Chapter 772: Mo Yu Strikes, All Nine Lamps Aflame
The sixth bronze lamp lit successfully!
With Ran Ben's full-power strike, the sixth lamp finally flared to life.
"This guy really does have some skill," Mo Yu murmured, brows lifting slightly. Annoying as Ran Ben was, his strength was undeniable.
Cai Lin and Mang Lie both nodded faintly in agreement, offering no objection.
Buzz.
The black stele, now bearing six burning bronze lamps, shuddered once more. A wave of hazy energy surged out, sweeping directly toward the enormous Scarlet Python.
The python inhaled deeply, devouring the Sky-Swallowing Divine Beast's essence. Crimson light burst from its scales, the blood-red color deepening until it seemed nearly molten.
As the glow slowly faded, the gigantic snake form shrank, condensing back into Ran Ben's human body.
He stood with hands clasped behind his back, a faint smile tilting his lips as he glanced at Mo Yu and the others.
"Let's see your performances now," he said lightly.
His tone sounded casual, but the pride within it was obvious.
Cai Lin glanced at Mo Yu. When he nodded, her lips curled into a cold, enchanting smile as she stepped forward.
She stopped before the stele without assuming her beast form. Instead, she simply raised one slender, jade-white hand and pressed her palm outward.
The motion appeared light and almost lazy—but as the strike fell, her five fingers flushed with nine-colored light, radiating a terrifying power.
The Nine-Colored force howled forth with that single palm.
Boom!
Her palm slammed heavily against the stele, and ripples spread across its surface.
Bronze lamps flickered awake in a chain reaction.
In just a few breaths, six lamps blazed to life.
Then the seventh lamp's wick sparked—then flared, exploding into bright flame.
Everyone's expressions shifted.
Ran Ben's face in particular twisted in shock. He'd always known the Nine-Colored Swallowing Python was formidable, but he had not expected Cai Lin to surpass him so cleanly.
But before that thought could fully settle in his mind, his pupils contracted sharply, and a sheen of cold sweat beaded his brow.
Because after the seventh bronze lamp lit up, the eighth lamp—long dark—began to gather specks of fledgling flame.
Though sparse and fragile, those embers clung stubbornly for several moments before finally flickering out.
Cai Lin had nearly ignited the eighth bronze lamp.
Aside from Mo Yu, everyone there sucked in a sharp breath.
No one had expected that the seductive, ice-cold woman before them wielded such overwhelming power.
"Heh. As expected of Cai Lin. The Nine-Colored Swallowing Python's physique truly is terrifying…" Mo Yu couldn't help but remark, shaking his head slightly.
To almost light the eighth lamp—such a result would've been considered extraordinary even in the ancient era.
Buzz, buzz.
The black stele quivered. Faint blood patterns crawled slowly across its surface as threads of hazy energy leaked out.
This time, however, the energy shimmered faintly with crimson.
Mo Yu's eyes gleamed.
"That's blood energy from the Sky-Swallowing Divine Beast's flesh—far purer than the earlier essence. Only exceptional results are rewarded with it," Mang Lie said enviously.
Mo Yu nodded slightly.
So only those who lit seven lamps were granted this special reward.
Cai Lin parted her red lips slightly and inhaled. The crimson essence vanished into her body.
Her figure tinted blood-red for a moment, pale arms blooming with vague, crimson lines of power.
The bloodlight quickly settled as she refined it.
Her aura subtly sharpened.
Opening her eyes, she smiled in quiet satisfaction before turning and walking back to join Mo Yu and Mang Lie.
"Seems that blood energy did a lot for you," Mo Yu said with a soft chuckle as he sensed the faint uptick in her power.
"It's alright. But my result still won't match yours," she replied, smirking as she spoke—unintentionally pushing him into the spotlight.
As expected, Mang Lie, Ran Ben, and several others immediately turned their gazes toward Mo Yu.
Cai Lin had nearly ignited the eighth lamp, an achievement that already overshadowed everyone else.
Yet she calmly admitted she fell short of Mo Yu.
Did that mean he could truly light the eighth lamp?
The group shook their heads inwardly.
Lighting the eighth had not been accomplished in hundreds of years.
Ran Ben even allowed a hint of disdain to surface. In his eyes, Mo Yu likely couldn't even guarantee the sixth lamp.
One failure—and he would be thrown out of the tower.
After Cai Lin's turn, the others made their attempts one after another.
Aside from Mang Lie and Han Yue, every challenger stalled at five lamps before being expelled from the tower.
Han Yue once again demonstrated his might by igniting seven lamps—earning a substantial portion of Sky-Swallowing blood essence, second only to Cai Lin.
Once Han Yue stepped back, both he and Ran Ben looked at Mo Yu.
So did Mang Lie.
Mo Yu exhaled slowly, then walked toward the stele.
He stared at the web of fist and palm marks carved into the stone surface.
Through them, he could almost feel the presence of countless powerful figures from ages past, each standing right where he stood now, gathering all their strength into a single, ultimate blow.
Legend had it that in the ancient era, one terrifying expert had once lit all nine lamps.
That was Mo Yu's goal this time.
If he intended to strike, he would aim for the peak.
"Easy…"
As his thoughts quieted, he drew a long breath and slowly clenched his fist.
