Sweeping Through

Enraged, Zhou Weilong leaped several zhang into the air, turning into a string of dark afterimages as he charged toward Golden-Eyed Leopard!

Still in midair, Zhou Weilong spread his five fingers, each one curling into a hook and taking on a faint blood-red hue, exuding an indestructible sharpness!

Powerful force gathered between his fingers. Under that terrifying strength, even the air seemed to be torn apart, emitting sharp hissing sounds!

This was Zhou Weilong's famous signature technique,

the intermediate martial skill, Eagle Claw Hand!

A year ago, when Zhou Weilong came to Huangshi Town to open his martial arts school, some thugs had come looking for trouble. Zhou Weilong had merely sneered, casually snatched the iron rod from one thug's hand, then kneaded and snapped it apart before everyone's eyes as though it were dough!

From then on, no one had dared come to Weilong Martial Arts School to cause trouble again.

Rumor had it,

Zhou Weilong's claw technique had nearly reached the terrifying realm of grasping iron as though it were mud, unstoppable against all things!

And as an outsider who had crossed the river, his strength was undoubtedly enough to rank among the top ten in all of Huangshi Town in the eyes of others!

"Good!"

"Headmaster, show him what you're made of!"

"A mere country bandit dares bark like a dog here!"

"That's right! Just some backwoods bully pretending to be arrogant—he truly doesn't know whether he lives or dies!"

The people of Huangshi Town shouted and cheered from behind, hurling curses as well.

They all urged Zhou Weilong on.

Buoyed by everyone's cheers and support, Zhou Weilong felt his condition reach an unprecedented peak. His ferocious momentum made him feel that anyone standing before him at this moment would be torn to shreds!

Meanwhile,

Golden-Eyed Leopard, the chief of Black Wind Stronghold, sat beneath the shadow of that claw strike as though he had been frightened senseless, remaining utterly motionless in his chair.

It was as if Zhou Weilong's powerful Eagle Claw Hand had cowed him!

A trace of contempt flickered through Zhou Weilong's eyes.

Just as he had expected,

the Black Wind Bandits had run rampant through the rural lands around Huangshi Town for over a decade only because martial artists were scarce here—when there were no tigers in the mountains, monkeys proclaimed themselves kings.

Otherwise, why would they have been forced to show respect and waive the village's usual silver payment merely because his disciple Li Jinbao had entered the Martial Arts Entry Realm?

Today, I, Zhou Weilong, am destined to make a name for myself and rise to fame!

In the flash of lightning and flint,

this thought passed through Zhou Weilong's mind.

However,

the next moment—

Bang!

The Eagle Claw Hand slammed into Golden-Eyed Leopard's head, and its force exploded.

Yet the sight he had imagined—his opponent's head being torn apart by a single claw—did not appear!

Zhou Weilong felt as though he had clawed at steel, unable to advance even an inch!

What?!!

Zhou Weilong's eyes widened, his face filled with shock and disbelief.

"Were you trying to scratch an itch for me?"

Golden-Eyed Leopard, seated imposingly upon the large tiger-hide chair, split his lips apart, baring sharp teeth in an incomparably savage grin!

His mocking sneer dripped with arrogance!

Boom!

Golden-Eyed Leopard's Qi and Blood erupted. He threw a punch forward, its terrifying power like the impact of a cannonball as it pierced the air and smashed viciously toward Zhou Weilong's chest!

In the air,

that dreadful strength stirred up sharp currents of air visible to the naked eye!

Zhou Weilong felt an unprecedented threat of death, and his face turned pale with horror.

But he no longer had time to dodge. He could only cross his arms before his chest, trying to block the blow.

With a muffled bang,

fierce force erupted. It was as though a thunderclap had exploded from the flat ground. Accompanied by a faint, crisp cracking sound, pain twisted Zhou Weilong's face as the bones in his arms shattered. At the same time, the overwhelming force surged into him like mountains collapsing and seas overturning, blasting his entire body away!

Zhou Weilong flew backward like a rag doll, crashing down eight or nine zhang away and kicking up a cloud of dust!

In an instant,

the cheers that had risen for Zhou Weilong came to an abrupt halt!

The people of Huangshi Town looked as though they had witnessed something unimaginable. Their gazes went blank, their mouths hanging open unconsciously.

At this moment,

Golden-Eyed Leopard slowly rose to his feet, and his enormous shadow rose with him.

The thick muscles over his shoulders stretched open. Veins became visible along his arms, swelling like wriggling worms. He was like a small giant, radiating an utterly terrifying sense of strength!

A powerful, terrifying aura swept out explosively!

It nearly suffocated everyone present!

"Whoa!"

"The chief is mighty!"

"Smash these idiots!"

"Kill! Kill them all!"

In stark contrast to the people of Huangshi Town, the Black Wind Bandits behind him, who had been furious moments ago, erupted into wild cheers like ghosts wailing and wolves howling.

"Bronze Skin Iron Bone!"

"Viscera Refining! You've actually already advanced to the Viscera Refining Realm!"

Not far away,

Zhou Weilong spat out a mouthful of blood and scrambled up from the ground in disarray.

As he stared at the massive shadow slowly approaching, his feet could not help retreating again and again, his face filled with terror!

"How could you possibly be a Viscera Refining Realm martial artist?!"

"There is nothing impossible about it!"

Golden-Eyed Leopard's deep, rumbling voice sounded like thunder. As he slowly approached, his powerful aura cast the surrounding light beneath his shadow, making it dim!

"I completed my breakthrough three years ago!"

"I've ruled Black Wind Mountain for more than a decade, and I'd long since grown tired of it. I was preparing to wash my hands of it and leave, yet why did you have to come disturb me!"

"One after another, why are there always people who don't know whether they live or die coming here to seek death?!"

Golden-Eyed Leopard's tone was exceedingly sinister. Icy killing intent spread out, seeming to lower even the temperature of the air!

He clenched his fists, producing crackling sounds. The muscles in his arms swelled like balloons, and his whole body seemed to expand by a full circle, making him resemble a terrifying small giant!

That dreadful pressure

made breathing difficult!

The people of Huangshi Town, who had been loudly cheering, shouting, and cursing before, could not make a single sound now.

Their entire bodies trembled,

overcome by soul-chilling fear beneath that terrifying pressure!

"If you were planning to leave, then why did you slaughter those villages?"

Zhou Weilong staggered to his feet, clutching his chest as he ground out the question through clenched teeth.

At this moment,

his heart had already sunk to the bottom!

Bronze Skin Iron Bone—

that was the mark of a Viscera Refining Realm martial artist!

After undergoing the tempering of Qi and Blood, Viscera Refining Realm martial artists could scarcely be harmed by blades or swords, having nearly become inhuman!

He had miscalculated!

This trip had truly been like trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to bait it!

Whether they could even make it down the mountain afterward was another matter entirely!

But as the saying went, one could lose but not lose face. Zhou Weilong did not yield; instead, he spoke up to question him.

"Before leaving, do I need to kill several hundred or a thousand people to entertain you?!"

"Tch. They're just pigs and sheep. When has killing them ever required a reason?"

"You have one thing wrong. Over the past ten-odd years, the only reason I didn't kill them was because I didn't want to!"

"Now that I want to kill them, naturally I kill them!"

Golden-Eyed Leopard sneered, the disdain in his eyes growing even stronger.

"Seeking justice for a herd of pigs and sheep? What a boring idea!"