"Who goes there?"
Hearing the hostile voice outside the carriage call him out by name, Fang Han, who had been in quite a good mood because of the evening banquet, could not help frowning.
Lifting the carriage curtain, he jumped down and looked toward the burly youth blocking the road.
When he saw the burly youth's attire clearly, his heart sank, and a name surfaced in his mind—Lin Hu.
According to Elder Fang Yuan, Lin Bao's elder brother, Lin Hu, was the second-ranked Inner Hall disciple of the Lin Family. After learning that Lin Bao had been injured, he would very likely come looking for Fang Han to stand up for him.
This man was most likely Lin Hu.
"Are you Lin Hu?"
Fang Han asked. Though he had already guessed, he still needed to confirm it.
"That's right, it's me!"
Lin Hu was broad-backed and bear-waisted, tall and powerfully built, his eyes fixed on Fang Han with a cold gleam.
"Fang Han, you injured my younger brother Lin Bao. Today, it's time to settle this debt!"
So it really is Lin Hu. He came because of Lin Bao!
Fang Han suppressed his anger and tried to explain.
"What happened that day was that Lin Bao first tried to seize my mission target, then struck at me first. I was forced to fight back."
"Bullshit!"
Lin Hu did not listen to a word of explanation, cutting him off with an angry roar.
"Why would my brother covet that tiny bit of merit from you? It must have been you acting arrogant and tyrannical, using your strength to bully the weak!"
"Enough nonsense. Let our hands reveal the truth! Let me see just how much this Qilin Child of the Fang Clan is worth!"
Before his words had even faded, a vicious light burst from Lin Hu's eyes. With a sharp clang, he had already drawn his blade!
The blade was broad and heavy, glinting with cold light. Like a fierce tiger eyeing its prey, an oppressive and domineering aura instantly locked onto Fang Han.
"If that is how it is, then I'll grant your wish!"
Seeing that the other man was unreasonable and determined to fight, the anger in Fang Han's heart was thoroughly ignited as well.
Even a clay Buddha had three parts anger, let alone a man.
He said no more. Drawing a deep breath, the blood and qi of his Bone Refining Mid-Stage cultivation surged through his body, and the Azure Edge Sword flew from its sheath.
Its tip pointed diagonally at the ground. His entire body seemed to transform into a sword, his aura instantly becoming ethereal and sharp.
"Take this blade!"
Lin Hu roared, stomping fiercely against the ground. The blue-stone pavement trembled slightly as his body pounced forward like a tiger released from its cage.
The Thick-Backed Blade in his hand tore through the air, carrying a dangerous aura as it chopped straight at Fang Han's face.
It was the opening stance of the Lin Family's renowned Mountain-Breaking Blade Art—Mountain-Splitting Stone-Cracking!
Before the blade even arrived, that heavy pressure had already rushed at him head-on.
"Breeze Piercing Forest."
Fang Han's gaze sharpened. He did not dare be the slightest bit careless. His opponent possessed immense strength and a ferocious momentum; he could not take this blow head-on.
His footwork shifted, like a breeze brushing willow branches, and in the narrow gap between life and death, he twisted aside to evade the fiercest edge of the blade.
At the same time, the Azure Edge Sword became a streak of azure light, thrusting with a sword move at the weak point in Lin Hu's blade force.
Clang!
The blade and sword collided for the first time, erupting with an ear-splitting boom as sparks scattered in every direction.
Fang Han felt a vast force travel through the blade. His arm went slightly numb, and he had no choice but to drift half a step backward with the force, shedding its impact.
Lin Hu's wrist also trembled, his forward charge halted as a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.
"He already broke through... to the Bone Refining Late-Stage?!"
Staring at Lin Hu, Fang Han's expression grew several degrees more solemn.
His opponent was even stronger than Elder Fang Yuan had described. Not only had his blade art reached the Mastery Realm, but his cultivation had also ceased to be at the peak of the Bone Refining Mid-Stage. He had already broken through to the Bone Refining Late-Stage.
