Jiang Yan bent his legs and gathered strength throughout his body. He took one step forward.
BOOM!
The earth beneath his feet caved in and burst apart. With dust scattering everywhere, Jiang Yan took a few strides and charged into the circle of five surrounding the strange being.
Out of the corner of Shan Renhu's eye, he saw Jiang Yan swiftly finish off the strange being. Then Jiang Yan stepped forward, his body seeming to burst through the air as he charged over with vicious malice.
Shan Renhu paused and shifted aside, leaving Jiang Yan room to pass.
It was habit. He had worked with Jiang Yan several times, and whenever they encountered a strange being, all he had to do was leave it to Jiang Yan.
After all... once Jiang Yan slapped on a Blazing Flames Talisman, the strange being might be wiped out in an instant.
Behind Jiang Yan's back, Shan Renhu had even given him a nickname: One-Move Jiang.
If he could blow a strange being apart in one move, Jiang Yan would never hold back and use a second.
This time was no different.
With the strength, speed, and agility of a peak Martial Apprentice, plus the talisman force of a mid-grade Blazing Flames Talisman, Jiang Yan had the advantage of overwhelming force against a Severe Sha-level strange being.
This was Jiang Yan's favorite way to farm monsters, too: low risk and steady rewards.
Like a sudden thunderclap, Jiang Yan shot toward the Green Yin Fire strange being. He raised his right arm, swinging his long sword until it bent like a bow, then slammed it viciously toward the creature!
"Die, you bastard!"
With that blow, the air churned like boiling water, surging in waves.
A faint sonic boom rang out, and white air currents seemed to appear along the sword's spine.
BOOM!
SPLAT!
The Green Yin Fire strange being had no chance to resist. Jiang Yan's overwhelming attack smashed it apart. This time it didn't even get the chance to gather itself back together before the talisman force blasted it to pieces.
Weird Value: 12
"W-Well, damn, there he goes using that move again." Shan Renhu's face twitched uncontrollably. He'd known Jiang Yan would surely kill the strange being, but they'd all been attacking it for a while, hadn't they?
It had been so hard to kill, yet Jiang Yan had simply raised his sword and smashed it apart in one swing.
By comparison...
"Am I just that useless?" Shan Renhu silently asked himself.
Just then, Ren Yuan and Tang Long also finished off the Green Yin Fire strange being.
Four streams of black-gray energy swirled into Jiang Yan's left hand.
The touch was icy cold. His Weird Value increased.
Weird Value: 31
Seeing the Weird Value, Jiang Yan's first thought was:
He'd struck it rich.
"Sure enough, does teaming up and sharing the experience bring in more than farming weak monsters alone?"
Jiang Yan thought to himself.
The group gathered again, and Tang Long couldn't help cursing. "What terrible luck. The Rune Soldier's defenses had only just faded, and strange beings appeared right away."
Jiang Yan secretly glanced at Shan Renhu and saw that his expression was stern and deeply troubled.
"At a time like this, who knows what Tang Long was thinking, sending Old Shan to help. He's got such rotten luck. You really have no idea what you're dealing with?"
"All right, enough of that." Ren Yuan raised a hand to cut off Tang Long's complaints, then looked out into the wilderness.
It was pitch-black.
The Rune Soldier needed time to gather its strength. This little wave of strange beings might only be an appetizer.
Things could get more dangerous later.
"Stay alert. Jiang Yan and Tang Long, take the two ends of the formation. I'll stay in the middle. If you spot a strange being, support each other at once and hack it to death!"
"Now, spread out. Don't let any strange beings slip into the formation."
If a strange being slipped in, someone might get hurt. It could also cause trouble for Ning Gongdao.
At Ren Yuan's direction, the group spread out. Jiang Yan and Shan Renhu went to the other end of the formation.
Ren Yuan narrowed his eyes and stared intently at Jiang Yan.
"That strength, that speed just now... There's no way a newly advanced Martial Apprentice could possess them."
He knew Jiang Yan's situation well. He had only broken through not long ago.
By all rights, Jiang Yan should only have just entered the Martial Apprentice stage. Yet he had just carved through two strange beings with ease, killing them even faster than Tang Long.
"Could it be that I've encountered a true martial arts prodigy?"
"And one with exceptional battle instincts, not one of those useless fools who only know how to cultivate."
Shan Renhu's expression was conflicted. "Jiang Yan, did you... did you break through again?"
His voice twisted with both hope and resistance.
When I met you, I was already on the verge of breaking through. Then you became a Martial Apprentice, while I still hadn't broken through.
And now...
"Yeah, Big Brother Shan noticed." Jiang Yan smiled at Shan Renhu with complete sincerity. A few beads of sweat dotted his forehead. Two consecutive bursts of force had put some strain on his body. "I've been cultivating hard lately, and finally broke through again."
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and spoke languidly. "Heaven rewards those who persevere. As long as you work hard, you'll make progress."
Shan Renhu's eyebrows twitched violently. The corners of his mouth pulled into a strained smile. "Yeah, I also think Heaven never lets hard workers down."
"Because I'm a hard worker, too! I practice bitterly for two hours every day, all so I can become a martial artist."
But why the hell had you broken through again, while I still hadn't even become a martial artist?
Shan Renhu mechanically moved his legs, feeling... utterly lost inside.
Inside Qingshan Village.
The willow-shaped Rune Soldier was gathering strength.
"It's been an hour already."
Ning Gongdao looked at the jade-tree apparition in the sky. The great willow tree had now solidified, and a trace of anxiety lurked deep in his calm eyes.
He held a talisman marked with green stripes. "Almost there. Almost."
Just then, the green willow apparition in the sky suddenly flashed, then disappeared.
The next moment, a Little Willow Tree appeared on Ning Gongdao's shoulder.
"Done."
The Rune Soldier had finished gathering strength. He could now borrow a portion of its power.
"The Rune Soldiers in villages are too limited in function. They usually only provide defense. What a nuisance." Ning Gongdao shook his head and glanced at the Rune Soldier's main body in the square.
Its light had dimmed, and it would need some time to recover.
"Looks like after this is over, I'll need to assign more people to Qingshan Village. The Rune Soldier's defenses are a little weak while it's recovering..."
Putting those thoughts aside, Ning Gongdao beckoned. "Baldy, come here!"
That useless Tan Xinghe had actually been devoured by a strange being. If he hadn't died, the strange being wouldn't have gotten a martial artist's essence blood, so how could it have started advancing?
"Lord Ning, what are your orders?"
Hu Xing didn't mind being called Baldy by a big shot from Zhenwu Hall. The head honcho had brought this on himself. He'd even gone back to his lodging to eat, and in the end, not a scrap remained.
He needed to stay close to Lord Ning. This was the safest place in all of Qingshan Village.
"Remember: once I use the Anomaly Seeking Talisman to find a strange being and suppress it..." Ning Gongdao raised a finger. "Get the nearby villagers away at once. I won't be able to hold back."
Hu Xing understood what Ning Gongdao meant. Once he found a strange being, Ning Gongdao would have to attack immediately. He had quietly made inquiries already: Ning Gongdao was the lord of Zhenwu Hall, a Blood Refining Realm expert.
Though he wasn't a martial artist himself, Hu Xing knew what a Blood Refining Realm martial artist was like.
When someone like that attacked, even a glancing blow would kill you.
The nearby villagers had to be driven away at once to keep them from giving in to curiosity and watching the battle. It was for their protection.
PS: I heard some readers want me to count votes (recommendation tickets) until my hand bleeds... Then vote already! (＾▽＾) I'm ready... Where are the bandages?
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