At Chu Ge's question, the old man froze for a moment, then smiled faintly. "Looks like you really are a clueless young fool from the martial world. You've never even heard of me, Dark Poison Child?"
"Dark what poison?"
"Dark Poison Child!!"
"Dark what child?"
Chu Ge stared at the old man's scarred face in astonishment, ignoring the other man's eyes, which looked ready to spit fire. It was hard to connect the old man's appearance with the word "child."
Still, given his short, stocky build, perhaps the name did fit.
He watched their surroundings without changing expression and said coolly, "Could you be on the Blood Ranking, too?"
The old man frowned, took a deep breath to suppress his anger, and said coldly, "You know about the Blood Ranking. So you're not completely ignorant after all. That's right, I—"
Before he could finish, his body suddenly spun. A streak of dark light shot up with the motion, twisting through the air like a black centipede dancing in the wind. A piercing whistle followed as a storm of Hidden Weapons shot toward Chu Ge. The old man roared, "I'll kill you!"
Chu Ge had been prepared for this treacherous old bastard. In almost an instant, he flipped backward behind the carriage.
Thud, thud, thud! A great many poisoned needles struck the carriage's doorposts.
The old man moved even faster, his blood surging as he closed in from the side in a flash.
Chu Ge heard a sharp, sinister cackle erupt. In the next instant, countless streaks of cold, dark light shot through the air, dense as a rainstorm and swift as locusts, bearing down on him.
"What speed!"
Chu Ge's expression shifted. Before the Hidden Weapons reached him, he could already feel the sharp gusts of air they cut through.
With a thunderous shout, his blood boiled. He unleashed the full strength of the Blood Change Realm, force surging around him.
He struck out in midair!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Two fierce gusts of force roared toward the swarm of flying needles, smashing into and sweeping them aside.
Pfft, pfft, pfft—
In an instant, every needle was knocked off course!
Chu Ge swung his long spear in a wide arc, batting away the few scattered needles that remained.
He darted forward, then vaulted like a fierce tiger into the mountain woods.
"So you really are in the Blood Change Realm! You've been hiding your strength well, boy!"
Dark Poison Child's eyes flickered, but he wasn't the least bit afraid. He'd expected as much. With a cold laugh, he chased Chu Ge into the forest.
The moment Chu Ge entered the woods, he was like a fierce tiger returning to the mountains. He abruptly hurled his long spear backward, creating a brief obstruction.
In the blink of an eye, his figure vanished behind layer upon layer of tree shadows.
He wasn't skilled with spears. He could only wield one through his own strength. That was enough against weaker opponents, but against someone at the same level, it left him severely hampered.
Most of the foes he'd sacrificed before this had been in the Mortal Realm, and their Martial Arts hadn't even reached perfection. So even though he'd learned weapon-based Martial Arts, Chu Ge hadn't wasted his special power on inheriting and mastering them.
But now that he'd left the small town and encountered more formidable opponents, he'd noticed the shortcomings in his own Martial Arts during actual combat. He urgently needed to make up for them later.
A fighter like him, who trained in body-hardening and fist techniques, was most wary of poison and Hidden Weapons. One careless scratch could be enough to get him.
But with so many trees in the woods to hide behind, he could make use of his unorthodox abilities and catch his opponent off guard.
He swept past a tree as wide as a man's embrace. His cloak slipped off, and as invisible threads pulled it taut and his special power poured in, it quickly transformed into a Shadow Puppet resembling him.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Hidden Weapons spun and shot through the air, scattering in every direction with terrifying force.
Dark Poison Child had already pinpointed Chu Ge's position by sound and launched the Hidden Weapons.
Chu Ge's figure flashed as he swiftly dodged into a thicket, crouching motionless. With a slight twitch of his fingers, the Shadow Puppet behind the tree suddenly darted out.
"Looking to die!"
Dark Poison Child abruptly swept up a hand. With a series of sharp whistles, more than ten black flecks shot toward the Shadow Puppet.
Yet Chu Ge's fingers twitched, and though the Shadow Puppet was in midair, it suddenly changed direction in an uncanny twist, evading the Hidden Weapons by a hair's breadth. Its figure was like a dark cloud; in a flash, it slipped behind another tree.
"Hm? What a bizarre movement technique!"