Fang Han was only at the Bone Refining Mid-Stage, while his opponent was already at the Bone Refining Late-Stage, a whole realm above him. How troublesome such an opponent would be was easy to imagine.
"Bone Refining Mid-Stage? Perfection Realm Sword Intent?!"
Lin Hu's expression likewise turned grave as he put away his contempt.
He had originally thought that with his Bone Refining Late-Stage cultivation and the Mountain-Breaking Blade Art at the Mastery Realm, he would be able to crush Fang Han with a single strike. Yet unexpectedly, he had gained no advantage at all.
The information he had received was that Fang Han had only recently entered Bone Refining and that his sword art had reached Greater Accomplishment. Yet in such a short time, Fang Han had broken through to the Mid-Stage and even trained his sword art to the Perfection Realm.
Such a rate of progress was simply shocking beyond belief.
Both men realized how difficult the other was, and the atmosphere instantly grew even tenser.
Roar!
Lin Hu's battle intent flared even higher. Roaring again, he pounced forward, his blade light transforming into wave upon wave of violent tides that swept toward Fang Han.
The blade wind howled, whipping even the dust from the ground into the air.
Fang Han focused intently as he pushed the Breeze Sword Art at the Perfection Realm to its utmost limit.
His sword light no longer sought grand momentum, but rather extreme concentration and precision.
Like a breeze that seeped through every opening, and like willow threads winding without end, it always struck the weak point in the Blade Intent at the most critical moment—either deflecting it, blocking it, or counterattacking.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
Dense metallic clashes, like rain beating on banana leaves, exploded madly through the street. Blade light and sword shadows crisscrossed, while the two figures rose and fell like rabbits and hawks, using speed against speed as they exchanged dozens of moves in the blink of an eye.
Sharp force scattered in all directions, leaving deep gashes across the surrounding walls and ground.
On the three carriages, Fang Zheng and the others hurriedly got down. Seeing the fierce battle before them, every one of them turned pale, their hearts rising to their throats.
"Han!"
Lin Wan gripped her husband's arm tightly, her nails nearly digging into his flesh.
"Don't panic. Trust Han!"
Fang Zheng was equally tense, but he forced himself to remain calm as he shielded his family.
The commotion alerted nearby residents and passersby. Many came at the sound and watched from afar, exclaiming in alarm.
"I recognize one of them. He's Lin Hu, second in the Lin Family's Inner Hall. He's actually already at the Bone Refining Late-Stage!"
"Who is fighting him? Huh? Judging from his clothes, he's a Fang Clan disciple... Such a young Bone Refining Realm martial artist!"
"It should be Fang Han, the newly risen Qilin Child of the Fang Clan!"
"He can actually fight Lin Hu on equal footing?!"
"Bone Refining Mid-Stage against Late-Stage, and he hasn't been defeated? Hiss, Fang Han's sword art seems to be... at the Perfection Realm!"
Recognizing the identities of the two combatants, the watching crowd cried out in shock.
No one had expected the young Fang Han to possess the strength to contend with a veteran top Inner Hall disciple like Lin Hu.
But Fang Zheng and the others could not help clutching their hearts. The one fighting Fang Han was actually the Lin Family Inner Hall's second-ranked disciple, a Bone Refining Late-Stage martial artist.
Could Fang Han truly be a match for such a veteran top Inner Hall disciple?
Within the battlefield, they had already exchanged more than a hundred moves!
Every move was delivered with full force. Their stamina drained rapidly, their breathing grew heavier, and sweat appeared on their temples.
By this point in the battle, the sharp depletion of their strength had inevitably exposed flaws in both of them.
Screech!
Fang Han's Azure Edge Sword suddenly accelerated, like a venomous snake leaving its hole, piercing through a gap in the blade light.
The sword tip swept across Lin Hu's left arm, bringing up a spray of blood and leaving a wound behind.
Almost at the same instant, Lin Hu roared. Ignoring his injury, he changed his blade force and launched a swift, savage upward slash in counterattack.
Fang Han was half a beat too slow in drawing back his sword to block. The blade edge scraped past his right shoulder, tearing his robe and leaving a bloody mark as well.
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