Slaying Evil

"1620, 1635, 1675..."

That afternoon, Song Mingyue went to class while Gao Wu tested his punching power in the training room.

Thirty consecutive punches in one minute, with his punching force steadily reaching 1,600 kilograms. His progress was obvious.

Gao Wu believed he still had untapped potential. Though 15 points of constitution could not directly increase his strength or agility, it allowed him to withstand more violent, savage methods of exertion without fearing injury, letting him unleash his power to the fullest.

The greater benefit was that he could adopt extreme training methods, inject more drugs, and continually squeeze out his own potential without worrying about damaging his body's foundation.

At this rate of improvement, his punching force would reach 2,000 kilograms in less than half a year. That was the limit for a Martial Artist and the minimum threshold for a Novice Warrior.

In other words, 2,000 kilograms of punching force could even hammer a Warrior to death, provided the opponent did not have source power protecting their body.

"If only I could get my hands on Diamond Agent..."

Gao Wu muttered to himself. With such a powerful constitution and the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation at the Great Accomplishment Realm, he could enjoy the benefits of drugs while purging every side effect from the agents. He was perfectly suited to gobbling them down like mad.

The problem was that high-grade agents were expensive. Take Flying Squirrel Serum, for instance—he could not afford it. Song Mingyue had already been far too good to him, and he really did not have the nerve to trouble her again.

Tie Dalong had been locked up again. After thinking it over, the only one with connections was Coach Huang Hai. That man had urged him to compete and said he could help him obtain Diamond Agent.

To be honest, Gao Wu was a little afraid of Huang Hai. The guy had inexplicably given him thirty Blood Dragon Agents. That was extremely strange!

But at the thought of Diamond Agent, Gao Wu's mind began to stir again. Huang Hai had ill intentions, but it was only natural for Gao Wu to seize the chance and take advantage.

If he could really get Diamond Agent, his strength should be able to rise to ten points. Then he would have a chance at winning the Xuetao Cup!

Gao Wu was only entertaining the thought. There was no such thing as a free lunch, much less from someone as gloomy as Huang Hai. If Huang Hai was treating him this well, he must have some ulterior motive. It could not be as simple as stepping into the ring for a couple of matches!

"Big Brother, you're back. Why didn't you come to class?" Shen Yue sent him a Feixin message, interrupting Gao Wu's wild thoughts.

"I took a long leave ages ago." Gao Wu was a little puzzled. "What is it?"

"Everyone wants to see you, hehe..." Shen Yue chuckled, then added, "A lot of people online are watching you too. Now that you're out, make a video and respond."

He reminded him, "Don't mention the authorities. Say anything bad and you'll get banned. Say anything good, and the people who spoke up for you will see it as a stab in the back. Just say you returned safely and thank everyone for their support..."

Shen Yue was experienced in this sort of thing. So many people had spoken up for Gao Wu. If he came out and immediately thanked the authorities, those people supporting him would feel used, as if Gao Wu had stabbed them in the back. They would turn around and curse him out instead.

Not mentioning the authorities was a bit like muddling through, but it was the safest response.

"You really understand this. We'll do as you say." Gao Wu agreed wholeheartedly. Shen Yue had thought it through carefully, and he could not afford to offend his fans.

The two discussed the wording. Gao Wu took out his phone, filmed a short video in a corner of the training hall, and sent it to Shen Yue to handle.

Shen Yue normally managed his account anyway, so Gao Wu did not need to worry about it.

After Shen Yue posted the video, Gao Wu went to take a look. There were many comments, most saying that it was good enough that he was safe and sound.

Naturally, there were also doubts and curses, with people accusing Gao Wu of deliberately playing the victim to gain followers and so on.

Some claims were utterly absurd, saying Gao Wu's video was fake, the killing was fake, and even his arrest was fake...

Gao Wu had grown used to such negative voices. Whether online or in real life, once there were enough people, every kind of bird would show up.

Some people were born carrying negative emotions. The moment they opened their mouths, they spread negativity. Their whole creed was that regardless of whether they were doing well, everyone else had to feel bad.

Others deliberately stirred things up, hoping to profit from the massive traffic.

Online platforms had no restrictions, so there were even more freaks. If he tried to argue with people online, he would exhaust himself to death.

Over the past few days, his followers had already grown to three million.

For a medium-sized city like Dongjiang, that follower count made him a major internet celebrity. If he ran ads or sold energy bars and nutritional agents, he might earn one or two hundred thousand a month.