Purple-gold light began to seep from his body.
His arms gradually turned the color of royal metal, skin gleaming like polished violet-gold.
The longer he built his strength, the deeper and more subdued that glow became—until his limbs resembled ancient divine arms, tempered by endless years.
He channeled the full might of the Heaven-Shocking Divine Arms, dragging every last scrap of strength from the depths of his blood and bones.
This punch would carry the true limit of his beast body.
Not far away, Ran Ben, Han Yue, and Mang Lie all narrowed their eyes.
They could feel it—that crushing weight radiating from Mo Yu as he stood there, still and silent.
It was like standing before a colossal ape tall enough to split the sky.
As his Divine Beast Body spun up to its full power, the purple-gold lines etched beneath his skin began to tremble faintly, and the phantom roar of a great ape thundered from deep within his core.
Mo Yu's inner strength surged even higher, multiplying with each resounding echo.
His eyes shone brighter, turning into pools of liquefied violet-gold.
His breathing grew rough from the strain of compressing so much power into his arms.
This force surpassed even what he had used to crush Zhu Gang.
Han Yue watched intently, sensing something unusual about the aura gathering around Mo Yu.
The purple-gold glow wasn't spiritual power—it was blood and physique taken to their absolute limit.
And hidden within it was a pressure that made even him feel a faint threat.
"To have such terrifying momentum with just Sixth-Grade cultivation…" he thought, stunned.
Even he had not expected this much from Mo Yu.
He had a feeling—this strike might be historic.
Cai Lin's eyes shone with pride. The corner of her lips curved into a graceful arc.
Among everyone here, no one knew Mo Yu better than she did.
His goal was all nine lamps, and in her heart, there was no doubt he would do it.
In the center of the plaza, Mo Yu's expression remained as calm as still water.
The Heaven-Shocking Divine Arms swelled with explosive might.
He drew his right arm back—and punched.
"Heaven-Shocking Divine Arms—Great Ape King Fist."
The purple-gold fist shot forward.
It shattered the air before it even touched the stele, ripples of violet-gold power blasting outward like overlapping waves.
Boom!
The moment his punch landed, the entire plaza quaked.
Even the ancient stele, immovable for ages, quivered faintly under the impact.
Han Yue and the others fixed their gazes on the exact point of impact—
And their eyes shrank to pinpoints.
Purple-gold ripples flowed outward from Mo Yu's fist like tidal waves, flooding across the entire surface of the stone.
Under his feet, hairline cracks crept silently across the ancient floor.
Buzz, buzz!
Under that terrifying force, flames leapt to life.
Within the bronze lamps crowning the stele, fire sparked and roared, igniting in rapid succession.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six lamps burned bright in a single breath.
Then the seventh snapped alight in an instant.
"What? He lit the seventh that fast?!"
Shock roared through the tower and beyond.
Even outside observers were taken aback.
Mo Yu had ignited the seventh lamp faster than either Han Yue or Cai Lin.
Han Yue's expression tightened.
His eyes locked onto the eighth lamp.
It remained dark—but he could sense it: Mo Yu's power had not yet reached its peak.
The eighth lamp stayed black for several heartbeats.
Then… a faint spark flickered within.
Mang Lie and Ran Ben both sucked in a sharp breath.
Even a single spark signaled that Mo Yu's power had already surpassed nearly every challenger in centuries.
Yet the purple-gold waves pouring from his arm showed no sign of slowing.
Sizzle.
A second spark appeared in the eighth lamp.
Then a third.
One by one, tiny embers multiplied until they merged into a single, blazing flame.
With a clear whoosh, the eighth lamp burst fully into fire.
Eight lamps lit.
Han Yue and the others stared in stunned silence.
Who could have imagined that Mo Yu would truly manage to ignite the eighth bronze lamp?
The sheer force required…
Even they would have needed everything they had to withstand it.
Purple-gold flared suddenly within Mo Yu's eyes.
He pressed his fist harder against the stele and growled a single, low command:
"Explode."
The word rolled through the air like distant thunder.
Inside the stele, violet-gold light erupted.
The energy did not spill from its surface—but detonated from within.
No matter how indestructible something seemed on the outside, its interior was always its weakest point.
Even this divine flesh-turned-stone was no exception.
The entire monolith shook violently, far more than after any previous blow.
Thump.
The ninth and final bronze lamp at the top trembled faintly.
Everyone's focus snapped instantly to it.
Within the deep black of the ninth lamp, they finally saw it—
A pinprick of light.
A spark.
However tiny, it was real—a sign that Mo Yu's power now brushed at the threshold of the impossible.
He was attempting to ignite the ninth bronze lamp.
"H-how is that even possible…?"
Ran Ben's face twisted grotesquely.
He had summoned all of his might and managed only six.
Even Han Yue had reached only seven.
Yet Mo Yu had already lit eight—and now, unbelievably, there were embers in the ninth.
Boom. Boom.
The plaza trembled again and again as Mo Yu poured more force into the stele.
Under the relentless assault, the faint spark in the ninth lamp grew steadily brighter.
It expanded with each thunderous impact—until at last, it surged outward and blossomed into open flame.
The ninth bronze lamp flared fully to life.
All nine lamps burned.
(END CHAPTER)
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