"No?"
Tian Hu looked at Fang Chen, his face darkening. Without another word, he charged.
Tian Hu had yet to break through to the Qi Refining Realm, but his four-attribute Mixed Spiritual Root let him absorb spiritual energy from his surroundings. He had also consumed large quantities of spirit medicine over the years, making his body exceptionally strong. He could easily lift several hundred pounds.
Before Zhang Tieniu came to Dragon Tiger Mountain, Tian Hu had been its strongest menial disciple.
Tian Hu rushed up to Fang Chen and kicked at him.
Fang Chen slipped aside, dodging the attack.
Tian Hu stumbled and nearly fell. After steadying himself, he looked up at Fang Chen in shock. He had never expected this good-for-nothing to dodge his attack.
Zhang Tieniu was surprised too. Tian Hu might not be as strong as he was, but he still ranked among the best of the menial disciples.
Tian Hu had not put his full strength into that kick, but an ordinary person could never have dodged it. Fang Chen had done so with ease.
"You dare dodge? You're dead!"
Furious that Fang Chen had made him lose face in front of Zhang Tieniu, Tian Hu charged again.
But Fang Chen dodged every attack that followed.
Unable to land a blow, Tian Hu was secretly shaken. He had never expected Fang Chen to be so strong.
He had wanted to show off in front of Zhang Tieniu. Instead, he now found himself riding a tiger he could not dismount.
In a rage, he pulled the Cleaver from his waist and roared. His muscles swelled as though he had unleashed some Secret Art, and he slashed at Fang Chen.
Fang Chen's gaze sharpened. He immediately leaned back.
Whoosh!
The Cleaver swept past his neck, its sharp edge leaving a shallow cut.
Fang Chen used the motion to retreat several steps. He touched his neck, then looked down at the blood covering his hand.
His eyes turned cold. If he had been a moment slower, his head might already have been separated from his body.
Before, he had endured Tian Hu's bullying because it had never threatened his life.
But today, Tian Hu intended to kill him.
Just then, Tian Hu charged again, eyes bloodshot and Cleaver in hand.
Fang Chen's gaze hardened. He swung the Floating Immortal Sword into the Cleaver.
Clang!
Sparks flew.
Tian Hu staggered back four steps. A large notch had appeared in his Cleaver, while Fang Chen's sword was untouched.
The next moment, Fang Chen felt a rush of scorching energy flow from the Floating Immortal Sword. It was far stronger than anything he had felt while chopping bamboo or stone.
The energy made him shudder uncontrollably.
Tian Hu glanced at his chipped blade, and his expression changed sharply.
Watching from a distance, Zhang Tieniu smiled. "Just as I thought. That sword is definitely a treasure!"
In the next instant, he became a blur and rushed at Fang Chen.
Fang Chen looked up and swung his sword at Zhang Tieniu.
But Zhang Tieniu sneered. With a flicker of movement, he slipped past the blade and struck Fang Chen's chest with his palm.
Bang!
Fang Chen's chest caved in slightly. He flew backward like a straw dummy and only stopped when he struck a stalk of Exquisite Bamboo.
His chest felt tight, and a sweet taste rose in his throat. He opened his mouth and spat blood.
Zhang Tieniu drove his feet into the ground and shot toward him, whipping up a fierce wind that swept bamboo leaves from the ground. As he reached Fang Chen, he threw a punch at his face.
Zhang Tieniu was so fast that Fang Chen had no time to raise his sword. He instinctively twisted aside.
Zhang Tieniu's fist brushed past his ear and struck the Exquisite Bamboo behind him.
Bang!
The Exquisite Bamboo shook violently and split beneath Zhang Tieniu's punch.
Fang Chen rolled to the side, his ears ringing. Before he could get up, Zhang Tieniu leaped into the air, spun, and swept his right leg at him like a battle-axe.
Instead of retreating, Fang Chen advanced. He swung the Floating Immortal Sword at Zhang Tieniu's foot, hoping to force him back.
