smug smile on his face. "Let him wait. Fear breaks the spirit before the body even meets the blade."
Suddenly, the heavy iron gates on the western side groaned open.
A single figure walked out.
**Chen Feng.**
He wore simple black robes, no armor, no weapon. His hands were tucked into his sleeves. He walked with a casual slouch, as if he were strolling through a garden rather than entering a death match. There was no aura flaring around him, no terrifying pressure. To the untrained eye, he looked like a mortal walking into a lion's den.
But Lin Yue, watching from the sidelines, gripped her railing tightly. Her *Starlight Sense* picked up something others couldn't. Around Chen Feng, the space itself seemed to be... bending. Light curved away from him. Sound died before reaching him. He wasn't emitting energy; he was *erasing* the presence of energy around him.
"He's here!" someone shouted.
"He looks so weak! Is this a joke?"
"Long Ao will crush him in one second!"
Chen Feng stopped in the center of the arena, ten paces away from Long Ao. He yawned, covering his mouth with one hand.
"Sorry I'm late," he said boredly. "I was busy napping. You ready to lose yet?"
Long Ao's face turned red with rage. "You dare mock me?! Today, I will tear your limbs off and feed them to my dragon spirit!"
"Enough chatter!" Elder Liu's voice boomed from above. "This is a formal duel. Rules are simple: Surrender, unconsciousness, or death. Begin!"
**"DIE!"** Long Ao roared.
He didn't hesitate. He launched himself forward, moving faster than the eye could follow. The Azure Dragon spirit behind him shrieked, merging with his spear.
"*Azure Dragon Ultimate Technique: Heaven-Piercing Deluge!*"
The spear thrust forward. A beam of concentrated water and lightning, thick as a tree trunk, erupted from the tip. It wasn't just an attack; it was a natural disaster. The air screamed as it was torn apart. The beam surged toward Chen Feng, promising total annihilation.
The crowd gasped. Many covered their eyes, expecting to see blood spray.
"It's over," Elder Liu muttered confidently.
Chen Feng didn't move his feet. He didn't dodge. He didn't even take his hands out of his sleeves.
He simply opened his mouth and whispered:
"**Devour.**"
A black hole, small but infinitely deep, appeared directly in front of his lips.
The massive beam of water and lightning hit the black hole.
And then... silence.
The roaring sound stopped. The blinding light vanished. The terrifying pressure dissipated.
The entire attack, powerful enough to level a mountain, was sucked into Chen Feng's mouth like a noodle strand.
*Slurp.*
Chen Feng swallowed. A faint glow of blue and gold flickered in his throat before fading.
He patted his stomach. "A bit salty. Needs more spice."
The arena went dead silent. Not a whisper. Not a breath.
Long Ao froze mid-stride, his spear still extended, his eyes wide with horror. "H-how...? That was my ultimate move! It contains the essence of the Azure Dragon Spirit! No human can digest that!"
"Humans can't," Chen Feng agreed, stepping forward slowly. "But I'm not just human, am I?"
"You monster!" Long Ao screamed, panic rising in his chest. He retreated, raising his spear defensively. "Stay back! I have more! I have the clan's secret treasure!"
He reached into his robe and pulled out a small, glowing blue pearl. "Azure Dragon Scale Pearl! Explode!"
He crushed the pearl.
A massive explosion of icy energy engulfed the area, freezing everything within fifty meters. Ice spikes shot up from the ground, aiming to impale Chen Feng from all angles.
Chen Feng walked through the ice storm.
As the ice spikes touched his skin, they didn't pierce him. They shattered into dust. The cold energy tried to freeze his meridians, but the *Void Flame* inside him burned it away instantly, converting the ice into steam, which he then inhaled.
*Inhale.*
"Refreshing," Chen Feng commented.
He was now only five steps away from Long Ao.
Long Ao backed up until he hit the edge of the arena. His face was pale, sweat pouring down his forehead. His pride, his confidence, his very soul was cracking.
"What are you?" he whispered, trembling. "What kind of technique is this?!"
Chen Feng stopped. He finally took his hands out of his sleeves.
"This," Chen Feng said softly, raising his right hand. Black flames began to dance on his fingertips, not burning hot, but radiating a cold that made Long Ao's blood freeze. "This is the end of your era, Long Ao. The Azure Dragon thought it was the apex predator. But in the void... even dragons are just food."
"**Void Scripture: Dragon Banquet.**"
Chen Feng swiped his hand through the air.
A wave of black fire, shaped like a giant maw, rushed toward Long Ao.
Long Ao tried to raise his spear, but his arms wouldn't obey. The pressure was too immense. He fell to his knees, screaming as the black fire enveloped him.
But it didn't burn his flesh.
It burned his *cultivation*.
Long Ao felt his spiritual energy being ripped out of his meridians. His connection to the Azure Dragon spirit was severed. The spectral dragon behind him shrieked in agony before dissolving into black mist and flowing into Chen Feng's hand.
"No! My power! My future!" Long Ao wailed. "Give it back!"
Within seconds, the ordeal was over.
Long Ao collapsed onto the ground, unconscious. He was alive, but his cultivation had dropped from *Foundation Establishment Level 6* all the way down to *Qi Gathering Level 1*. He was crippled. A genius reduced to a mortal.
Chen Feng stood over him, the black flames fading. He looked up at the VIP box, locking eyes with Elder Liu.
"The duel is over," Chen Feng announced, his voice carrying clearly to every corner of the arena. "I believe the terms were: public apology, surrender of resources, and expulsion."
Elder Liu sat frozen, his face pale as a sheet. He had underestimated the boy. Catastrophically.
To speak now would be to admit defeat. To stay silent would be to accept humiliation.
"Do it," Chen Feng commanded, his voice dropping an octave, laced with spiritual pressure that forced Elder Liu's head down slightly. "Or do you want to join him?"
The crowd held its breath. Would the elder attack?
Slowly, painfully, Elder Liu stood up. He looked at his nephew's broken body, then at the smiling demon below. He knew when he was beaten.
"Long Ao... lost," Elder Liu choked out, his voice lacking its usual boom. "He... apologizes. The Golden Lion Clan will... surrender the requested resources."
A murmur of shock swept through the stadium. An elder admitting defeat to a student? Unheard of!
Chen Feng nodded satisfied. "Good. Send the resources to my island by sunset. If even one stone is missing..." He glanced at Long Ao's twitching form. "...you know what happens."
He turned his back on the defeated heir and the humiliated elder, and began to walk toward the exit.
As he passed Lin Yue, she grabbed his sleeve, her eyes wide. "You... you actually did it. You broke a genius."
"Just pruning the weeds," Chen Feng said casually. "Now the garden can grow."
But as he exited the arena, he felt a strange sensation in his dantian. The absorbed dragon spirit wasn't just energy. It contained a fragment of memory. A map. And a name whispered in the depths of his mind:
*"The Six Sovereigns... they are watching..."*
Chen Feng's step faltered for a microsecond.
*So,* he thought, a dark smile touching his lips. *The game begins sooner than I expected.*
High above the clouds, far beyond the academy, six stars in the night sky seemed to flicker in unison, as if reacting to the fall of the dragon.
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**To be continued...**