Wind-Chasing Dog, Man Is Worse Than Dog

At the very moment of his breakthrough, Lu Li threw his final punch.

Instantly, his tendons snapped and vibrated, emitting a crackling sound like a bowstring being drawn taut and suddenly released.

BOOM!

This punch, bolstered by the reinforcement of his tendons, possessed peerless power, creating a sonic boom upon impact.

An invisible shockwave rippled outward, spreading into the surroundings.

It swept up the snow on the ground, sending it swirling and dancing through the air.

Tendon-Refining Realm: tendons vibrating like bowstrings!

Upon reaching the Tendon-Refining Realm, one's total strength can reach three thousand catties!

Furthermore, with the reinforced support of the tendons, a single punch can unleash a massive force of four thousand catties—enough to kill two oxen with one blow!

Lu Li's muscles bulged, vast reserves of strength coalescing within his body.

His strength was constantly rising, and this sensation brought Lu Li immense pleasure.

He cast his gaze toward the stone mill in the courtyard.

This time, he didn't use his hand to lift it; instead, he hooked it lightly with his pinky finger, easily hoisting it up and swinging it around as if it were weightless.

Lu Li gently set the stone mill down and then checked his status panel.

He saw that the Tiger-Subduing Fist was now marked as "Cannot be upgraded."

Lu Li immediately fell into deep thought.

"There is no room for further progress with the Tiger-Subduing Fist. I shall head to the Black Market tomorrow."

"The Black Market is filled with all sorts of strange and wondrous things; I've heard they even sell people. A mere martial arts manual shouldn't be an issue, right?"

"It is the only path left to me."

"Various factions control martial arts techniques with extreme strictness and do not allow them to be easily leaked. There is simply no way to obtain them in the outside world."

"Whatever is available is nothing more than third-rate street-stall trash."

"If my strength were to advance further, raiding the treasuries of those factions would not be impossible, but that is not an option for now."

With this in mind, Lu Li prepared to request leave tomorrow to head for the Black Market.

He arrived at the martial arts academy early, but Huang Haitao had not yet appeared.

Lu Li did not slack off, however, and began to practice his martial arts, slowly following the forms of the Azure Wave Palm.

Yet, what Lu Li practiced was not purely the Azure Wave Palm; he had integrated the techniques of the Tiger-Subduing Fist into it.

Now that he had reached the Tendon-Refining Realm, Lu Li's comprehension of the Tiger-Subduing Fist surpassed that of ordinary people, and blending a move or two into the Azure Wave Palm posed no difficulty at all.

Although the Tiger-Subduing Fist could not be improved further, he would feel rusty if he stopped practicing it for too long.

Lu Li had not forgotten his situation, nor the vast and magnificent nature of this world.

The Tendon-Refining Realm might be considered a position of strength within the small Changfeng County.

But if one looked at the entirety of the Great Yan or the whole world, it was still nothing.

Lu Li was not a man content with mediocrity; he did not wish to be confined to the small Changfeng County.

This world held legends of those who transcended the mundane, lived as long as heaven and earth, shone alongside the sun and moon, attained eternal life, and wandered free and unfettered.

Lu Li craved such a life as well.

Therefore, he could not afford to slack off!

However, Lu Li's fusion of the two martial arts drew sneers from Li Qing and his two companions.

"Hahaha, what has gotten into this kid Lu Li? Brother Qing, look at that—is that even the Azure Wave Palm he's performing?"

"I reckon he realized his progress was too slow and started panicking; his forms are all distorted."

Li Qing curled his lips into a mocking smile: "The man has his own 'unique' understanding. We just don't get it."

He held his head high and withdrew his gaze with disdain.

Lu Li noticed the stares from Li Qing and his group, but he paid them no mind, continuing to go his own way.

Another hour passed, and Huang Haitao finally arrived.

However, he was flustered and drenched in sweat from anxiety.

As soon as he entered, he shouted at the crowd: "Stop practicing! The Fifth Young Master's Wind-Chaser has gone missing. Hurry up and find it for me!"

"Even if you have to dig three feet into the ground of Changfeng County, you must find it!"

The crowd looked at each other, completely bewildered.

