Repaying a Great Debt

A lump of black shadow.

"What is that?"

It was impossible to see clearly in the darkness.

But it did not look human.

Zhao Hong's heart suddenly skipped a beat. Not human?

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!

In an instant, three torches descended from the sky and planted themselves firmly in the ground.

Firelight rose, illuminating the surrounding area.

The black shadow revealed its true form in the flames.

The rat gnawing on grass was startled as well and turned its head, blades of grass still hanging from its mouth. The expression on its rat face was especially bizarre.

Yet its scarlet eyes and sharp claws and teeth gleamed with a cold light, making it incomparably terrifying.

Zhao Hong's pupils contracted.

So it was you.

Even if you turned to ashes, I would recognize you.

He had not expected it to be you.

Good, good, good. You had shown me such a great kindness—I had to repay it tenfold.

He stared fixedly at the demon rat, the blood and qi within him already boiling.

Gathering at night.

Torches.

Everything had been arranged to welcome this demon rat.

The reason Wang Chuan, Zhang Yuan, and Zhao Yang had not shown themselves gave Zhao Hong pause.

Those three adults had definitely done it on purpose.

Perhaps it was a test, perhaps an attempt to frighten them. It no longer mattered.

All these thoughts flashed through his mind like lightning and flint.

A panicked scream abruptly shattered the dead silence, startling even Zhao Hong.

"Ah!!"

The youths snapped out of their daze, their faces drained of color.

"A demon! It's a demon, ahhh!"

"Run! Uncle Chuan, save us!"

"Mother of heaven, what a huge rat!"

The enormous demon rat delivered a powerful visual shock to the youths.

The scene instantly descended into chaos.

One after another, they scrambled out of the puddle on hands and feet and fled in all directions.

Zhang Tai, the first to poke his head out, was so frightened that his entire body stiffened, his mouth hanging open.

But when the screams and shouts erupted, he immediately came to his senses, leapt up, and let out an angry roar. "A bunch of trash!"

"Isn't it just a stinking rat? What are you all running for?"

At his shout, several of the strongest youths, who were usually the boldest, stopped as if possessed. They exchanged glances and quickly gathered beside Zhang Tai.

"Brother Tai is right. It's just a stinking rat—what's there to fear?"

"Kill it!"

"It's my first time seeing a demon. It's really huge."

Zhang Tai grinned. Not only was he unafraid, he was excited.

His gaze swept over Zhao Hong as he shouted, "Ah Hong, watch closely! Watch Brother Tai avenge you!"

"Stinking rat, die!"

He charged straight at it.

Six or seven companions followed close behind, brimming with murderous momentum.

Zhao Hong's expression changed.

This demon rat was far stronger than Wang Chuan had estimated.

Zhang Tai had only just entered Blood Refinement. How could he possibly be its match?

"Zhang Tai, get back here!"

"Watch out!"

He shouted and sprang forward in rapid strides.

Zhang Tai acted as though he had not heard him, fire blazing in his eyes.

Kill this demon rat.

His, Zhang Tai's, name would become even more famous than his father's.

Who else would dare refuse to submit to him?

At first, the demon rat seemed to have been stunned for a moment by the sudden appearance of so many youths.

But as Zhang Tai and the others charged over, its scarlet eyes flickered, filling with savage brutality.

Squeak, squeak!!

The enormous rat leapt into the air like a cannonball fired from its barrel, stirring up howling winds and raging waves.

Bang!

Blood sprayed beneath the night sky.

As if struck by lightning, Zhang Tai screamed and fell.

He clutched his arm, his face twisting continuously in pain. The excitement in his eyes had vanished without a trace, leaving only terror.

"What the hell? How is it so strong?"

Seeing the companions following him about to meet the demon rat head-on on a narrow path, Zhang Tai's face changed drastically. Ignoring the agonizing pain, he struggled to his feet.

"Big Hair, retreat!"

Without hesitation, he rushed forward to help his companions.

Just then.

Zhao Hong had already arrived.

As though sensing something, the demon rat abruptly stopped and glared viciously at Zhao Hong.

It seemed to recognize Zhao Hong.

Bloodlight surged in its eyes, as though it had also sensed the abundant blood and qi within Zhao Hong's body and was drooling with desire.

Zhao Hong manipulated his blood and qi, dispelling the chill creeping up his spine. Unhurriedly shifting his feet, he tensed the flesh all over his body, ready to strike.