Zhang Tieniu showed no fear. Without changing his attack, he kicked the Floating Immortal Sword with his shin.
Clang!
Sparks scattered. The force of the rebound drove Fang Chen back seven steps before he could stop.
Then scorching energy burrowed from the Floating Immortal Sword into his palm and surged through his meridians to every part of his body.
Under its influence, Fang Chen's heart raced and his body temperature soared.
Zhang Tieniu landed and took two steps back. Looking down, he saw that his trouser leg had been cut open.
He pulled it up, revealing a piece of black metal strapped over his shin. A deep sword mark ran across it—the mark Fang Chen had just carved.
Zhang Tieniu's eyes narrowed at the gouge. The metal strapped to his leg was Deep Sea Black Iron, so hard that ordinary blades could barely scratch it. Yet a menial disciple without a spiritual root had cut so deeply into it. That rust-covered sword was even more formidable than he had imagined.
If he got his hands on it, he would grow stronger still.
He looked up at Fang Chen and drew the Cleaver from his waist.
Whoosh!
Zhang Tieniu blurred forward and appeared before Fang Chen almost in the blink of an eye. He swung the Cleaver down at him.
Fang Chen's gaze sharpened, and he raised his sword to block.
Clang!
Blade struck blade. A powerful impact sent Fang Chen flying, and he crashed to the ground.
The Floating Immortal Sword had also chipped Zhang Tieniu's Cleaver.
Though Fang Chen had been driven back, the warm current flowing from the Floating Immortal Sword into his body grew stronger.
It left him feeling more alert and full of strength.
Zhang Tieniu did not pause. Unwilling to give Fang Chen a chance to catch his breath, he rushed in and slashed again.
Gritting his teeth, Fang Chen raised the Floating Immortal Sword to block.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Zhang Tieniu attacked with growing ferocity, each blow harder than the last. Every impact numbed the web between Fang Chen's thumb and forefinger, but the energy flowing into him from the Floating Immortal Sword erased the numbness at once.
He's so strong!
From a distance, Tian Hu stared in shock as Fang Chen withstood Zhang Tieniu's fierce attacks. He could scarcely believe this was the same good-for-nothing who had let them bully him on Dragon Tiger Mountain without ever daring to fight back.
Throughout the fight, the mysterious energy from the Floating Immortal Sword kept pouring into Fang Chen's body.
The current flowing into him now was far stronger than when he chopped bamboo or stone.
The longer Fang Chen fought, the sharper he felt, and the more strength he had.
After fighting for a while, Zhang Tieniu sensed something was wrong.
His prolonged, relentless attacks were draining him. He knew that if this continued, he would lose—and the sword in Fang Chen's hand would be beyond his reach.
He shouted to Tian Hu, "Brother Tian Hu, help me!"
Tian Hu snapped out of his daze. Gripping his Cleaver, he rushed in and slashed at Fang Chen.
Fang Chen was already struggling against Zhang Tieniu alone. Seeing Tian Hu join in, his expression changed. He tried to swing his sword against Tian Hu's blade, but Zhang Tieniu gave him no chance, pinning the Floating Immortal Sword with his Cleaver.
"Die!"
With a roar, Tian Hu swung his Cleaver at Fang Chen's right arm.
Fang Chen's face changed, and he dodged at once, but not completely. Tian Hu's Cleaver slid across his arm, opening a wound.
Slash!
Blood sprayed, and searing pain shot through his arm.
"Ah!"
Fang Chen could not hold back a scream.
Zhang Tieniu seized the opening and kicked Fang Chen in the chest.
Bang!
Fang Chen flew backward, rolled down the slope, and finally slammed into a sandstone boulder.
A powerful current surged from the Floating Immortal Sword. Under its influence, the pain in Fang Chen's arm eased almost immediately.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Zhang Tieniu and Tian Hu rushed down after him, both swinging their Cleavers at Fang Chen.
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