Someone couldn't help but ask: "What is Wind-Chaser?"

"The Young Master's beloved dog. It has black fur all over, a slender body, and fangs as sharp as a tiger's."

"Remember these features! If you don't find it, watch your own hides!"

Huang Haitao's face was flushed red, clearly a little anxious.

Seeing this, everyone sprang into action.

No one knew how much time had passed.

Just as dusk was approaching, they found a black dog matching the description in a filthy alley in the outer city.

However, when everyone saw the black dog mounting a female dog, they hesitated, unsure of what to do.

But as the sky grew darker, one of the men grew increasingly impatient. He couldn't wait any longer and stepped forward to separate the two dogs.

The black dog immediately barked ferociously, baring its teeth and biting down hard on the man's hand, leaving a row of bloody holes and spurting blood.

The man flew into a rage and slapped the black dog.

But it felt like hitting steel, producing a crisp clang.

Instead, his hand stung from the impact.

Everyone turned pale with shock.

Lu Li narrowed his eyes, already seeing a hint of the truth.

This Wind-Chasing Dog seemed to be a demonic beast!

If a demonic beast ran out and went on a killing spree, it would surely cause great chaos. No wonder Huang Haitao was so anxious.

Fifth Young Master didn't leash his dog!

The Wind-Chasing Dog roared, completely unfazed by the slap.

Lu Li, who was proficient in beast language, heard the roar: "How dare you hit me? I'll bite you to death!"

Lu Li's brow furrowed even tighter. It seemed he would have to resort to some means today.

Not all demons and monsters were as gentle and human-like as Hu Niu.

But in the next moment, the Wind-Chasing Dog suddenly lay down on the ground, whimpering pitifully and looking behind Lu Li and the others.

Everyone followed the Wind-Chasing Dog's gaze and saw a handsome young man in white, accompanied by Huang Haitao, who had arrived at some point.

Hearing the Wind-Chasing Dog's mournful cries, Fifth Young Master showed a pained expression and hurried forward, stroking the dog's head.

A savage glint flashed in his eyes, and he said in a deep voice, "Who dared to lay a hand on my beloved dog?"

The Wind-Chasing Dog rolled its eyes and whined at the big man.

Fifth Young Master immediately stood up, looked at the man, his face full of arrogance, and said coldly, "Was it you?"

Fine sweat beaded on the man's forehead, and he trembled all over. He quickly knelt on the ground, displaying the row of bleeding holes on his palm: "Young Master, it was this Wind-Chasing..."

Before he could finish, Fifth Young Master interrupted, "Only I can discipline Wind-Chasing. Who do you think you are?"

"Even when beating a dog, you must consider its owner. What, do you want to overstep your bounds?"

"You deserve to be punished!"

With that, he didn't give the man a chance to explain.

Fifth Young Master suddenly attacked, unleashing his strength with lightning speed, his muscles layering upon each other.

He unleashed the power of the Flesh-Refining Realm and kicked out.

With a thunderous explosion, the man's body was pierced through by the kick.

He was sent flying, blood splattering.

He fell to the ground and died instantly.

Everyone shivered and lowered their heads.

The Wind-Chasing Dog, emboldened by its master's presence, barked ferociously at everyone.

"Alright, Wind-Chasing, don't stoop to the level of these commoners. Let's go home and eat tiger meat."

"The outer city is so dirty and stinks! These commoners just don't like to be clean!"

Saying that, he covered his nose and left with the Wind-Chasing Dog.

Tiger meat, that was a great tonic, highly beneficial to martial artists!

To let a dog eat it!

Truly extravagant!

Humans are inferior to dogs, nothing less.

However, Lu Li knew that the Huang Family merely wanted to control them, so he wasn't surprised.

The Huang Family paid a small price for a loyal enforcer; it was a good deal.

Huang Haitao's face was also grim, clearly having been reprimanded.

Seeing everyone's dejected appearance, he became even more annoyed.

"What are you all standing around for? Clean up the mess! Do you expect me to do it?"

Only then did everyone snap out of their fear and quickly get to work.

Lu Li found Huang Haitao: "Martial Master Huang, I'd like to request two days of leave."