Fierce Battle with Qingyi! Strike While the Iron Is Hot!

The flames of Red Fish Dock soared into the sky, dyeing half the night a bloody hue.

Shouts of killing, screams of agony, and the clanging of weapons intertwined into a symphony of death.

Just as the chaos reached its peak, a red figure, like a phoenix reborn from fire, descended from the rooftop of the pavilion with suffocating pressure.

"The leader of the Red Fish Gang, Li Qingyi!"

Someone in the crowd cried out in terror.

Lu Chen stood at the edge of the square, narrowing his eyes.

He saw the woman clad in a scarlet combat outfit, tall and slender, wielding a pair of swords as cold as autumn water.

Without landing, she stepped on the shoulder of a Black Water Gang member, using it to leap. Her figure weaved through the crowd like a phantom.

Swish, swish, swish!

Sword light flashed, too fast to track.

Wherever she passed, several skilled fighters from the Black Water Gang fell, clutching their throats as blood spurted from between their fingers.

Too fast.

So fast that martial artists in the Flesh Refining Realm were like lambs to the slaughter before her.

"Wicked woman, cease your rampages! Zhao Tieshan is here!"

A thunderous roar erupted.

Zhao Tieshan, wielding a ghost-head saber and with his Blood Essence burning like a furnace, strode towards Li Qingyi.

With every step he took, the bluestone bricks beneath his feet cracked.

The aura of the Meridian Connecting Realm erupted without reservation. The saber in his hand, carrying the might to split mountains, descended upon Li Qingyi.

"Hmph, brute."

Li Qingyi snorted, her voice chilling and sharp.

Facing Zhao Tieshan's powerful and heavy strike, she advanced instead of retreating. With a light tap of her toes on the ground, her body swayed like a willow catkin in the wind, narrowly dodging the blade by a hair's breadth.

Her twin swords crossed, striking the side of the ghost-head saber at an extremely tricky angle.

Four ounces deflect a thousand pounds.

Zhao Tieshan felt the saber in his hand deviate. The strike meant for Li Qingyi instead smashed into a nearby stone lion.

The stone lion was split in two, sending shards of rock flying.

Using the force of the rebound, Li Qingyi spun her body and circled to Zhao Tieshan's flank.

Her swords, like a viper's tongue, darted towards Zhao Tieshan's vulnerable spots.

"Scram!"

Zhao Tieshan reacted quickly, swinging his elbow back.

But his strike missed.

Li Qingyi's movement technique was too bizarre, shifting left and right unpredictably.

The two instantly became locked in combat.

Blade light and sword shadows, surging energy crisscrossed.

The surrounding gang members, whether from the Black Water Gang or the Red Fish Gang, dared not approach, fearing being shredded by the residual force.

Lu Chen did not rush forward.

He blended into the crowd, like a patient viper, intently watching the battle.

This was his first time witnessing a life-or-death struggle at the Meridian Connecting Realm.

Zhao Tieshan followed a path of brute force, attacking with wide, sweeping movements. Each saber strike carried immense power; if it landed, Li Qingyi would surely die.

But Li Qingyi clearly understood this.

She did not confront Zhao Tieshan head-on. Instead, she used her movement technique to evade, her twin swords specifically targeting Zhao Tieshan's joints, eyes, and ears – vital points.

Although Zhao Tieshan had protective Blood Essence that made him difficult to injure with ordinary weapons, under Li Qingyi's twin swords, infused with internal energy, he was still cut and wounded.

"This woman is so troublesome!"

Zhao Tieshan grew more frustrated with every strike, roaring repeatedly, yet he couldn't even touch Li Qingyi's clothes.

Instead, his own stamina began to falter under the intense exertion.

"Now."

A sharp glint flashed in Lu Chen's eyes.

He had figured it out.

Although Li Qingyi's movement technique was bizarre and her attacks fierce, her strength was her weakness.

Each time she blocked Zhao Tieshan's attacks, she had to use skill to deflect the force, and her footwork would have extremely subtle pauses.

Those pauses were her openings.

On the battlefield, Zhao Tieshan roared again, unleashing his ultimate move.

"Sweep the Thousand Armies!"

His Ghost Head Saber swung horizontally, generating a crescent-shaped blade energy that sealed off all of Li Qingyi's escape routes.

Li Qingyi had nowhere to dodge.

A fierce glint flashed in her eyes. She crossed her twin swords in front of her chest, her internal energy erupting as she braced to take the blow head-on.

CLANG!!!

A deafening clash of metal on metal.

Li Qingyi's delicate body trembled. She was sent sliding back several yards, her feet plowing two deep furrows in the ground.

Although she blocked the saber strike, her internal Blood Essence surged uncontrollably. Her old strength was spent, and her new strength had yet to arrive.

In that instant.

A black shadow shot out from the shadows behind her without any warning.

No shout, no killing intent.

Only extreme speed and extreme ruthlessness.

Lu Chen.

He had waited for a long time, just for this one chance to strike.

He didn't use his saber.

Against a master of this level, a chipped Mountain Splitting Saber might not be able to break through her defenses and could easily be blocked.

