Between Life and Death

Clouds blanketed the sky, pressing the eastern dawn into a dim strip of light.

Howling cold winds carried fine snowflakes swirling through the air, lending the deep, shadowy mountains an even greater chill and loneliness.

Gao Wu practiced his swordsmanship against the wind. Before the snowflakes could even fall, the gusts stirred up by his body sent them flying away.

After practicing the sixty-four forms of the Dragon-Roaming Sword back and forth ten times, white vapor steamed from Gao Wu's entire body, and even the hand gripping his sword was trembling.

Swinging a sword that weighed nearly twenty kilograms with full force while maintaining steady control, on top of the weights he wore, placed extreme demands on the body.

He practiced the sword forms another ten times at high intensity. Only because his physique was exceptionally strong, and because the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation spared him from the massive toll on his body, could he train so madly and recklessly without restraint.

Sheathing his sword, Gao Wu slowly exhaled a mouthful of foul air. The white vapor shot out like an arrow for two meters before twisting and scattering in the howling wind.

Feeling the boiling blood and qi within him, Gao Wu silently recited the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation. The Azure Dragon formed from spiritual light danced through him, rapidly calming his surging blood and qi. His numb, swollen muscles and aching, exhausted sinews and bones were completely soothed and relaxed.

The mental weariness brought by physical exhaustion was swept away as well, and he immediately felt invigorated.

Feeling the wondrous effects of the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation, from within and without, Gao Wu could not help feeling pleased with himself.

In terms of attributes like strength, agility, and spirit, he was not especially powerful. But with the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation empowering him, he could wear down and kill any opponent of the same level on the arena through sheer attrition.

At this level, he could already be called superhuman in the eyes of ordinary people.

Today was competition day. In his current excellent condition, he should be able to defeat Han Yang, Dongjiang First Middle School's top student fighter!

Just as Gao Wu was feeling rather good about himself, he suddenly heard an unusual sound behind him. Acting on a Martial Artist's vigilance, he hurriedly turned around and saw a tall figure striding toward him with a longsword in hand.

The tall figure wore a black hoodie, with a hood and mask concealing his entire face. Only a pair of crimson eyes showed, filled with madness and savagery.

Gao Wu had seen that look before. When he was fourteen, he had seen it in the eyes of Strange Beasts driven mad by slaughter, and it had left an incomparably deep impression on him!

He had a feeling that this person who had suddenly appeared was most likely here for him!

"Hi, good morning." Gao Wu gripped his sword hilt and assumed a defensive stance, yet still greeted the other party warmly. He even bared his white teeth in a polite, sunny smile.

"Gao Wu, you deserve to die!" The tall man's voice was shrill and rough, like a beast roaring.

"Why does that sound a little familiar?"

The other party had covered his face, and his voice was extremely strange. Yet Gao Wu still felt a sense of familiarity. He should know this guy!

Judging from his build and gait, he should be an Advanced Martial Artist. And if Gao Wu knew him, the possibilities were few.

"Brother Zhang!" Gao Wu's heart stirred, and he suddenly recognized him.

After all, they ate together every day. Though they rarely spoke, Gao Wu still had a rather deep impression of Zhang Hao. It was just that Zhang Hao had changed too much. His body had swollen to at least twice its former size, and even his voice had become so strange that Gao Wu had not recognized him at first glance.

The man was somewhat surprised as well. Gao Wu could still recognize him after he had become like this. He simply tore off his mask and cursed at Gao Wu, "Brat, I'll let you die knowing why."

"Brother Zhang, what happened to you?" Gao Wu was confused. Zhang Hao had come looking for him with a sword, looking as though he had gone mad. What was he trying to do?

He was not being naive. Since Zhang Hao knew him, once Zhang Hao killed him, he could not possibly remain uninvolved.

They had neither grievance nor grudge. Why would Zhang Hao take such an enormous risk to kill him? It made no sense.

Looking again at Zhang Hao's purplish-red, swollen face, it was covered in pustules, while his skin had rotted away in layer upon layer. It looked like the skin of a toad, horrifying to behold, and his original appearance was completely unrecognizable.

Gao Wu guessed that Zhang Hao had injected some kind of drug that had caused a mental breakdown. Yet Zhang Hao also seemed to retain a certain degree of rationality...

"Brat, you're still fucking playing dumb!" Zhang Hao was already extremely agitated, and hearing that made him fly into a rage.

He had followed Tie Dalong for years because he wanted to become Tie Dalong's disciple, only for Gao Wu to beat him to it. How could he not be furious!

Tielong Martial Arts Hall was not that big to begin with, and it had only that tiny bit of resources. If Gao Wu took them, there would be nothing left for him.

Because of that, he could only take that path. Yet the power gained through sacrifice was so violent that it had driven his body into collapse! He knew full well that in this state, his days were numbered!

The more Zhang Hao thought about it, the angrier he became. It was all because of Gao Wu. After killing Gao Wu, he would kill that disgusting fat woman Tie Ying as well.

He often ate with Gao Wu, so he naturally knew that Gao Wu went to Bailong Mountain every day to practice swordsmanship. He had timed his arrival precisely, and sure enough, he had caught Gao Wu here.

In this desolate mountain wilderness, no one would know for a while after he killed Gao Wu.

"Brother Zhang, something's wrong with you."

