196: Devilish training, prey comes knocking

"Again?"

The Void Refining Realm Clone of Chu He heard this, and a cold arc pulled at the corners of its mouth. With a flicker of its body, it instantly crossed a distance of a thousand zhang and appeared before the newly risen Chu Batian.

"Since you're so energetic, I'll clear your head for you."

Before the words finished, it launched a storm-like attack. It didn't use Laws or Divine Abilities, just pure fists and kicks. Every punch and every kick contained terrifying physical strength capable of shattering stars, accurately striking Chu Batian's vital points and weaknesses.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The dull thuds of impact were incessant, making Chu Lingxi and Chu Yuning's eyelids twitch from a distance.

Chu Batian roared repeatedly, waving his still-movable left arm and his sky-opening tyrant axe in a desperate struggle. However, before this "father" whose combat techniques and power application far surpassed his own, all his resistance seemed futile.

He was like a clumsy child dueling a battle-hardened martial arts Grandmaster. Every movement and every intention was predicted by the opponent in advance.

In less than ten breaths, Chu Batian was beaten black and blue again, with an unknown number of bones broken. He collapsed to the ground like a pile of mud, with only the violent rising and falling of his chest proving he was still alive.

"Combat isn't just about brute force. You've wasted at least seventy percent of your power," the Void Refining Realm Clone evaluated from above, its tone devoid of emotion.

On the other side, the battlefield was equally tragic.

After Chu Tian was heavily injured, Chu Lingxi, Chu Ce, and Chu Yuning reacted immediately.

"Form the array!" Chu Ce shouted low.

He immediately sacrificed his three hundred and sixty-five myriad heavens killing array flags, which turned into a sky full of stars in an attempt to set up a Formation to trap the Body Integration Realm Clone of Chu He.

Chu Yuning also struck at the same time. Holding the spring and autumn brush and using her Divine Soul as ink, she quickly wrote an ancient character for "Bind" in the void.

Words Manifest as Law—an invisible power of Law instantly descended, coiling toward the Body Integration Realm Clone.

Chu Lingxi achieved unity with her sword, transforming into a shadowless and invisible sword light that merged into the void, searching for the opportunity for a fatal strike.

The cooperation between the three siblings was exceptionally seamless, forming a combo of control, debuffing, and assassination almost instantly.

However, who they were facing was Chu He!

"Formations? Playing with Formations in front of me?" The Body Integration Realm Clone chuckled. Without even looking at the array flags, it lightly tapped the void.

"Arrays begin with me, and so shall they end with me."

Words Manifest as Law!

This was not Chu Yuning's Dao Body Divine Ability, but Chu He's application of the "Words Manifest as Law (Fragment)" after advancing to the Body Integration Realm, which had reached a divinely enlightened level.

As his voice fell, the energy operating the Myriad Heavens Killing Array that Chu Ce had painstakingly set up instantly became chaotic. The three hundred and sixty-five array flags let out a wail and actually reversed direction, turning into streaks of light that blasted back toward Chu Ce himself!

Pfft!

Chu Ce's face turned pale as he took a heavy hit, sent flying by his own Magic Treasure, his mind suffering a significant shock.

At the same time, the Law chains formed by Chu Yuning's "Bind" character shattered inch by inch and dissipated into nothingness when they came within three feet of the Body Integration Realm Clone, as if hitting an invisible barrier.

"Words Manifest as Law is for you to create rules, not to follow them. Your Realm is too low," the Body Integration Realm Clone commented, then turned its gaze toward a certain spot in the void.

"As for you... little assassin, your concealment methods are decent. Unfortunately, in front of me, you're no different from a firefly in the dark of night."

He extended two fingers and casually pinched toward that patch of void.

"Ah!"

A cry of pain rang out.

Chu Lingxi's figure stumbled out of the void. The formless and substance-less blade of her natal Dao Artifact, the "shadowless sword heart," was actually being held firmly between the opponent's two fingers!

She struggled with all her might but found her sword seemed to be suppressed by a divine mountain, unable to move at all.

"A sword is a tool for killing, not a tool for hiding. Your sword lacks the sharp edge of a certain kill."

The Body Integration Realm Clone flicked a finger.

Ding!

With a crisp sound, the shadowless sword heart flew out of her hand. Chu Lingxi also let out a muffled groan as she was knocked back by a massive force, a trace of blood overflowing from the corner of her mouth.

At this point, all five children were completely defeated.

The entire process, from start to finish, did not exceed one minute.

On the martial arts field, Chu Tian, Chu Batian, and the others struggled to crawl up from the ground and gathered together. Every one of them was covered in dust and in a wretched state, but in each of their eyes, the previous slight flippancy was gone, replaced by deep shock and unwillingness.

For the first time, they clearly realized just how massive the gap between them and their father was.

That simply wasn't a battle on the same dimension.

"What? Giving up already?" Chu He's main body's voice rang out again. "I haven't even used any strength, and you're already falling?"

"No!"

Chu Tian wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and gripped the chaos annihilation dragon spear tightly again. An unyielding fire burned in his gray-gold eyes.

"Father, we... can still fight!"

"Very good." Chu He's two Clones simultaneously revealed "kind" smiles.

"Then, the second lesson begins now."

The following days were simply Hell for the five siblings of the Chu family.

Their daily task was to be "ravaged" in various ways by their father's two Clones on the martial arts field.

From one-on-one guidance to five-on-two group fights, and even extreme challenges under various harsh conditions.

Chu Batian's Physical Body was shattered and reconstructed, reconstructed and shattered again. Under extreme pain and pressure, the potential of his Primordial Hegemon Body was frantically stimulated, and his control over power advanced rapidly from that of a layman toward the Grandmaster level.

Chu Tian's Chaos Creation-Annihilation Dao Body was torn apart again and again in Law confrontations with the Body Integration Realm Clone, and reshaped again and again between creation and annihilation. His understanding and application of Chaos Power was no longer a simple release; he learned how to cause the maximum destruction with the minimum cost.

Chu Lingxi no longer obsessed over the perfect assassination; her sword became more direct and more lethal.

Chu Ce's Formations were no longer confined to forms; he learned how to adapt to local conditions and even treat the enemy as part of the Formation.

Chu Yuning's Words Manifest as Law also began to touch the threshold of "creating rules."

They were like five pieces of divine iron being hammered by the master smith Chu He, having all their Impurities beaten out, becoming increasingly tough and sharp.

This devilish training lasted for an entire year (time within the Heaven-Reaching Pagoda).

On this day, when the five siblings were once again easily defeated by the two Clones and collapsed to the ground without even the strength to move a finger, Chu He's main body finally walked slowly into the martial arts field.

"Today's lesson ends here."

With a wave of his hand, the two Clones turned into streaks of light and merged back into his body.

Hearing this, the five siblings felt as if they had received a great pardon, each lying on the ground panting heavily.

"Dad, are... are you going to let us off now?" Chu Batian asked weakly.

"Let you off?" Chu He smiled. "No, the training is over. Because the real prey has delivered itself to our door."

He flipped his hand and took out a transmission Jade Slip, which was flashing with an urgent light.

This was a message from the warning Formation Su Qingxue had set up on the outskirts of Starry Sky Divine City.

"Just now, an Early Body Integration Stage Devil King brought his fleet and broke into our 'Blood Refining Star Domain' hunting grounds."

"He seems very cautious and is sacrificing a world called the 'Tianlan Realm' in an attempt to lure the snake out of its hole."

A trace of cold killing intent flashed in Chu He's eyes.

"Your final exam has arrived."

"The target: Demon King Fenyang."

"This time, I will not act. I want you to take his life with your own hands."