Chapter 45: This Wasn’t a Duel of Spells, It Was a Product Launch!

The echo of the Life and Death Bell was still reverberating over the Martial Arena.

On the high platform, the atmosphere had already become unbearably tense.

“Chu Feng!”

Li Aotian roared in fury, his voice filled with endless resentment and killing intent.

“Today is the day you die! I’ll tear that deceitful mouth of yours to shreds! Rip out that filthy heart of yours! I’ll let you understand that before absolute power, everything about you is nothing but a joke!”

Before his voice even fell, he moved!

“Raging Thunder Sword Technique — Blinding Thunder Flash!”

“Swish!”

Li Aotian’s figure instantly turned into a dazzling streak of violet lightning and vanished from sight.

The next moment, he had already appeared before Chu Feng!

Fast!

So fast that it reached the very limits of speed!

The crowd below only saw a blur flashing by — they couldn’t even make out Li Aotian’s movement.

“So fast!”

Wang Teng cried out in shock, “That’s Li Aotian’s signature move! He’s using full strength right from the start!”

“President, watch out!”

Zhang Daniu’s heart almost leapt out of his chest.

Everyone’s hearts were hanging by a thread.

Yet, in the face of this earth-shattering sword strike, Chu Feng’s reaction once again exceeded all expectations.

He didn’t try to block it, nor did he attempt to dodge.

He merely… took out a fist-sized black sphere from his robe and smashed it hard against the ground at his feet!

“Bang!”

With a muffled thud, the sphere burst open!

But what erupted wasn’t fire, nor an explosive shockwave — it was a thick, all-encompassing black smoke so dense that one couldn’t even see their own hand.

“Ascension Group’s ‘Tactical Interference Series’ Product No.1 — Smoke Bomb! Effectively blocks divine sense detection, disrupts enemy vision; an essential tool for home defense, travel, assassination, and robbery!”

Chu Feng’s voice rang out from within the dense smoke — completely out of place, yet spoken in that distinct promotional tone.

“What the hell is this thing!”

Li Aotian’s sword struck empty air, and in the blink of an eye, he was swallowed by the smoke, his vision completely obscured.

He immediately released his divine sense, only to be horrified to discover that this strange smoke could even block more than half of it!

He instantly lost track of Chu Feng’s position.

“Petty trick!”

Li Aotian roared angrily.

Though he had lost his target, his battle experience was extensive.

He immediately channeled his spiritual energy, sending waves of sword qi sweeping outward indiscriminately in all directions from his position!

“Raging Thunder Sword Net!”

“Zzzzz—”

Countless fine arcs of lightning-infused sword qi exploded outward, covering a radius of ten zhang around him in an instant!

He believed that as long as Chu Feng was within this area, there was absolutely no escape!

However, what greeted him wasn’t Chu Feng’s scream — but a series of sharp, crackling sounds.

From within the dense smoke, dozens of glittering barbed iron caltrops suddenly shot out, scattering precisely over the spot where he was about to land.

“Ascension Group’s ‘Field Control Series’ Product No.2 — Barbed Iron Caltrops! Crafted from refined steel, imbued with spirit-breaking effects — designed to counter all movement and body protection techniques! You deserve to have one!”

Chu Feng’s voice once again echoed in the chaos.

Just as Li Aotian was about to land, the corner of his eye caught sight of the things on the ground, and his scalp went numb.

If he stepped on them, even with protective spiritual energy, his soles would be pierced clean through!

Helplessly, he could only forcefully draw a breath midair, change direction abruptly, and awkwardly land to the side.

But just as he moved, Chu Feng’s next “product wave” came flying in.

“Whoosh!”

From another direction within the smoke, a delicately crafted slingshot made from the tendon of some kind of beast appeared.

The projectile it launched wasn’t a stone, but a talisman wrapped in intense light!

“Ascension Group’s ‘Sensory Deprivation Series’ Product No.3 — Blinding Light Talisman! Instantly releases a radiance comparable to the sun, effectively blinding opponents for three to five breaths! Purchase now and receive a complimentary pair of Anti-Glare Goggles!”

That talisman exploded in midair with a deafening “boom!”

In that instant, a burst of white light a hundred times brighter than the noonday sun erupted violently!

“Ah—my eyes!”

Caught completely off guard, Li Aotian felt his vision turn into a sea of white.

A searing pain shot through his eyes, and tears instantly streamed down his face.

He was completely blinded!

“Hahahahaha!”

“My heavens! What kind of fight is this supposed to be?”

“Smoke Bombs? Iron Caltrops? Flash Bombs? Did this Chu Feng come from a mortal army?”

“So dirty! So shameless! This fighting style is downright filthy! Li Aotian can’t even use a fraction of his skill!”

The spectators below the platform had gone from tense anticipation to stunned disbelief.

Some couldn’t help bursting into laughter.

Was this even a duel between cultivators?

This was clearly a scoundrel using all sorts of underhanded tricks to toy with a martial expert!

“Chu Feng! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you!”

Li Aotian went completely mad.

Eyes tightly shut, he swung his sword wildly, sending out violent waves of sword qi that shattered the entire arena surface, scattering stones in all directions.

But he was like a blindfolded elephant — unable to touch even a hair of the nimble mosquito that was Chu Feng.

Within the cover of smoke, Chu Feng’s figure moved like a phantom, circling around Li Aotian while continuing his “product introductions.”

“See this, my family members! This is the outcome of ‘individual heroism’! He may have brute strength, but before our scientific, systematic, and multidimensional strike system, he is fragile — utterly defenseless!”

His voice not only echoed across the arena but also clearly reached every ear in the audience below.

This was no longer a duel.

It had turned into… a unique “New Product Launch Conference” hosted by Ascension Group!

And Li Aotian — once the number one prodigy among the Inner Sect — had now become the most pitiful “test subject” used to demonstrate the effectiveness of these new products.

“Pfft—”

Li Aotian, consumed by rage and humiliation, coughed up another mouthful of blood.

He felt as though he might explode from fury!

He would rather be slain by a single sword strike than suffer the disgrace of being toyed with like a monkey before everyone!

“Chu Feng! If you’ve got guts, come out and fight me fair and square!” he roared hysterically.

“As you wish.”

Chu Feng’s voice suddenly sounded behind him.

At that moment, the smoke also happened to dissipate.

Li Aotian’s vision gradually returned. He turned sharply — and saw Chu Feng standing not far behind him, smiling calmly.

“You’re courting death!”

Seeing his enemy, Li Aotian no longer cared about anything else.

He poured all of his remaining spiritual energy into his sword, transforming it into a sky-splitting bolt of lightning that he brought crashing down toward Chu Feng!

This was his all-in — a strike that carried everything he had left!

However, Chu Feng still didn’t dodge.

He simply, calmly, reached into his storage pouch and pulled out a massive, strangely shaped metallic construct — something resembling a crossbow, but far more complex and imposing.

He aimed it directly at the enraged Li Aotian who was charging at him.

“And now, allow me to proudly introduce Ascension Group’s treasure of the mountain, personally designed by Cold CPO — the Godslayer No.1 Portable Armor-Piercing Crossbow!”

“It shall mark the end of the old era.”

A brilliant smile spread across Chu Feng’s face as he gently pressed the trigger.