Gao Wu said with concern, "Why not go to the hospital and get checked out?"

"Great White Crow King, I offer this man's blood and life as a sacrifice, praying for Your blessing..." Zhang Hao suddenly began chanting loudly. The crimson in his eyes became even more savage, the muscles all over his body bulged, and his entire body visibly swelled another size larger.

Gao Wu's heart tightened. Zhang Hao had clearly become a believer of a Demon God! This was seriously bad!

"Die for me!" Having recited the incantation, Zhang Hao completely lost his mind. Roaring wildly, he drew his sword and charged straight at Gao Wu.

In this state, Zhang Hao possessed a savage, frenzied ferocity that feared neither life nor death. Yet the way he held his sword was standard—it was clearly the opening stance of the Splitting the Stone Sword from the Dragon-Roaming Sword.

At the Martial Artist level, the Dragon-Roaming Sword was merely an advanced sword technique, not some great secret. As an assistant instructor at the martial arts hall, Zhang Hao naturally knew the Dragon-Roaming Sword. Even some students who paid exorbitant tuition could learn it.

Of course, Tie Dalong's personally taught Dragon-Roaming Sword contained many more intricate variations. Just from Zhang Hao's stance as he charged with his sword, Gao Wu knew that Zhang Hao had not received Tie Dalong's true teachings.

The problem was that Zhang Hao's mad appearance, as though he feared neither life nor death, was terrifying. Even if Gao Wu's swordsmanship was a little better, he had no confidence he could block Zhang Hao's sword.

Swords were not the same as fists and kicks. A few punches or kicks would not kill someone. No matter how strong his physique was, it could not withstand a sharp sword.

With Zhang Hao's tremendous strength, being struck by his sword anywhere on the body would be exceptionally dangerous.

The threat of death was like an invisible hand clenching Gao Wu's heart. His breathing stopped, his body tensed, and an image suddenly flashed through his mind—him facing a Strange Beast at fourteen.

That time, he had nearly been killed by a Strange Beast lured in by a Demon God Believer. The terror of nearing death had left a deep mark in the depths of his soul.

Faced with a life-or-death crisis, that wound buried deep within his heart split open as well. Fear of death completely consumed his body and mind...

Gao Wu knew that this was his instinctive fear of death.

But he had grown up now, and he possessed the Boundless Merit Book. He could no longer be as weak and helpless as he had been four years ago. He would never tread the same path twice.

Strange Beasts deserved to die, and Demon God Believers deserved it even more!

Thinking of that, Gao Wu's blood began to surge instead, and his fighting spirit soared. He wanted to personally shatter that nightmare of fear in his heart!

With agility at nine, his thinking and reaction speed surpassed that of an ordinary person by five times.

In his abnormally focused state, Zhang Hao's movements grew slower and slower in Gao Wu's eyes. Examining Zhang Hao in that state, he felt that while Zhang Hao's strength was formidable, his agility fell far short of Gao Wu's.

Judging from the way Zhang Hao gripped his sword and exerted force, there were still obvious problems in his swordsmanship, and his body lacked coordination as well. After practicing swordsmanship for years, he was still only at this level. No wonder Tie Dalong had never thought highly of him.

Zhang Hao had no thoughts to spare for any of that. The sacrificial incantation had increased his strength by at least seventy percent. A mere Gao Wu could be chopped in two with a single stroke.

The two were only a dozen or so meters apart. Zhang Hao, charging at high speed, reached Gao Wu in the blink of an eye. He raised his longsword high and slashed down diagonally at Gao Wu.

This move, the Splitting the Stone Sword, was the most savage and fierce technique in the Dragon-Roaming Sword. With Zhang Hao's current overwhelming strength, the descending sword even stirred the sound of wind and thunder, truly carrying the might to split stone and sever gold!

Gao Wu looked at Zhang Hao's chest, exposed as he raised his sword high, and restrained the urge to thrust straight through it. Zhang Hao was not in his right mind, and his body was clearly undergoing a mutation.

Having reached proficiency in the Dragon-Roaming Sword allowed him to better understand combat and control its rhythm.

If that thrust failed to completely finish Zhang Hao, he would have to take Zhang Hao's full-force Splitting the Stone Sword head-on.

The risk was too great!

At this critical moment, Gao Wu instead assessed the battle with extraordinary calm and abandoned the risky direct advance.

He noticed that Zhang Hao's sword was no more than a meter long. Judging from the cloud patterns polished into the blade, it should be Zhang Hao's usual training sword. It likely weighed less than five kilograms and was made of ordinary steel.

The sword, forged in a single piece, ensured sufficient hardness and toughness. In Zhang Hao's full-force swing, its power was even more terrifying.

But compared to the sword in Gao Wu's hand, it was inferior by far, far too much.

Gao Wu made his judgment in an instant. Gripping his sword with both hands, he counter-slashed directly at Zhang Hao's weapon.

The two swords collided, scattering sparks in every direction. Amid the crisp clang of metal, Zhang Hao's longsword snapped in the middle, and a section of the blade shot violently away.

At the same time, Gao Wu and Zhang Hao passed each other, both slashing backward with their swords.

Zhang Hao's broken sword swept past Gao Wu's back, while Gao Wu's backhand slash cut up from beneath Zhang Hao's armpit with a shrill whistle, leaving a crimson line of blood that ran through Zhang Hao's chest and neck...

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