He used his palm.

Stone Crushing Palm, third realm, complete mastery.

His entire body's strength, combined with that strange Vibrating Force, was concentrated on his right palm.

His palm, engorged with blood, turned as black as ink, resembling an Iron Hand.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.

"Die!"

Lu Chen grunted inwardly.

At this moment, Li Qingyi, having just taken Zhao Tieshan's strike, was at her weakest. With her back to Lu Chen, she had no time to turn around.

But how keen were the instincts of a Meridian Connecting Realm expert?

The moment Lu Chen closed in, she felt a fatal chill rush straight to her head.

"How dare you!"

She let out a sharp cry, twisting her waist forcefully in an attempt to evade the vital blow.

But it was too late.

A dull thud echoed.

Lu Chen's palm landed squarely on Li Qingyi's back.

Vibrating Force!

In that instant, Lu Chen felt as if his palm had struck a layer of tough leather – Li Qingyi's protective internal energy.

But he didn't flinch. Instead, his eyes widened, and he let out a low growl from his throat.

"Break!"

He violently shook his palm.

An invisible spiral force, like a drill bit, madly bored through the protective internal energy, piercing straight into her internal organs.

"Pfft—!"

Li Qingyi felt as if she had been struck by lightning.

A mouthful of blood mixed with internal organ fragments sprayed out, dyeing the ground in front of her red.

Her usually cold and beautiful face instantly turned as pale as paper, her features contorted in agony.

"Damn brat!"

She managed to turn her head, her eyes filled with venomous hatred fixed on Lu Chen.

If looks could kill, Lu Chen would have been sliced into a thousand pieces by now.

Lu Chen's scalp tingled under her gaze, but he didn't stop. His left hand formed a claw, reaching directly for Li Qingyi's throat.

Strike while the iron is hot!

"Gang Leader!"

Just then, several of the Red Fish Gang's death warriors charged forward desperately.

They used their bodies to block the space between Lu Chen and Li Qingyi.

Pfft pfft!

Lu Chen crushed the throats of two people, but it only delayed him for a moment.

Seizing this opportunity, Li Qingyi retreated rapidly.

She glared hatefully at Lu Chen and Zhao Tieshan, who was rushing over, understanding that the situation was lost.

"Retreat! Fall back to the inner harbor!"

She shouted fiercely and, with the support of several confidants, fled swiftly towards the depths of the Red Fish Harbor.

"Where do you think you're going!"

Zhao Tieshan raised his saber, intending to pursue.

But the Red Fish Gang members displayed astonishing resilience at this moment, throwing themselves forward madly, blocking the Black Water Gang's pursuit with their own flesh and blood.

"Don't pursue a cornered enemy!"

After cutting down several people, Zhao Tieshan looked at the complex terrain of the inner harbor ahead and resolutely stopped.

The inner harbor was a maze of waterways, riddled with traps. Rushing in rashly would likely lead to heavy losses.

"Give the order, recall the troops!"

Zhao Tieshan waved his hand and issued the order to retreat.

The Black Water Gang had achieved a great victory in this battle tonight.

They had burned the granary, destroyed the dockyards, and severely wounded Li Qingyi. The Red Fish Gang was critically weakened and would be unable to contend with the Black Water Gang for a considerable time.

Cheers erupted on the battlefield.

The Black Water Gang members waved their weapons, celebrating this hard-won victory.

Meanwhile, Lu Chen quietly retreated to the rear of the crowd.

He looked at his slightly trembling right hand, feeling a sharp pain in his palm.

The rebound force of a Meridian Connecting Realm expert was indeed formidable.

If not for his Copper Skin defense, this hand would likely have been crippled.

"Lu Chen!"

Zhao Tieshan strode over, his blood-stained face showing undisguised admiration.

"That palm strike just now was brilliant!"

"If you hadn't managed to ambush her, I might not have been able to capture that demoness today."

The surrounding gang members turned to look at Lu Chen upon hearing this.

Their eyes were filled with awe.

Even the Gang Leader found Li Qingyi troublesome, yet this newcomer, who had joined the gang less than two months ago, had severely wounded her.

With this battle, the name Lu Iron Skin would now resonate throughout Nujiang County.

Lu Chen clasped his fists and bowed his head, his expression humble.

"Hall Master overpraises me, your subordinate was merely lucky."

"If Hall Master hadn't kept her occupied from the front, your subordinate would never have had the chance to get close."

"Hahaha, good lad, you don't take credit for yourself, I like that!"

Zhao Tieshan slapped Lu Chen's shoulder forcefully, nearly sending him into the ground.

"When we return, there will be a generous reward!"

A slight smile played on Lu Chen's lips.

This was exactly what he wanted to hear.

But he also knew in his heart.

While this palm strike had earned him great merit tonight, it had also firmly placed him on Li Qingyi's kill list.

Being targeted by a Meridian Connecting Realm expert was no laughing matter.

"I must become stronger as soon as possible."

Lu Chen glanced towards the dark waters in the depths of Red Fish Harbor.

There, it seemed as if a pair of venomous eyes were watching him from the darkness.