Stele-Splitting Hand

The two of them stood dazed for a full dozen breaths.

By the time they came back to their senses, Zhao Yang had already reached the torch ahead.

"Who would've thought, who would've thought..."

"It must be Iron Mountain's spirit in heaven watching over us."

"You all performed very well."

"Before a demon, you did not fear to fight. You were exceptionally brave, worthy indeed of the sons of Clear Creek Village."

Zhao Yang looked at Zhang Tai and the others, praising them loudly.

"Especially Zhang Tai."

"Knowing he was no match, yet still stepping forward to help his companions without fear—he will be a leader of Clear Creek Village in the future."

Zhang Tai's face flushed red, so embarrassed by the praise that he did not know what to do.

Big Hair, Second Hair, and the others puffed out their chests proudly.

In the distance, the glow on several parents' faces could not be concealed even by the night.

But even more parents wore dark expressions.

The ones Zhao Yang had not praised were those who had scattered and fled in panic upon seeing the demon rat.

Each of them hung their heads, faces mournful and full of regret.

"Alright, everyone, disperse."

"Zhang Tai, come to my place first. I'll bandage the wound on your hand."

"Yes, Brother Yang."

Zhang Tai answered loudly.

Then he looked toward Zhao Hong.

His expression twisted for a moment. After holding it in again and again, he still could not stop himself. "Brother Yang, did you... did you give Zhao Hong special training?"

The corner of Zhao Yang's mouth twitched. Before he could answer, Zhang Yuan's palm came down.

Bang!

"Hiss, who the hell hit me?"

Zhang Tai clutched his head and turned around, immediately looking sheepish. "Dad, it was you."

"You little bastard."

Zhang Yuan cursed, "How dare you speak to Ah Yang like that? What special training? Ah Hong's natural physique is astonishing, so his progress has been so rapid."

"An astonishing natural physique?"

"How is that possible?"

Zhang Tai refused to believe it, much less accept it. His eyes reddened.

Zhang Yuan sighed.

Zhao Hong walked over with a grin. "Ah Tai, you're not bad either."

"Look at yourself. Just because I'm stronger than you now, you can't accept it? What, are you going to cry?"

"You're the one crying."

Zhang Tai glared with his eyes wide.

Zhao Hong gently shook his head. "Back then, I was at the bottom when practicing martial arts. You always mocked me and bullied me. I felt even worse than you do now."

Zhang Tai froze and instinctively looked at Zhang Yuan.

Zhang Yuan looked awkward and could not help raising his hand again. You little bastard, what, do I have to think it through for you too?

Zhang Tai wanted to speak but stopped. It did seem like that had happened.

If it were me, how awful would that feel?

He immediately put himself in Zhao Hong's shoes.

"But I think the leader of the village in the future will definitely be you."

"Huh?"

"Because you were willing to risk your life for your companions. At that moment, only you were fearless. Didn't you say you would help me kill the demon rat and avenge me? Though I killed it in the end, you had that intention."

"Big Hair, Second Hair, Little Dong, do you accept Ah Tai?"

"We do."

"Wholeheartedly convinced."

The few of them nodded repeatedly.

Zhang Tai scratched his head, his face reddening with embarrassment.

"Really? I... I didn't think that much about it, hahaha."

Seeing Zhang Tai's foolish grin, Zhao Hong's mouth twitched.

Youth really was easy to coax.

Seeing this, a trace of admiration flashed through Zhao Yang's eyes. He waved his hand. "Alright, alright, hurry home, all of you."

"Come find me again tomorrow."

"Yes, Uncle."

Zhao Hong saw something unusual in Zhao Yang's eyes.

His heart stirred.

Could tonight have been a test?

Not just a way to scare the young ones?

Zhao Hong followed behind everyone, turning it over in his mind nonstop.

At last, he looked back at the dead rat lying there.

If this was a test, it felt a little too easy.

The demon rat had actually been very strong.

It had reached Blood Refinement Completion.

But after Zhao Yang's pressure and stimulation had driven him to erupt and break through, the improvement it brought was simply too terrifying.

