Chapter 175: Escape

Though his internal organs ached from the fall into the ruins, Meng Chuan was fortunate that his protective inner armor had kept his physical body intact, allowing him to maintain his full strength.

Even as he was sent flying backward, crashing through numerous houses and trees, he immediately activated his Godfiend forbidden art!

He understood clearly:"If I don't fight with all I have, I might truly die here." Meng Chuan still had too many things left undone; he was naturally unwilling to give up.

*Boom!*

A massive black snake tail, leaving a trail of afterimages, swept across the sky and then through the ruins where Meng Chuan lay.

Meng Chuan, lying on the ground, erupted with lightning. He shot out with all his might, his Essence Soul power fully mobilizing his physical true essence. The Godfiend forbidden art was unleashed at full power, pushing his movement speed to its absolute limit. The black snake tail heavily swept across the ruins, but it only hit Meng Chuan's afterimage. Meng Chuan's true body was actually three feet faster, barely escaping the attack.

"He actually dodged it?"

The Blackwater Palace Lord stood amidst the ruins, a black snake tail over ten *zhang* long protruding from his coccyx. This was his half-demonized form, the most powerful manifestation of his strength.

At this moment, the Blackwater Palace Lord's eyes could not conceal his shock. He was already surprised that Meng Chuan hadn't died from the fall into the ruins, but he had assumed that even if Meng Chuan survived, he would be severely wounded! After all, Meng Chuan was merely a Great Solar Godfiend, cultivating the 'Thunder Annihilation Godfiend Body,' which was known for speed but had ordinary physical defense. The might of a Fourth-Heaven Demon Monarch's attack, even if it didn't pierce the armor, would likely kill Meng Chuan from the impact. If it didn't kill him, Meng Chuan should at least be gravely injured, close to death.

Yet, Meng Chuan, who should have been 'severely injured,' erupted with astonishing movement speed? Enough to evade his snake tail strike?

"Escape." After narrowly avoiding the black snake tail's sweep, Meng Chuan frantically darted away, trying to create distance.

It was a brief exchange.He had poured all his strength into it, yet he was still at an absolute disadvantage! It was important to remember that his Essence Soul power could simultaneously control his physical body and true essence for only eight moves, even after two years of growth since descending the mountain. He had already used three moves. If he didn't escape now, when would he?

"Can you escape?" The Blackwater Palace Lord's voice resonated through the ancient streets around them.

"Hmm?" Meng Chuan's expression changed.

Not only was the Blackwater Palace Lord rapidly pursuing him, but the rainwater in the sky suddenly became controlled, and even the water from a nearby river beside the street lifted into the air.

A surging torrent of water filled an area one *li* around, enveloping Meng Chuan from all directions, intending to trap him.

For someone like Meng Chuan, whose speed was paramount, a domain was his greatest fear! Within a domain, he would encounter numerous obstacles, naturally slowing him down.

"I absolutely cannot let him get close. If he does, even if I fully unleash my Essence Soul power, I won't last more than a few moves before losing my life." Meng Chuan was acutely aware of this.

The Blackwater Palace Lord was of mid-tier strength among the eleven Demon Monarchs of the Demon Imperial Gate.

According to intelligence reports, his strength reached the 'threshold of a Marquis Godfiend.' However, compared to Meng Chuan, Yang Fang, and Zhang Junfeng, the Blackwater Palace Lord had fully ascended to the Fourth Heaven realm, having completely broken through to that level, making him strong in all aspects.

Domain, ranged attacks, close combat, physical body, demon power, cultivation realm... he might not be dazzling, but he was powerful in every regard.

What about Meng Chuan?

Even with all his techniques, including the Godfiend forbidden art, fully unleashed, he barely reached the threshold of a Godfiend. Besides his speed, he was mediocre in all other aspects. His cultivation realm was completely outmatched by the opponent! The Blackwater Palace Lord, as a Demon Monarch, could reach the Marquis Godfiend threshold; his realm had reached the 'Mastery of Dao Realm,' while Meng Chuan was only at 'Mastery of Blade Soul.' The disparity in this aspect was too great. That's why Meng Chuan's Red Lotus form was easily countered; the gap in realms was too significant, rendering even the Black Iron Heavenly Book useless.

As for the power of his techniques? They were also mediocre, completely crushed by the Blackwater Palace Lord.

Meng Chuan's only advantage was speed — his blade art was fast, and his movement technique was fast, significantly faster than the Blackwater Palace Lord. However, despite this, due to the difference in their cultivation realms, the Blackwater Palace Lord could still break through Meng Chuan's blade art.

Therefore, getting close was suicidal!

*Rumbling sounds*Countless raindrops and airborne water streams filled a one-*li* radius, engulfing Meng Chuan.

Meng Chuan, however, continued to rush forward, fleeing, fleeing, fleeing!

As the water domain approached, Meng Chuan's body suddenly erupted with black fiend energy. This fiend energy spread in all directions, its extreme cold instantly freezing many water streams into ice. Although Meng Chuan had attempted to cultivate 'Nirvana Cold Fiend,' his Vajra Body couldn't achieve it, likely requiring his physical body to reach the next realm before he could try again.

