Crimson Tide

Before his words had even faded, he suddenly pulled a syringe from his pocket.

Then he tore off his Black Robe, revealing his face.

It was the face of a middle-aged man who bore some resemblance to He Yi.

He Wu glared viciously at Qin Chen. Without a word, he raised the syringe in his hand and plunged it hard into his neck.

The Dark Red Liquid in the syringe was slowly injected into his body.

The sudden change put Qin Chen on alert. He stopped and fixed his gaze on He Wu.

"What is that Dark Red Liquid?"

"It actually has the effect of forcibly raising someone's strength!"

He could feel the aura around He Wu growing stronger by the moment.

Thick veins bulged beneath He Wu's skin, and his entire body suddenly swelled a size larger.

The clothes that had seemed a little loose moments ago were now stretched tight.

The blue veins were also turning blood-red.

With a loud roar, He Wu's body swelled another size.

The Exploding Clothes Divine Skill kicked in, and his clothes burst apart in an instant, becoming scraps of fabric that flew in all directions.

At the same time, a powerful wave of air erupted from him and swept outward, making Qin Chen's robes rustle where he stood not far away.

Qin Chen's expression immediately turned grave.

He could feel an overwhelming pressure coming from He Wu, nothing like what he had felt before.

Watching He Wu's body gradually stop changing, Qin Chen spoke each word distinctly:

"Body Tempering Seventh Layer!!"

He Wu was now several times larger than before, his height having surged from a little over a meter to nearly three meters.

His body was covered in eerie, blood-red veins, making one's blood run cold.

Suddenly, a Bloodied Broken Fang Pattern appeared on his chest.

Looking at the pattern, Qin Chen instinctively thought it looked familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

In a flash, Qin Chen's eyes flew wide open and his pupils contracted. His expression was even more exaggerated than when he had sensed He Wu's strength rise to the Body Tempering Seventh Layer.

Only after taking several deep breaths did he manage to calm himself. His eyes remained fixed on He Wu.

"So that's why you had the nerve to kill someone in the middle of the city!"

"You're one of the Crimson Tide!"

The Crimson Tide was an organization whose core creed was killing.

It was one of the three major Heretic Organizations on Blue Star, hated by people in every country around the world.

That was because the Crimson Tide had instigated several massacres, each leaving hundreds of thousands dead or wounded.

Their actions had utterly enraged the nations of the world, which had joined forces to launch devastating attacks against the Crimson Tide in every region.

Rumor had it that the Crimson Tide had suffered heavy casualties in that attack. Even its leader had been seriously wounded, and no one knew how many other members had died.

For a long time afterward, the Crimson Tide had made no further waves.

As a result, people gradually paid less attention to it.

The Crimson Tide's symbol was a bloodied, broken fang—the very pattern that had appeared on He Wu.

Qin Chen recognized it because his predecessor had been very interested in keeping up with such things.

Having inherited his predecessor's memories, Qin Chen naturally knew a fair amount about them too.

"Hahaha..."

"That's right! I'm a member of the great Crimson Tide!"

"Slaughter is evolution, destruction is rebirth! Only endless slaughter can drive the 'evolution' of individuals and the world as a whole!"

"Peace only leads to decay!!"

"Come to think of it, I haven't killed anyone in quite a while. It's been so hard to hold back!"

"I was going to leave you with a whole corpse, but you forced me to use the Blood Rage Potion. I won't be satisfied until I tear you apart inch by inch!"

He Wu spoke with a twisted expression, his eyes brimming with bloodlust and a sick delight.

That was right!

The main reason he had agreed to kill Qin Chen, beyond avenging his son, was to unleash his long-suppressed desire to kill.

It wasn't easy to keep a lid on the urge to kill for so many years!

"Die!!"

He Wu let out a roar, then shot forward in an instant.

His body was far larger than before, but his speed hadn't slowed in the slightest. If anything, he was much faster.

In the blink of an eye, he was in front of Qin Chen, swinging a fist down at him with tremendous force.

Just as the punch was about to land, Qin Chen's figure suddenly turned elusive.

Relying on his Grand Completion Flowing Clouds Chasing Moon Steps, Qin Chen once again dodged He Wu's attack, though this time it was considerably more perilous.

He Wu hadn't just gotten faster; his attacks had sped up as well.

Still, it was within Qin Chen's ability to handle.

Qin Chen took a step forward and instantly appeared beside He Wu, sending another Seven Injuries Fist crashing toward him.

The punch landed squarely on He Wu, and tremendous force burst from Qin Chen's fist.

But the result was worlds apart from before.

He Wu merely took one step back, then roared and swung another punch at Qin Chen.

Qin Chen didn't hesitate and immediately sprang backward.

He Wu pressed his advantage, closing in and launching one attack after another.

But without exception, Qin Chen dodged them all.

The strength gained by force still fell short of that of a true Body Tempering Seventh Layer expert. Otherwise, Qin Chen would have been in serious trouble.

Seeing that he still hadn't managed to take Qin Chen down after all this time, He Wu grew frantic and roared at him.

"You little brat! Do you dare stop slipping around like a loach and fight me head-on?"

"Heh."

Qin Chen gave a scornful laugh.

"Why didn't you fight me head-on before you took your shot?"

"By the way, do you have any more of that stuff? Give me a dose to study, will you?"

From He Wu's current state, Qin Chen could tell that the thing must have severe side effects. And he happened to like things with severe side effects.

Seeing that Qin Chen wasn't taking the bait, He Wu grew more and more agitated.

He continued to hammer Qin Chen with punch after punch.

But none of it did any good. Not one of his punches could hit Qin Chen.

Just as Qin Chen had guessed, the Blood Rage Potion he had injected had extremely severe side effects. It not only badly damaged his body, but its effects also lasted for a very limited time.

If he couldn't deal with Qin Chen during that window, he would be the one in danger.

But Qin Chen clearly had no intention of meeting him head-on.

His whole strategy was to drag things out.

He'd have to be out of his mind to fight He Wu head-on now.

Even an elementary schooler knew to avoid the enemy's edge when they went berserk.

Once the berserk state wore off, wouldn't He Wu be at his mercy?

With the potion's effects about to wear off and still no way to take Qin Chen down, He Wu went completely mad!

His eyes were blood-red.

"Even if I die today, I'm going to kill you!"

As soon as he finished speaking, He Wu took out another syringe of Dark Red Liquid and plunged it into his neck.

"Ah!!!"

Unlike the first injection, this time He Wu let out a pained roar.

His skin rapidly turned the same blood-red as his veins, while the veins themselves turned black.

His body didn't grow any larger. Instead, it shrank considerably, from three meters tall to just over two.

But the aura emanating from him was far stronger than before.

An incredibly violent aura poured from his body, sweeping out in all directions.

When his aura finally began to stabilize, his cultivation had reached—

Body Tempering Ninth Layer!!