Heart-Severing Gut-Breaking Powder

"How bold, daring to trespass on the Huang Family's territory!" Li Qing roared, assuming the stance of the Wild Ox Fist.

As someone from the lowest rungs of society, Li Qing had not slacked off for a single day since obtaining the Wild Ox Fist, practicing bitterly.

Although he had yet to reach the entry level, his every movement already looked quite professional.

Now, as he held his stance, he truly appeared like a majestic, imposing wild ox, radiating a rugged and overbearing power.

Seeing this, his two lackeys immediately echoed his sentiment, and the three of them charged toward Er Gou together.

The next moment, the three bodies were sent flying backward.

Li Qing slammed into the ground at Lu Li's feet.

A long, deep gash marred his chest, blood dripping profusely as the flesh curled outward; his injuries were severe.

He gasped in pain, his face instantly turning deathly pale.

"Lu Li, quick, run! He's a martial artist!" he urged Lu Li, his voice weak and trembling as if he had exhausted every ounce of his strength.

"Run? We've surrounded this place tight; where do you think you're going?" Er Gou wiped the blood off his blade with a look of disdain and fixed his gaze on Lu Li.

"This is..." He felt Lu Li looked somewhat familiar, but couldn't quite place him.

"Brother Gou, that's Lu Li. He saved the Zhao Family last time. We were afraid of him and even went back to offer an apology, which cost us quite a bit of silver," a henchman beside him immediately whispered a reminder.

Er Gou glared at him. "Shut your mouth, you talk too much!"

With that, he turned his attention back to Lu Li and feigned a tap to his head. "Oh, I remember now. So it's you."

"You saved the Zhao Family last time and made me lose face, forcing me to act like a grandson and come to apologize."

"Did you ever think this day would come?"

Er Gou shook his head, his tone mocking and arrogant, begging for a beating.

Now that he had become a martial artist, his ego was inflated, the classic behavior of a petty man who had finally tasted success.

Having suffered a loss of face before, he naturally wanted to reclaim it tenfold.

He spread his legs wide. "Come, come, crawl through your grandfather's crotch, and I'll spare your life."

"Not only that, but since your grandfather is in a good mood today, I'll spare these people too!"

He swept his gaze toward Li Qing and the others, waving his hand with grand, boastful energy.

His lackeys immediately chimed in. "In ancient times, a man endured the humiliation of crawling between legs to become a legendary military genius."

"Lu Li, what are you still standing there for? This is an opportunity!"

"Li Qing, hurry up and convince Lu Li, otherwise none of you are leaving!"

With that, the group of thugs began to howl and shriek, acting exactly like wild monkeys in the mountains.

Seeing their arrogant and despotic faces, Lu Li's mouth twitched. He took a step forward, only to have Zhang Qing grab his pant leg.

"Lu Li, a real man would rather die than submit. If you go, I, Zhang Qing, will look down on you!"

"Don't crawl! I, Zhang Qing, would rather die!"

Zhang Qing gritted his teeth, speaking every word with intense conviction.

"Damn it, you refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit!" the henchman cursed, brandishing his blade as he moved to hack at Zhang Qing's hand.

Just then, Lu Li casually kicked the henchman in the chest.

Crack.

The sound of shattering bone echoed out as the henchman flew backward, slamming into the ground at Er Gou's feet.

His body twitched, blood foaming from his mouth, and after a few final flutters, he breathed his last.

Er Gou's pupils constricted, his gaze fixed on Lu Li in utter disbelief.

Even he found Lu Li's kick shocking to witness.

He never imagined that Lu Li had also become a martial artist!

"Lu Li, you..." Li Qing was also stunned, his face a mask of shock.

He felt a mix of joy, jealousy, and embarrassment.

His expression was complex and rather comical.

Lu Li pulled his pant leg free, surged forward, and unleashed a Wild Ox Charge Fist.

He had never practiced the Wild Ox Fist, but his form was exquisite, without a single flaw.

Compared to the likes of Li Qing, his execution was nothing short of masterful!

After all, he was an expert who had killed an Organ-Refining powerhouse; a mere Wild Ox Fist, though unpracticed, was still well within his grasp!

Displaying the strength of a Flesh-Refining martial artist, he smashed a fist into Er Gou's head, leaving him dizzy and seeing stars.