Calling it heaven-and-earth overturning would not be an exaggeration.

He would just take it as having passed the test.

"You useless thing, all you know is how to run, huh?"

"Didn't you know Ah Yang was there? Didn't you know your Uncle Chuan and Uncle Zhang were in the village? Would they just watch you throw your life away?"

"Good-for-nothing! How did I give birth to such a thing as you? You follow Ah Tai and Big Hair around all day—why don't I ever see you learn anything good from them?"

A sudden torrent of curses erupted from a nearby courtyard, followed closely by miserable howls.

After the first came the second, then the third, one after another.

Zhao Hong could not help but laugh, silently mourning for his little companions.

This time, no one could save them.

Still, it was nothing much.

Before demons, they were all only half-grown boys. How many of them could remain calm?

Even adults would probably panic like mad.

But comparisons were frightening.

In any case, they could not escape this vicious beating.

Mountain village boys had tough hides and sturdy flesh. Taking a few more beatings would do them no harm.

The next day.

Zhao Hong arrived at Uncle Yang's house, his face full of anticipation.

"Yesterday barely counted as a test. You did alright, but you also had some flaws."

Suppressing his secret delight, Zhao Hong asked curiously, "Uncle, what flaws? Tell me, and I'll correct them."

The corner of Zhao Yang's mouth lifted. He said flatly, "When that little rat begged you for mercy, you should not have hesitated."

"Not all demons are bad, but a demon that commits evil outside has nothing to do with goodness. It begged because it knew it was about to die."

"If you encounter a powerful demon in the future, a moment's hesitation will be enough to get you killed."

Zhao Hong's heart tightened.

He committed those words to memory.

He would need to watch out for that when encountering demons in the future.

"Thank you for the reminder, Uncle. I'll remember it."

"It was mainly because it was my first time. I had no experience."

"Hmph."

With a cold snort, Zhao Yang rose, took out a booklet from the house, and tossed it to Zhao Hong.

"Stele-Splitting Hand?"

Zhao Hong stared doubtfully at the three ancient characters on the cover.

"This is one of the true skills I learned over the past six years, and also my foundation."

Zhao Yang walked to one corner of the courtyard.

Only then did Zhao Hong notice that there was an enormous boulder as tall as a man in the yard.

"Stele-Splitting Hand."

"When one strikes as swiftly as lightning, faster than thunder can cover one's ears, that is the entry level."

Whoosh!

Bang!

Zhao Hong's eyes went wide. He had not even seen when Zhao Yang struck. A dense web of afterimages crossed before him, and before they had faded, the boulder shuddered. One section at its edge split into a spiderweb of cracks.

Hiss!

He could not help sucking in a breath of cold air.

"When strength is controlled with perfect freedom—if one says three inches of cracking, it will not exceed even a fraction—that is minor mastery."

Whoosh!

Bang!

A three-inch crack appeared at the top of the stone stele.

"Measure it."

Zhao Yang gave Zhao Hong a casual glance.

Zhao Hong swallowed. "Uncle, there's no need to measure. I don't doubt it at all."

"At major mastery, force penetrates without dispersing. The surface bears no trace, while the interior is shattered."

Bang!

Zhao Yang casually struck again, its might even more terrifying than the previous two blows.

Yet the stone stele did not move as firm as a mountain.

Zhao Hong's eyes widened. He ran up to the stele and stared closely at where Zhao Yang had struck it. There truly was not the slightest mark.

He even pressed his hand against it. The surface was flawless and undamaged.

"Look at the back."

Zhao Hong hurried around to the back of the stele, and his pupils contracted.

Across an area half a foot square on its rear were countless tiny holes, fine enough to be seen by the naked eye.

Most terrifying of all, the arrangement of the holes formed what looked like a character.

When he leaned in and saw it clearly, his head began to buzz.

"This is fucking terrifying."

It was clearly the character "Hong."

Zhao Hong's Hong.

If that strike landed on a person, their skin and flesh would be unscathed. Only after dissecting them would one discover that their internal organs had been carved full of names.

What kind of nightmare scene would that be?