Dark Poison Child looked astonished. He quickly shifted to attack from the side, sweeping both hands as his ten fingers suddenly spread like claws.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!—
At once, Hidden Weapons filled the woods, flying like locusts without end. Their piercing whistles filled the air, a sight that made the blood run cold.
Yet in the time it took for a spark to fly off a flint, the Puppet ahead danced like a storm-tossed petrel, using all manner of unbelievable movements to evade one Hidden Weapon after another.
Even when the Hidden Weapons struck it from behind, it seemed to feel no pain or hindrance at all, continuing to dodge with incredible speed.
It was simply unbelievable. Even Dark Poison Child couldn't help widening his eyes, finding the situation bizarre beyond measure.
He knew that every one of his Hidden Weapons was coated in deadly poison.
"This man..."
As he reeled in shock, he had unknowingly moved toward a thicket. Suddenly, he sensed a tremendous threat, and every hair on his body stood on end.
"Not good!"
Dark Poison Child shuddered and spun around.
A figure like a fierce tiger burst from the thicket, both fists striking out viciously like a wild ox's horns.
Dark Poison Child swiftly roused his blood and met the blows with his palms. His hands instantly swelled red and blue. As a pungent, foul stench spread, their forces collided with a thunderous boom.
"Ah!"
The old man let out a scream. It felt as though his palms had been struck by divine weapons; even his sturdy bones seemed ready to shatter. The tremendous force Chu Ge had built up sent him staggering backward.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
The shockwaves surged like a tide, sweeping in every direction and sending grass and earth whirling through the woods.
He glared in disbelief at Chu Ge, who had suddenly sprung out before him. His mind stalled, unable to process what had happened.
He couldn't understand how another Chu Ge had suddenly appeared.
Worse, this Chu Ge's arms were covered in eerie, pale-red scales. He looked strange and sinister, and he wasn't even afraid of Dark Poison Child's poisoned palms.
"A demonic martial artist?"
Dark Poison Child's expression turned horrified. Seeing Chu Ge draw closer, he immediately raised his sleeves and unleashed his force.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
In the blink of an eye, Hidden Weapons as dense as rain streaked through the air toward Chu Ge.
"Get lost!"
Chu Ge roused his blood and shouted. His palms swept out in a blur, his Crimson Scale Claws sending waves of force surging outward and knocking the incoming Hidden Weapons flying back at their source.
He charged forward like a fierce tiger leaping across a ravine, his presence terrifying.
His opponent was faster, and his moves were swift. But if Chu Ge seized even one opening, his opponent would pay dearly.
Dark Poison Child's palms had been pierced and were dripping with blood. He was already scared out of his wits.
Taking advantage of the moment when the Hidden Weapons held Chu Ge back, he landed and sprang backward, fleeing toward the edge of the woods as swiftly as a ghost on the wind.
But just then, the Shadow Puppet darted out from the side of the woods again, pouncing straight at him.
"Damn it!"
Seeing the danger, Dark Poison Child gritted his teeth and roared, instantly throwing out an iron ball.
The moment it appeared, the iron ball exploded in a blaze of silver light. Countless tiny, gleaming blades shot out at high speed, scattering with a dense clatter like a shower of beads.
"A mechanical Hidden Weapon?!"
Chu Ge's eyes widened. He quickly stopped, swinging his Crimson Scale arms. They were impervious to blades and spears, and force churned around him as he shot backward like an arrow.
The Shadow Puppet that had just leaped at Dark Poison Child was torn to shreds in an instant.
By the time the silver light faded, Dark Poison Child had nearly reached the edge of the woods. He was about to escape.
But just then, the small, graceful figure of a girl in purple appeared outside the woods, blocking Dark Poison Child's path.
"Xiao Qian!"
The moment Chu Ge saw Xiao Qian, he stamped the ground, sending his blood surging.
Boom!—
The earth split apart, sending clods of dirt flying.
His figure shot forward like an arrow, racing toward them.
A strange scene unfolded at the same time.
Dark Poison Child, who had been charging forward at full speed, suddenly slowed the instant he saw Xiao Qian. At last, he came to a gradual stop, a trace of infatuation and greed slowly appearing in his eyes.
Chu Ge realized at once that Xiao Qian had used her bewitching ability.
(Another chapter at eleven.)
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