After absorbing Li Cunzhong's internal energy, Zhu Youning showed no mercy. He brought his palm down hard on Li Cunzhong's crown.
Li Cunzhong died on the spot. Zhu Youning then walked over to Li Cunxiao.
To tell the truth, this wasn't Zhu Youning's first time meeting Li Cunxiao.
Li Cunxiao was hailed as the fiercest warrior under heaven and was one of Li Keyong's foremost generals. In the many wars fought between Liang and Jin, countless Liang State soldiers had died at his hands.
Now, Zhu Youning could finally avenge them.
As he approached Li Cunxiao, Zhu Youning felt as though he were standing before a vicious beast.
Though Li Cunxiao couldn't move and his internal energy had seized up completely, Zhu Youning could still feel the pressure he exuded.
Li Cunxiao was like a flood dragon stranded in shallow water. If Zhu Youning didn't finish him off now, he would surely become a grave threat in the future!
Just as Zhu Youning was thinking this, a sudden roar startled him.
The sound had come from Li Cunxiao.
Li Cunxiao might have been slow-witted, but he had spent so many years by Li Cunzhong's side that the two had grown attached. Otherwise, Li Cunxiao wouldn't have done whatever Li Cunzhong told him to.
Now that Zhu Youning had killed Li Cunzhong with a single palm strike, Li Cunxiao was naturally furious.
But anger wouldn't help him.
Zhu Youning was confident that under the Sadness-Soothing Breeze's special effects, all of Li Cunxiao's fury would amount to nothing but helpless rage.
But Zhu Youning had miscalculated. Li Cunxiao had actually stood up.
Had the Sadness-Soothing Breeze failed?
Zhu Youning stared at Li Cunxiao in surprise.
No, that wasn't it. Li Cunxiao's internal energy had clearly seized up. He must have managed to stand through sheer brute strength, despite the effects of the Sadness-Soothing Breeze.
Even so, Li Cunxiao probably couldn't fight at full strength. His internal energy had seized up, after all.
Somehow finding the strength, Li Cunxiao roared and charged at Zhu Youning. The muscles in his arms bulged like iron knots as he raised his fist and slammed it down at Zhu Youning.
His attack was fierce, but without internal energy to bolster it, he lacked both strength and speed. The Sadness-Soothing Breeze had clearly weakened him.
Zhu Youning made his judgment at once and dodged to the side. Li Cunxiao's fist crashed into the ground, sending stones flying.
Zhu Youning dodged to the side and was about to seize the chance to fire a blast of Qi Scripture at Li Cunxiao's shoulder when he saw that Li Cunxiao had already turned and was charging at him again.
Li Cunxiao was so fast!
Startled, Zhu Youning inadvertently glanced at Li Cunxiao's pupils and saw that his eyes had turned bloodred.
Was he enraged?
With Li Cunxiao charging at him in a fury, Zhu Youning could only push off with his feet and retreat several paces.
But Li Cunxiao kept after him. In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged ten blows.
More accurately, Zhu Youning had spent ten exchanges evading him.
In their clashes, Zhu Youning hadn't gained the slightest advantage. Instead, Li Cunxiao's ferocious fighting style had forced him to retreat again and again.
Still, as he fell back, Zhu Youning gradually came to understand Li Cunxiao's current strength.
Without internal energy to bolster him, Li Cunxiao could only fight with his own flesh and bone. He still looked fearsome, but his true strength was probably around the Mid-Heaven Realm, or even the Small-Heaven Realm.
If Zhu Youning went all out, he could indeed defeat Li Cunxiao. But he had no intention of matching strength with someone born with such immense power.
Li Cunxiao was nothing more than a trapped beast making a last stand. Fighting him now would only stoke his bloodlust.
It would be better to wait until Li Cunxiao had worn himself out and then make his move.
So, no matter what attack Li Cunxiao launched, Zhu Youning held back. He focused on dodging and avoiding the brunt of each blow.
After several attacks missed, Li Cunxiao's eyes grew even redder, and he seemed to become more enraged. He raised his fists and pounded his chest, then strode forward with his mountain-like frame and charged swiftly at Zhu Youning.
As Li Cunxiao rushed forward, a stream of invisible true qi seemed to follow him.
"The Sadness-Soothing Breeze is about to wear off!"
Watching the changes in Li Cunxiao's speed, Zhu Youning immediately reached his conclusion.
Li Cunxiao was nearly out of strength, but the Sadness-Soothing Breeze was also gradually fading. He couldn't afford to delay any longer!
Facing Li Cunxiao's sudden charge, Zhu Youning remained perfectly calm. His face showed no hint of emotion; he seemed to have everything under control. His gaze sharpened as he followed the Qi Scripture's method, swiftly channeling the internal energy in his dantian along his meridians and into his palm.
Then Zhu Youning raised his right hand and took aim at Li Cunxiao. A vast, powerful blast of energy burst forth!
Bang!
The blast of air rang out. The surging true qi that erupted from Zhu Youning's palm sent Li Cunxiao, whose body was hard as iron and stone, flying. He sailed ten zhang before crashing into a tree and snapping its barrel-thick trunk in half.
Zhu Youning leapt to Li Cunxiao's side, planted a foot on his shoulder, and grabbed his arm. His muscles swelled as he twisted with all his might.
With a crack, Li Cunxiao's thick, massive arm was wrenched out of its socket and bent out of shape.
Li Cunxiao's fighting style was simple: he relied entirely on his fists. Now that his arm was dislocated, he was like a vicious tiger without its claws—not worth fearing.
Zhu Youning then pressed both palms against Li Cunxiao's dantian. His hands seemed to turn into two terrifying black holes, constantly absorbing Li Cunxiao's internal energy, which had already seized up.
Normally, seized-up internal energy was difficult to set in motion. But the Northern Dark Divine Art was no ordinary technique.
As Zhu Youning drove the Northern Dark Divine Art with all his might, the internal energy inside Li Cunxiao finally began to flow toward his palms.
Feeling his energy drain away, Li Cunxiao immediately began to struggle.
But the harder Li Cunxiao struggled, the faster his internal energy was absorbed.
Once the Northern Dark Divine Art took effect, it took no more than three breaths for the internal energy throughout Li Cunxiao's body to burst through like a breached riverbank. It was sucked away faster and faster, pouring into Zhu Youning's body almost in an instant.
Zhu Youning was overjoyed and redoubled his efforts. In barely half a minute, Li Cunxiao's more than thirty years of cultivation had been drained away.
Feeling the internal energy that had suddenly appeared inside him, Zhu Youning was delighted.
The internal energy he had absorbed from Li Cunxiao was even more profound than his own. This time, Zhu Youning had truly struck it rich.
Because Li Cunxiao's internal energy was so much deeper than Zhu Youning's, Zhu Youning normally wouldn't have been able to digest and absorb it.
But Li Cunxiao had been hit by the Sadness-Soothing Breeze. His internal energy was like a man drugged senseless, utterly incapable of resisting. That was how Zhu Youning had gotten so lucky—it was the perfect windfall.
After absorbing Li Cunxiao's internal energy, Zhu Youning felt bloated.
But with the Qi Scripture as his foundation, he could still control this vast energy. He continued to drive the Northern Dark Divine Art, converting it into Northern Dark True Qi.
The conversion wasn't slow, but Li Cunxiao's internal energy was vast. It would still take some time to turn all of it into Northern Dark True Qi.
He could take it slowly. Zhu Youning wasn't in a hurry anyway.
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