He then mounted him, raining down blows from both sides, every punch landing solidly in the flesh.

In no time at all, Er Gou's face had swollen into the likeness of a pig's head.

"Master Lu, Master Lu, stop hitting me, I was wrong!"

"I deserve to die, please, spare my dog life!"

Er Gou mumbled incoherently.

Lu Li let out a cold snort, his hands never ceasing until a spray of blood splattered across his face, and Er Gou finally went completely still.

A pair of bare fists had beaten a martial artist to death!

This scene left not only Li Qing and his two companions in shock.

The gang members who had followed Er Gou were even more terrified, dropping their weapons and fleeing on foot.

"It's not over yet?" Lu Li stood up and walked out the courtyard gate, his brows furrowing as he heard the sounds of fighting still echoing from afar.

However, now was not the time to switch identities, so Lu Li simply closed the door and had the pharmacy's physician tend to the injuries of Li Qing and the others.

"Lu Li, when did you enter the realm? What is your current cultivation, and how were you able to enter it?" Zhang Qing lay on a stretcher, chattering incessantly.

"Lu Li, even if you've broken through, I still won't submit to you. Sooner or later, I'll catch up!"

"But, I, Li Qing, will remember this life debt, and one day I will repay you."

"Shut your mouth." Lu Li couldn't be bothered to respond.

He could barely speak a moment ago, yet now he was firing off like a machine gun; he didn't know where the man was finding the energy.

He went to the herb garden and began practicing the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist.

[Life Master: Lu Li]
[Life Fate: Heaven Rewards Diligence]
[Attributes: Ten days of travel for a slow horse, success lies in perseverance]
[Martial Arts: Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist (Tendon-Refining Realm 720/900) - One practice per day, seventy years to master. Wild Ox Fist (Not yet initiated) - One practice per day, six years to master. Flying Swallow Step (Perfected)...]

The power of the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist had increased by another twenty points, and with the experience and insights flowing in, his strength had progressed slightly once more.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed and in poor condition, Lu Li did not force himself to continue training.

He picked up the Hundred Solutions to Poisons and began to study it carefully, his gaze settling on a poison capable of taking down an Inner-Qi Realm expert.

This poison was called Heartless Gut-Severing Powder, and it required an herb known as Gut-Severing Grass as its main ingredient.

Supplemented by Ice Heart Flower, Black Blood Fruit, and twenty other types of toxins, its potency was extreme.

Anyone below the Organ-Refining Realm would die the moment they touched it.

Even those in the Blood-Exchange Realm wouldn't fare well; before long, they would be vomiting blood and lose all their combat strength.

Even an Inner-Qi Realm expert wouldn't last long, their strength slowly draining away, and if they didn't receive treatment, they would end up dying from the poison within a few days.

"Hiss, twenty-one types of poison—the recipe for this Heartless Gut-Severing Powder is incredibly resource-intensive, isn't it?"

"Still, considering there isn't even one Inner-Qi Realm expert among the million people in Changfeng County, this poison is truly no joke."

"It's just that as a martial artist's strength increases and their physical body becomes more formidable, they develop what is called 'Qi' within them, which can circulate through the body and dilute toxins."

"Rarely can any poison harm those in the Houtian Realm."

"And as for something that could harm the Pre-Heaven Realm, I've never even heard of it."

"If it's this hard to ambush enemies, I wonder if, with my supreme talent, I could create a poison technique capable of taking down Post-Heaven or even Pre-Heaven experts?"

Lu Li held the Hundred Solutions to Poisons, lost in thought.

It wasn't until after noon that the sounds of shouting and killing gradually faded away.

Huang Rongyue and Huang He descended from the pavilion and entered the Huang Mansion, gathering with the other high-ranking members in the main hall to await the casualty report.

"Damn it, how did so many experts suddenly appear? We've taken a massive hit this time!"

"Indeed, could the Wang Family have gained the support of the County Magistrate?"

"The Magistrate really wants to swallow us whole!"

"I never imagined they would have an ambush force, launching a surprise attack in broad daylight. So many were caught off guard—that's why the losses are so heavy!"

"The brothers fought until noon; they did everything they could."

Everyone was filled with sorrow.

Huang He's brows were also knit with an unshakable gloom.