Lin Ling had never seen anyone fight an anomaly like this in his life—just taking hits and trading blows head-on.
This wasn't a person fighting an anomaly. It was two anomalies beating each other up!
Lin Ling looked at Fang Yue as though he were a monster.
Only now did he finally understand why Lord Han paid so much attention to Fang Yue and treated him as someone special.
Who could have guessed that just a day ago, Fang Yue hadn't even known what the Martial Path was?
Even Lin Ling was dumbfounded by such terrifying aptitude.
No wonder people said the difference between one person and another could sometimes be greater than the difference between a person and a beast.
"Shame he's a complete amateur when it comes to fighting. His techniques are so crude that they're almost on par with an anomaly that fights purely on instinct. He's basically just another anomaly."
Lin Ling shook his head slightly. If he had a body that could withstand an anomaly's attacks and immediately recover enough to keep fighting, that anomaly probably wouldn't get more than a few hits in before Lin Ling beat it to death.
There were techniques for fighting anomalies.
Exploiting weaknesses, blocking attacks, dodging and repositioning, interrupting their moves... Every technique was meant to reduce the risk of being struck head-on and preserve oneself as much as possible.
Humans were just that fragile.
Even after entering the Martial Path, one's physical condition improved only a little. One's Qi and Blood became somewhat more abundant, but that was about it.
The difference between being killed by one punch from an anomaly and being killed by two was just a little more room to recover.
The most important thing about entering the Martial Path was learning cultivation methods, martial techniques, and combat skills, as well as how to use inner force that ordinary people couldn't.
Those were the foundations of a Martial Artist, the basis that allowed humanity to fight anomalies.
And yet the guy in front of him knew none of that.
All Lin Ling could do was hope Chen Mu had really taught Fang Yue some swordsmanship—even the crudest kind.
"Captain Lin, the blades are here!"
Just then, Little Fox and Niu Niu returned. Little Fox was carrying a broken arm, while Niu Niu clutched a heart.
Behind them came five vice-captains, each carrying a large bundle of standard-issue iron blades.
Lin Ling's gaze passed over Niu Niu, whose face was full of eager anticipation, and settled on the five vice-captains.
Niu Niu's heart sank, and he began to panic.
After the Heart-Devouring Pill had restored his health, his wounds had started rotting and worsening again.
The [诡诅] was far more troublesome than he'd expected. He had told Captain Lin about it, but Lin Ling hadn't said anything, only that now wasn't the time to discuss it.
That was true. Compared with the whole village's hopes, the outcome of Fang Yue's fight mattered more than Niu Niu's life.
Still, it was his own life on the line, so Niu Niu was anxious.
"Captain Lin, I gathered these blades from nearby team members and villagers. I've asked people to keep collecting more, but I was worried you'd be left waiting, so I brought this batch first."
The speaker was the bald vice-captain, Old Sheep.
After a pause, he asked in confusion, "May I ask why you need so many blades, Captain Lin?"
Lin Ling picked up one of the blades, weighed it in his hand, and said in a low voice, "You'll see in a moment."
Then he looked ahead.
Fang Yue and the anomaly were still locked in a fierce struggle.
But Fang Yue was gradually falling behind, attacking less and defending more.
That was only natural. Humans weren't anomalies.
A person's focus was limited. The longer a fight dragged on, the more likely one was to slip up. Even a moment's delay in reacting could lead to one danger after another!
And then there was stamina.
Entering the Martial Path only gave one greater endurance. It didn't mean having infinite stamina.
Fang Yue's special constitution seemed to only let him recover Qi and Blood quickly. Judging by his gasping breaths and sweat-soaked body, he was clearly nearing his limit.
Fortunately, the Maid Anomaly across from him had also slowed down considerably from exhaustion. Its movements no longer had the fluid, savage energy it had shown when fighting him and Hua Wuye.
Fang Yue had only just entered the Martial Path, yet he'd managed to hold his own this well. That was already terrifying.
After all, this Maid Anomaly was clearly no ordinary anomaly. Even among Black Grade Initial Stage anomalies, it ranked among the strongest.
Otherwise, he and Hua Wuye would have killed an ordinary Black Grade Initial Stage anomaly long ago.
He wouldn't even need Hua Wuye. He could kill an ordinary Black-level Anomaly on his own!
As for now...
Lin Ling narrowed his eyes. Fang Yue and the anomaly exchanged a punch and pulled apart. Lin Ling immediately hurled the blade in his hand.
"Little Ye! Catch!"
As soon as Lin Ling threw the blade, he couldn't help coughing. Blood flecked his lips. His condition was truly terrible.
The iron blade flew straight toward Fang Yue. With a clang, it landed precisely at his feet.
Fang Yue's face lit up. He snatched up the blade.
The iron blade's polished surface, keen edge, and standard workmanship made his eyes shine.
"What a blade!"
Analysis Pupil activated.
"Name: Iron Blade." "Grade: Mortal Grade Low-tier." "Restrictions: None." "Sharpness: 0.3." "Durability: 5/5." "Description: A perfectly ordinary blade." "Remark: Trash is trash, now and always."
Fang Yue: ...
Could he take back what he'd just said?
Fang Yue was stunned. So sharpness could have decimal places?
That meant his broken rusty blade had actually been pretty powerful! It really had been a treasure!
The only advantage this blade had was slightly better durability than his rusty one.
Just as Fang Yue thought this, the Maid Anomaly came charging at him again with a roar.
Seeing that his health had fully recovered, he gritted his teeth and charged too.
Whatever. Captain Lin had given him a precious blade today, so he'd use this thing to christen it!
With that thought, Fang Yue leaped into the air. As the anomaly looked up, he brought the blade down in a mighty slash!
"Die!"
Fang Yue roared, but the anomaly tilted its head to the side. With a clang, the iron blade struck its shoulder.
The sensation of the blade hitting solid rock traveled up his arm, leaving his thumb and forefinger numb from the impact.
At the same time, damage slowly appeared.
-61.
Huh?
That was it?
Fang Yue felt the blade shudder in his hands and stared at the damage number, dumbfounded.
Letting his attention slip during a fight was a grave mistake. The anomaly immediately punched him away, sending him rolling twice across the ground.
-125!
Fang Yue ignored the damage number above his head and hurriedly scrambled up, running some distance away. Sure enough, the anomaly was already right behind him.
As he ran, he lowered his head to look at the iron blade in his hand.
A notch had appeared in it!
What the hell! Was this some shoddy, bargain-bin workmanship? The quality was terrible!
Analysis Pupil still found time to pop up and mock him.
"Name: Iron Blade." "Grade: Mortal Grade Low-tier." "Restrictions: None." "Sharpness: 0.3." "Durability: 2/5." "Description: A perfectly ordinary blade." "Remark: Trash is trash, now and always."
...Fine!
Feeling the wind rush up behind him, Fang Yue suddenly stopped and ducked, avoiding the iron palm that skimmed over his scalp. He spun around and slashed the anomaly across the waist.
With a loud clang, the blade snapped in two, and a fragment flew away.
Seeing the "-52!" damage above the anomaly's head, Fang Yue ducked and slipped past it, then ran toward Lin Ling.
As he ran, he tossed away the broken blade and shouted,
"Blade!"
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