Night Owl was at the Sixth Level of the Third Realm, Ghost Bat at the Third Level of the Third Realm, and Wild Bull at the Fourth Level of the Third Realm! Working together, wouldn't dealing with some brat who had "luckily broken through" be a piece of cake?
Hearing them speak, especially the one-hundred-million bounty, Xia He's delicate body trembled again, and she instinctively shrank farther behind Lin Ming.
One hundred million! The Chen Household had gone mad! It also showed just how badly they wanted Lin Ming dead!
Lin Ming listened to the three of them, his calm gaze sweeping over them. Then his brows furrowed slightly, as if he were somewhat... disappointed?
"Just the three of you?" Lin Ming asked in an indifferent tone, carrying even a trace of barely perceptible... disdain. "The Chen Household only sent this many people?"
Night Owl and the other two froze, the smiles on their faces stiffening slightly. What did this brat mean? He thought there were too few of them? Was he looking down on them?
"Brat, you're at death's door and still acting arrogant?" Wild Bull, the most hot-tempered of the three, immediately roared. "I alone can crush you to death!"
"Why waste words with him?" Ghost Bat let out a sinister laugh. His figure vanished from the spot like a ghost, and in the next instant, he appeared to Lin Ming's left. The pair of poisoned short spikes in his hands, gleaming with eerie blue cold light, shot silently toward Lin Ming's temples and lower back like venomous snakes striking!
His speed was astonishing, and his angle was vicious, leaving no way to guard against him! He specialized in speed and sneak attacks; this strike was meant to kill in one blow!
"Ghost Bat, be careful!" Night Owl's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and he shouted sharply. He vaguely sensed that something about Lin Ming's aura... was off! He was too composed!
However, it was already too late.
Facing Ghost Bat's ghostlike ambush, Lin Ming did not even blink. He merely tilted his head slightly, as though he had anticipated it in advance, precisely avoiding the strike aimed at his temple.
At the same time, his right hand holding the Silver Frost Spear moved.
There was no flashy technique, and he did not even use much blood energy. He simply swung the spear shaft backward.
Smack—!
A dull, thunderous crack rang out, like a heavy whip striking hide!
The Silver Frost Spear's shaft slammed solidly into Ghost Bat's left ribs!
"Aaargh!!!"
Ghost Bat let out an utterly miserable scream! He felt as though he had been struck broadside by a charging Tyrannosaurus!
The terrifying force instantly destroyed all defenses around his ribs. Who knew how many ribs had shattered? His organs violently shifted and ruptured!
His entire body flew away like a torn sack, faster than he had arrived. Screaming miserably, he vomited blood mixed with fragments of organs, drawing a tragic bloody line through the air before smashing heavily into a huge boulder dozens of meters away with a dull boom, never making another sound.
Instant kill!
Ghost Bat, a Tier Three, Third Level expert skilled in speed and sneak attacks, had been sent flying and instantly killed by a casual swing of Lin Ming's spear shaft!
Dead silence.
The cold smile on Night Owl's face froze completely, his pupils contracting to pinpoints.
Wild Bull's vicious grin also froze, his mouth hanging open like a duck with its neck squeezed.
Xia He covered her mouth as well, her beautiful eyes filled with stunned disbelief.
She knew Lin Ming had become stronger, but... this strong? A casual strike had instantly killed a seemingly formidable Tier Three expert?
Lin Ming flicked the spear shaft as though he had merely swatted an annoying fly to death. He raised his eyes to look at Night Owl and Wild Bull, his gaze calm and undisturbed.
"Now," Lin Ming said, slowly raising the Silver Frost Spear and pointing its tip at the two men, "it's your turn."
"Do you think it's troublesome to come at me one at a time, or..."
"Would you rather come together?"
Even the wind sweeping through the hills seemed tinged with the smell of blood, howling over the corpses and rubble strewn across the ground.
The sunlight became somewhat glaring as it shone upon the corpses rapidly losing their warmth and the dark-red pools of blood, reflecting a cold gleam.
Xia He stood dumbly behind the rocks, staring at the young figure standing amid three corpses as he slowly withdrew the Silver Frost Spear.
Her fingers still gripped the binoculars tightly, her knuckles white from the force, but her mind was utterly blank. All that remained were the world-shattering scenes that had occurred in less than a minute, as swift as lightning and sparks.
Ghost Bat had been instantly killed, Wild Bull crushed head-on, and finally, Night Owl pierced through by a single Heaven-Splitting strike.
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Three experts at least at Tier Three, members of the Shadow Squad that had been fairly famous among bounty hunters, had simply... vanished?
"How... how strong is he?"
Xia He muttered, her voice trembling uncontrollably.