Though he did not have much money right now, he did not want to make money that way. One or two hundred thousand would not solve his problems, and it could easily damage his reputation instead.

To him, his followers' greatest use was still helping him accumulate Merit.

Shen Yue came from a well-off family and did not care about such small money either. He had lofty ambitions and wanted to build a major influencer account. He also did not recommend that Gao Wu start advertising or selling goods now.

It was precisely because they shared the same understanding that they had a foundation for cooperation.

Gao Wu was also glad that the people he had met were all so good to him. The old man, Qingjun, Shen Yue, Song Mingyue—they had all treated him incredibly well.

Even Tie Dalong and the others had been good to him.

As for Huang Long and the like, though they were annoying, they were not really bad people. The only truly bad person was Zhang Hao!

Huang Hai's face flashed through Gao Wu's mind. That man had also treated him well, but Gao Wu was certain Huang Hai was no good...

At nine-thirty that night, Gao Wu and Song Mingyue quietly arrived at Bailin Lake.

It was late December, and the lake surface had frozen over completely. Many people came here to play, leaving the snow-covered ice packed with footprints.

Some areas had even been deliberately watered and leveled, turning them into open-air skating rinks.

Gao Wu and Song Mingyue found a spot beneath the bridge. Gao Wu drew his sword and slashed through the ice, and murky lake water immediately surged up.

"Ready?" Gao Wu asked, looking at Song Mingyue across from him.

After taking the agent, Song Mingyue's entire body had flushed red, and her face was especially crimson, as though she were drunk. It was dark beneath the bridge, and Gao Wu could not actually make out her complexion, but he could feel the heat radiating from her body.

If Song Mingyue had not been wrapped in a full diving suit, steam would surely have been rising from her entire body. Gao Wu estimated that her body temperature was already nearing forty degrees.

He had no idea what drug Song Mingyue had used for it to have such an overbearing effect.

"Let's go." Song Mingyue skillfully wrapped an arm around Gao Wu's waist.

Gao Wu held Song Mingyue and leaped high into the air before plunging into the freezing lake water. With Song Mingyue as a giant hand warmer, Gao Wu actually felt a little hot.

More importantly, his constitution had improved drastically, allowing him to easily resist the frigid lake water. He felt that as long as he consumed enough calories, he could soak here for an entire day without freezing.

After diving several meters down, Gao Wu sensed the familiar icy chill.

The chill flowed like ribbons, like serpents, continuously tightening around him and Song Mingyue. They came almost every night, and this was always the process. The Strange Spirit was especially cooperative every time.

From that alone, Gao Wu felt that the Strange Spirit's intelligence could not be very high.

Today was different from before. Gao Wu did not need to chant a Divine Mantra to endure the chill with his body alone. It was precisely because he was so composed that he could sense a center within the rings of cold air surrounding them—or rather, a head. There was a distinct fluctuation of spiritual power there.

Gao Wu felt it was because he could store the Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantation that he could sense the Strange Spirit's location through the Divine Mantra.

He pinched Song Mingyue's arm, signaling that he was about to make his move. Song Mingyue pinched his arm in return, giving her response.

Before making his move, Gao Wu actually hesitated a little.

Today's situation was somewhat dangerous. Logically speaking, they should have found someone to back them up—for example, tying safety ropes around themselves and having Aunt Lan keep watch outside.

For some reason, Song Mingyue had rejected that suggestion.

All along, Song Mingyue had Aunt Lan wait outside. Gao Wu felt that Song Mingyue did not quite trust Aunt Lan, or rather, that she did not want a third person to know about this matter.

If Song Mingyue was not afraid, then he had even less to fear!

With a thought, Gao Wu activated all five Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantations stored deep within his brow. In an instant, lightning flashed and shot from his pupils.

A sharp, piercing howl suddenly came from the depths of the dark lake water ahead. More accurately, the shriek originated on the spiritual plane.

Activating all five Azure Dragon Divine Qi Incantations at once consumed eighty percent of Gao Wu's spiritual power. The sudden sharp shriek was like an invisible ice spear, piercing deep into his mind.

The pain on the spiritual level made Gao Wu feel as if his brain had exploded, and his consciousness went blank in an instant.

At that moment, Song Mingyue activated the Frost Moon Sword. A keen silver radiance cleaved through the freezing lake water—and through the deep gloom as well...