Seeing that the rat had not moved, he suddenly chuckled. "Ah Tai, if I knock this demon rat down, will you call me Uncle?"

"Call you Grandpa!"

"You idiot, get the hell out of here and call my father!"

Zhang Tai was furious and exasperated.

He might have been arrogant, but he was not stupid.

The demon rat was too strong. It was simply not something they could handle.

Only by calling his old man and Wang Chuan over could they deal with it.

Whoosh!

Zhao Hong moved.

He was like a cheetah, agile and swift.

A sheet of dazzling bloodlight shot into the sky, making even the torches seem to be shrouded in a thin layer of crimson radiance.

The ground trembled faintly.

He bore down like a savage beast.

The demon rat sensed danger and let out a shrill screech.

It shot into the air, both claws slashing out a swath of black afterimages.

Eight-Step Exploding Fist.

Eight-Step Exploding Fist was not a technique that stored power until the final step before unleashing a punch. Every step was an explosion—eight steps, eight explosions.

But he had only achieved minor mastery, so he could only manage one explosion every three steps.

Zhao Hong threw a ferocious punch, unleashing extraordinarily violent and fierce force.

Every bone in his body rang out as though dragons and tigers roared within him.

Boom!

The bloodlight and black claw shadows seemed to be ground apart and scattered away.

The rat squealed madly, its glossy fur battered into a complete mess by the force.

The moment it landed, its rat face twisted with pain. The scarlet in its eyes faded by more than half, replaced by fear.

Monster.

Zhao Hong merely swayed slightly. His powerful blood and qi roiled like blazing flames, dispelling his discomfort as he locked firmly onto the demon rat and gave a chilling sneer.

"So you're not as strong as I imagined."

"I've come to repay your kindness."

Boom!

The ground shook.

He shot forward like an arrow, taking three steps in an instant before gathering power for another explosive strike.

As though aided by Dragon-Tiger Divine Strength, his savage aura grew even more intense.

Squeeeak—

The demon rat trembled all over. It actually clasped its paws together, bent at the waist, and kowtowed with its paws.

Zhao Hong was dumbfounded.

The force blazing around his fist froze as he stared wide-eyed.

What the hell, this isn't an illusion, is it?

The demon rat was actually begging for mercy?

"Mother of heaven, it really has become sentient."

"H-he-he-he, it's actually bowing."

Li Damao was so shocked that he spoke incoherently.

Zhang Tai was so stunned his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"N-no, Zhao Hong, y-you... are you even human?"

He racked his brains before finally managing to process it.

The demon rat begging for mercy was certainly astonishing.

But should not Zhao Hong's strength have been the truly terrifying thing?

"You... you were clearly always at the bottom! Damn it, damn it, how did you train?"

They practiced the same martial arts.

They ate the same beast meat and drank the same beast blood.

They had spent the same amount of time.

I only just entered Blood Refinement, and my blood and qi are like a damn little stream.

Why are yours as terrifying as beacon fires and wolf smoke soaring into the sky?

All this time, I thought he had been slacking off and cutting corners...

"Remember to call me Uncle."

Zhao Hong muttered, never taking his eyes off the demon rat. The frozen force around his fist suddenly surged again.

The blood and qi within him howled forth like a tidal wave.

"Begging for mercy is useless."

"I said I'd repay your kindness, so I'll repay it."

Boom!

His fist crashed down.

Accompanied by a miserable squeeeak, the rat spun several times through the air before hitting the ground.

With a bang, it twitched incessantly, its two paws shaking wildly as though electrocuted, while two streams of bloody tears flowed from its rat eyes.

The field was silent as death.

In the distance.

Figures slowly approached one after another.

At the front were Zhao Yang, Wang Chuan, and Zhang Yuan.

Behind them came many men, women, old people, and children from the village.

"Zhang Tai is a fine lad."

Zhao Yang did not hide his praise in the slightest.

"Ahem, that little bastard still has a long way to go." Zhang Yuan fiercely restrained his smug delight.

"Ah Hong really is a monster."

Wang Chuan's sigh pulled Zhang Yuan back to reality. Looking at that figure, Zhang Yuan's lips trembled, and then he looked at his own son with bitterness on his face.

Now that was truly a long way to go.

"Ah Yang, Ah Hong, this..." Wang Chuan could not help looking at Zhao Yang.

Zhao Yang said, "His innate bone structure is extraordinary—far superior to mine."

Wang Chuan and Zhang Yuan's eyes bulged round.