Even so, Meng Chuan's fiend energy domain was quite formidable among Great Solar Godfiends.

The moment countless water streams froze into ice...*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!!!*

Seven condensed streams of water, like flood dragons, surged into the fiend energy domain, encircling Meng Chuan.

These seven water dragons were not part of a wide-ranging water domain; they were specifically controlled by the Blackwater Palace Lord's demon power, making them far more potent and capable of resisting the fiend energy's freezing effect.

"The Blackwater Palace Lord is trying to stop me; if he catches up, I'm finished." Meng Chuan maintained his speed, but his movement technique became far more elusive. *Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!* In an instant, numerous 'Meng Chuan' phantoms appeared, causing many water dragons to strike empty air. Even if an occasional water dragon managed to block Meng Chuan's true body, he cleaved it apart with a single strike of his blade.

He couldn't contend with the Blackwater Palace Lord in close combat, but surely he could break through a distant stream of water?

At this point, Meng Chuan was only using his Essence Soul power to mobilize his true essence, not his physical body! If he continued to expend it fully, his Essence Soul power wouldn't last much longer.

While evading the water dragons, Meng Chuan's escape speed remained quite high.

"Almost there, I've already escaped a hundred *zhang*. As long as I get out of the one-*li* range, his power will be much weaker at that distance. He won't be able to threaten me anymore." Meng Chuan continued to rush forward.

"He's certainly slippery. Too bad, besides speed, he poses no other threat." The Blackwater Palace Lord frowned slightly, seeing Meng Chuan steadily increasing the distance between them. Finally, he flung both hands, and two water-splitting daggers shot out at super-high speed towards Meng Chuan.

"The Blackwater Palace Lord's weapons?" Meng Chuan was startled.

The two water-splitting daggers soared through the sky, moving much faster than Meng Chuan, quickly catching up.

Moreover, they formed water palms! Two water palms, each grasping a dagger, allowing the daggers to execute intricate killing moves.

Each time, the daggers twisted the very air, making them incredibly difficult to predict. Their speed was more than enough to entangle Meng Chuan.

*Clang, clang, clang.*Meng Chuan moved like a phantom through the dense buildings of the streets, fending off the daggers with his Red Lotus form.

Jiangzhou City was densely populated, with every inch of land precious, so naturally, the buildings were very compact. Meng Chuan, now employing his Flying Swallow technique, moved unpredictably through the residential areas. The two water-splitting daggers repeatedly destroyed houses in pursuit of Meng Chuan. Remote manipulation already made their power inferior to close-range combat, and with the obstruction of dense buildings, the daggers' power was further diminished, making it naturally difficult to stop Meng Chuan.

"One hundred twenty *zhang*, one hundred thirty *zhang*. Almost there, almost out of his domain." Meng Chuan grew more confident.

"Damn it."The Blackwater Palace Lord, controlling the daggers from afar with his water palms, found himself unable to close the distance and finally grew anxious.

At this moment, he finally unleashed a forbidden art!His demon power surged!

"Water Prison Lock!" The Blackwater Palace Lord unleashed it with full force.

*Whoosh! Whoosh!*The two water-splitting daggers increased their speed and power once more, carving arcs through the air as they frantically obstructed Meng Chuan. The daggers were erratic and unpredictable, capable of striking from any direction, including from underground! Meng Chuan had to devote more effort to defending against them, which slowed his forward momentum. The Blackwater Palace Lord, however, had never slowed down; in fact, after activating his forbidden art, his speed increased by a third.

"I can't slow down." Meng Chuan was well aware of the situation. At a distance of one hundred thirty *zhang*, if he got entangled and slowed down, he feared he could be caught in a single breath.

"I'll risk it all!"Meng Chuan once again erupted with full power, his Essence Soul simultaneously mobilizing both his physical body and true essence. Although the consumption increased drastically, Meng Chuan's strength indeed surged significantly.

*Clang, clang, clang.* While fending off the daggers, Meng Chuan's speed accelerated even further.

One hundred forty *zhang*, one hundred fifty *zhang*...

"Stop him!" The Blackwater Palace Lord's expression turned grim.

With his full-power burst, Meng Chuan finally broke out of the one-*li* range. The two water-splitting daggers, held by the water palms, also halted.

*Whoosh.*Having escaped the one-*li* range, Meng Chuan was free of all obstacles. With a flash, the distance between them instantly grew to two *li*. Meng Chuan landed on the roof of a tavern, looking back at the distant Blackwater Palace Lord. Only then did he exhale in relief, realizing the danger he had faced: "I survived!"

By now, seventy percent of his Essence Soul power was depleted, leaving only thirty percent!

Fortunately, after his wedding, drawing that painting for his wife, Liu Qiyue, had deepened his Essence Soul's reserves somewhat, otherwise, his Essence Soul power wouldn't have lasted this long.