Like a Madman

Xiong Wu's eyes nearly burst from their sockets. Summoning the last shred of his strength, he threw his head back as hard as he could, trying to widen the hair's breadth of distance between them.

But Chen Yue had stepped in too fast, too suddenly. The deadly tip of his elbow loomed larger and larger in Xiong Wu's eyes, and the shadow of death instantly swallowed him whole!

"Ah!"

With death hanging by a thread, a savage, dying beast's howl burst from Xiong Wu's throat!

A flash of crazed resolve crossed his eyes. He clenched his teeth with all his might, and with a nearly inaudible crack, his back teeth seemed to crush something.

The next instant, his right arm—which should have been incapable of exertion—jerked up, landing directly in the path of Chen Yue's elbow strike.

"Bang!!!"

Chen Yue's elbow slammed squarely into the raised forearm. The impact was deeper and heavier than any of the previous blows, as though he had struck a block of hardwood wrapped in oxhide.

"Crack!"

The clear, grating sound of breaking bone rang out again. Xiong Wu's forcibly raised right forearm snapped completely, and the broken bone even pierced through his flesh, exposing a stark white splinter as blood sprayed everywhere.

The tremendous force lifted Xiong Wu clean off his feet and sent him flying more than ten feet backward. He crashed heavily onto the wooden platform with a thunderous boom, making it shudder.

He curled up, clutching his ruined right arm, and let out a howl of agony that sounded nothing like a human voice. His facial muscles twisted and spasmed wildly from the pain. Sweat, blood, and dust streaked his face, leaving him utterly wretched. Where was the arrogance he'd shown when he first stepped onto the platform?

"Good!"

"Beautifully done, junior brother!"

Below the platform, Ma Jun and Yu Kan couldn't help raising their arms and cheering, their voices shaking the entire arena. The others from Iron Mountain Hall were also invigorated, their faces alight with excitement.

The hundreds of onlookers surrounding them erupted in a tremendous uproar of astonishment and shouts.

No one had expected this life-or-death battle—thought to be a fierce clash between evenly matched opponents, perhaps even favoring the Sea Shark Gang—to become a one-sided rout after barely a dozen breaths.

Both were in the Skin Refining Realm, yet Xiong Wu, a hulking man notorious for his brutality, seemed utterly helpless before this obscure young Pearl Diver.

Whether in reaction, speed, strength, or fighting technique, he seemed to fall short by more than a little! The gap in their abilities was simply too great!

On the raised platform, Gu Huaizhang had stopped stroking his beard at some point. His eyes gleamed as he stared intently at Chen Yue, standing with his elbow poised on the fighting platform. His heart, too, was rocked by stormy waves.

Chen Yue's precise grasp of the opening, his nimble footwork that concealed tremendous power, and his fierce, explosive punches and kicks, controlled as easily as his own hands, all revealed an exceptionally solid foundation and remarkable mastery of martial arts.

"How could a Pearl Diver from Pearl Village... have trained to such a level?"

Gu Huaizhang was full of questions, but at the same time, he understood a little more. No wonder that old fox Zhou Jingfeng was willing to fall out with the Sea Shark Gang just to protect this boy. With talent and character like his, given time, he'll become a force to be reckoned with! If our positions were reversed, I fear I'd make the same choice. Taking a risk for this boy would be well worth it!

Unlike the excitement among Iron Mountain Hall and some of the neutral spectators, the Sea Shark Gang's side had fallen utterly silent.

The cruel grins and mocking looks had vanished from the faces of dozens of gang members, replaced by stunned disbelief and a trace of unease.

They looked from Xiong Wu, writhing in pain on the platform, to Chen Yue, standing calmly across from him, then finally turned their eyes toward their own gang leader.

Tang Qizheng's smile had disappeared. His face was as dark as water, and cold light glinted in his narrow eyes like a venomous snake about to strike.

Xiong Wu's swift defeat had caught him off guard and made him lose face. But there was no panic in his eyes—only a cold, unwavering certainty.

Useless... But it ends here. Tang Qizheng sneered inwardly.

The black pellet Xiong Wu had bitten through—that was the true beginning of this life-or-death battle!

On the platform, Chen Yue pressed his advantage. He unleashed Treading Mountains and Rivers again, and with a flicker of his figure, he was already upon Xiong Wu, who had yet to get up. His right fist shot straight toward Xiong Wu's unguarded throat.

If it landed, the blow would kill him instantly and end the fight.

But just as Chen Yue's fist was about to touch the bobbing Adam's apple, another sudden change occurred!

Xiong Wu, whose consciousness should have been clouded by pain, suddenly opened his bloodshot eyes and fixed them on Chen Yue, who stood within arm's reach.

At the same time, thick, grotesque veins bulged across his face, neck, and every exposed patch of skin, writhing like earthworms. The sight was horrifying!

"Roar!"

A low growl forced its way out of Xiong Wu's throat. Facing Chen Yue's killing punch, he thrust out his uninjured left arm, moving so impossibly fast that it reached its target first. His hooked fingers shot toward Chen Yue's fist.

His speed and strength were worlds apart from what they had been moments ago.

"Slap!"

Fist met palm with a dull thud.

Chen Yue felt as if his fist had struck a piece of red-hot pig iron. A violent surge of power rebounded from Xiong Wu's palm and rushed into his arm, making his blood and qi churn faintly.

"Heh... heh... It's... my turn now!!!"

Xiong Wu's throat rasped like a broken bellows. His blood-red eyes locked onto Chen Yue, and a vicious, deranged grin spread across his face.

The five fingers of his left hand clamped around Chen Yue's fist like an iron vise. He tightened his grip, using the terrifying strength that had suddenly surged within him to crush Chen Yue's right hand.

At the same time, his right arm—which should have been completely useless—whipped up again like a lash, seemingly numb to pain, and swept toward Chen Yue's ribs without the slightest regard for his own injury.

Broken bones ground together and blood sprayed everywhere, but Xiong Wu acted as though he felt nothing. His eyes held only slaughter and destruction!

Chen Yue's brow furrowed sharply. Xiong Wu's current state was deeply abnormal. The sudden surge in his strength and speed, along with his utter disregard for pain, all carried an evil, unnatural quality.

Meeting him head-on was certainly not the best choice.

As his thoughts flashed, Chen Yue's trapped right wrist jerked and twisted like a nimble snake. He used Shedding Robe and Yielding Position, a refined technique from the Mountain-Crushing Art, to dissipate the force, while his footwork shifted abruptly.

"Riiip!"

Xiong Wu's iron claws tore through Chen Yue's sleeve, but Chen Yue's fist had already slipped free like a mudskipper.

At the same time, Chen Yue drifted backward like willow fluff caught in a fierce wind. At the very last instant, he evaded Xiong Wu's bloody, mangled arm as it swept across.

The severed arm carried a gust of wind as it skimmed past his clothes. Hot, reeking droplets of blood splattered across Chen Yue's face.

Chen Yue was already two zhang away, once again putting distance between himself and the seemingly crazed Xiong Wu. He watched his opponent's bizarre transformation with a grave expression.

"Dodging? Keep dodging, you bastard! Where'd all that swagger go? Come on! Face me head-on! Or did you lose your balls? Hahaha!"

Seeing Chen Yue retreat, Xiong Wu rose with a Black Dragon Coiling Pillar and let out a frenzied roar.

He strode forward, each footfall thudding heavily against the platform like a war drum as he charged at Chen Yue.