It was not as though she had never seen high-level martial artists fight, but this was the first time she had seen someone like Lin Ming—someone whose fighting style was so concise, ruthless, efficient, as though he had been born for slaughter.
And that aura he had erupted with just now... he was definitely not merely at the First Level of Tier Three. When had he broken through? Was it because of the Water of Life?
But even with the Water of Life, it should have been impossible to achieve such an enormous increase in strength in such a short time, right?
She watched Lin Ming bend down and remove several storage bags and seemingly valuable pieces of equipment from Night Owl and Wild Bull. His movements were practiced, like those of an experienced veteran.
He then walked over to Ghost Bat's mangled corpse, expressionlessly kicked aside some rubble, and picked up the pair of poisoned short spikes and a uniquely designed Communicator.
Only after finishing all that did Lin Ming turn toward where Xia He was hiding and wave.
Xia He took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. With weak limbs, she climbed down from the rock and unsteadily made her way to Lin Ming's side.
At close range, she could feel even more clearly the sharp aura that had yet to completely disperse from Lin Ming, like a vicious weapon drawn from its sheath, as well as the faint but terrifying murderous aura that seemed to press down upon her very soul.
"Y-you're not hurt, are you?" Xia He looked at the nearly nonexistent wounds on Lin Ming's body and asked a somewhat foolish question.
"I'm fine."
Lin Ming answered succinctly, stuffing all the spoils into a relatively intact storage bag and hanging it at his waist. He glanced at the three corpses on the ground, then looked toward the direction from which they had come, his brows slightly furrowed.
Current Kill Points: 40268
System, increase my martial skill proficiency. Prioritize Heaven-Splitting Three Forms, Dragon Roaming Step, and Immovable Mountain Seal.
Lin Ming silently muttered to himself. Although the battle just now had been easy, it had also made him realize that as his strength increased, the upper limits and variations of his martial skills also needed to keep pace.
Moreover, after obtaining the SSS Grade Indestructible Asura Body, he felt that his comprehension and understanding of martial skills had also improved. The cost required for the system's upgrades seemed to have decreased as well.
[Command confirmed. Detected that the host possesses the SSS Grade martial talent 'Indestructible Asura Body.' Martial comprehension and physical adaptability have greatly improved. Martial skill proficiency upgrade costs reduced by 50%.] [Upgrading 'Heaven-Splitting Three Forms' from Microscopic Control (1%) to Great Mastery (1%) would originally cost Kill Points: 50000. Cost after talent reduction: 25000. Confirm?]
"Confirm."
[Upgrading 'Dragon Roaming Step' and 'Immovable Mountain Seal' from Microscopic Control (1%) to Great Mastery (1%) would originally cost: 30000 each. Cost after talent reduction: 15000 each. Confirm?]
"Confirm."
[Upgrade complete.] Remaining Kill Points: 268
The effects brought by the massive increase in martial skill proficiency were immediate.
Lin Ming felt that his understanding of the Heaven-Splitting Three Forms had deepened considerably. In particular, the intent of shattering the void within the Heaven-Splitting form had begun to take on a clearer outline.
The Dragon Roaming Step became more agile and elusive, while the defensive aura of the Immovable Mountain Seal grew more solid.
Combined with his Second Level of the Third Realm cultivation, SSS Grade Indestructible Asura Body, and A+ Grade Silver Frost Spear, he felt that his overall combat strength had reached an entirely new height.
Below Tier Four, unless they were monsters who also possessed top-tier talent, cultivation techniques, and weapons, no one posed much of a threat to him anymore.
"What do we do now?"
Xia He suddenly asked.
Lin Ming withdrew his gaze and looked at Xia He. This female researcher might have been troublesome, but she was at least sensible and had not held him back. Besides, the "investment" of that drop of Water of Life had yielded returns far beyond his expectations.
"You," Lin Ming said, pointing to a naturally formed, relatively concealed crack in the rocks some distance away, half-covered by several massive boulders.
"Hide there. No matter what you hear, don't come out or make a sound unless I call for you."
Xia He froze. "Hide? What about you?"
"Me?" The corners of Lin Ming's mouth slowly curved into a cold, razor-sharp arc, carrying even a trace of... anticipation?
"I don't like running."
Xia He's beautiful eyes widened instantly as she stared at him in disbelief. "Y-you mean... you're going to... hunt them down instead? Wait for them here?"
"Mm." Lin Ming nodded, his tone as calm as if he were discussing what to eat for lunch. "They want my life, and they want what you have on you. We can't run forever. The Wilderness is so vast—where could we possibly hide? Rather than being chased around like stray dogs, we might as well... let them come."
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