After passing through the side road and turning back onto the main road, the driver's tense nerves relaxed slightly.
"They've caught up," Chen Xu's indifferent voice echoed inside the car.
The driver hurriedly looked into the rearview mirror and saw a military Hummer burst out from the side road.
"Their vehicle has been specially modified!" The driver had already floored the accelerator, yet he could only watch helplessly as the distance between the two vehicles steadily shrank.
"Mr. Chen, what do you mean, they've caught up?" Nie Mengyin asked sleepily, yawning.
As the two vehicles drew closer and closer, an invisible aura suddenly erupted from the Hummer behind them.
Chen Xu snorted coldly. Without hesitation, he grabbed the mother and daughter, who had been stunned unconscious, and smashed through the sedan's roof.
"Martial Artists?"
The auras of Evil Old Ghost and Blind Old Ghost surged abruptly as they sprang from the Hummer.
The vehicles speeding along the main road lost control, erupting into ear-piercing collisions.
Chen Xu gently placed the unconscious mother and daughter in an area far from the crashes, then turned his gaze toward the two approaching Martial Artists.
"Hehehe, this is quite an unexpected gain." Evil Old Ghost wore an exaggerated expression, yet the wariness in his eyes never diminished. "Perhaps I'll get to enjoy a Martial Artist's blood ahead of schedule."
"Even with the two of us, we absolutely cannot underestimate him." Blind Old Ghost extended his cane from his sleeve. A towering monster with empty eye sockets appeared in the air, seventeen tiny points across its body glowing with fluorescent light.
Amid Evil Old Ghost's strange laughter, a monster flickering with fifteen fluorescent points appeared.
Their powerful auras multiplied severalfold in an instant, crashing down upon Chen Xu with overwhelming force.
"So this is what they mean when they say that when strong opponents clash, aura comes first." Chen Xu recalled Millya's words and suddenly stepped forward. A colossal beast roaring toward the heavens emerged behind him.
Yet apart from two or three lifelike heads, the rest of it had only been barely sketched out, like an unfinished painting.
Even so, it showed no sign of weakness before the two monsters.
"You've only activated one Essence Aperture?" Evil Old Ghost shot forward, clawing at Chen Xu's face.
Evil Old Ghost was sent flying backward at an even greater speed, smashing through several cars in succession.
Having returned to his normal size, Chen Xu stomped the ground and charged at Blind Old Ghost.
"So fierce?" Blind Old Ghost had never imagined that Evil Old Ghost, who had activated over a dozen more Essence Apertures than his opponent, would fall into a disadvantage in their very first exchange.
How could he know that Chen Xu's foundation was worlds apart from that of an ordinary Martial Artist?
Blind Old Ghost angled his cane, deliberately avoiding a direct confrontation.
Chen Xu's skin turned bronze. He neither dodged nor evaded as the small giant, seemingly forged from bronze and iron, raised a fist and smashed it down.
Blind Old Ghost's face turned deathly pale as he spat out mouthfuls of blood, trying to pull back and retreat.
Fighting alone, neither of them was a match for this Martial Artist.
"Damn, what the hell is going on up there?"
The vehicle behind them slammed on its brakes. The accident scene ahead looked incredibly tragic, so the driver hurriedly took out his phone and called for people from Qianshui Commandery to deal with it.
"Hubby, look at those three people. Could the accident scene be a set? Are they filming a movie?" The woman in the passenger seat fixed her attention on Chen Xu and the other two, who were fighting wildly.
More and more vehicles gathered behind them. A few bold drivers even got out and approached, wanting a clearer look.
"There's no need to risk our lives over a small job."
Evil Old Ghost and Blind Old Ghost began to consider retreating. They had merely been making some extra money along the way. Who would have thought they would run into a Martial Artist, and such a powerful one at that?
After being sent flying by Chen Xu once more, the two turned and fled at high speed.
"They ran?"
Chen Xu's mission was to protect them, so naturally he would not waste effort chasing after the pair.
After glancing at the drivers behind him, he turned back, grabbed the mother and daughter under one arm each, and ran toward Qianshui Commandery.
Martial Artists possessed tremendous endurance. They would not feel tired even after running like this for several hours, much less a freak among Martial Artists like him.
Of course, to keep the Great Abyss from tracing him down the line, Chen Xu not only altered his appearance but also tried to travel through uninhabited places.
"M-Mr. Chen, what exactly... what exactly is going on?" Nie Mengyin squeezed her eyes shut. The moment she had opened them earlier, she had nearly been scared to death.
Everything had been fine in the car, so why had she suddenly passed out? When she woke up, Mr. Chen had been running with her tucked under his arm. There were too many questions, and she did not even know where to begin.
"It's nothing. Go back to sleep. When you wake up, we'll be in Qianshui Commandery." Chen Xu had no intention of explaining. He only needed to deliver the two of them into his father-in-law's hands at Ling Xiangshan.
"How could I possibly sleep in this situation?" Nie Mengyin's gaze fell upon her daughter under his other arm, and she calmed down slightly.
"It's fine. I'll help you." Chen Xu's emotionless voice entered Nie Mengyin's ears.
Before she could speak again, Chen Xu's invisible aura erupted, and the woman under his arm was immediately stunned unconscious.
And so, the mother and daughter endlessly repeated the cycle of unconsciousness—waking—unconsciousness.
Lucky Arrival Inn.
"Boss, get me a room."
The dozing innkeeper was jolted awake by Chen Xu's words and instinctively looked up.
"Two unconscious women, and a strapping young man." The innkeeper could not help casting sympathetic looks at the mother and daughter.
Yet he did not say a word. After taking the money, he silently handed over a room key.
When he was younger, he had meddled in other people's affairs. Unfortunately, he had later been taught a lesson by some so-called big brother. By now, he had become the sort of person who kept himself aloof from anything that did not concern him.
As long as it did not affect his inn, he would pretend not to see whatever he could avoid seeing.
Chen Xu wrapped the mother and daughter in a blanket to keep them from catching cold.
After all, the floor really was chilly.
Chen Xu lay on the bed and summoned Tianwu.
Tianwu Strength: 24.2 Constitution: 30.5 Agility: 20.8 Energy: 16.0 (Blood-Qi Force) Psychic Energy: 5.16 Martial Dao: Martial Form, One Aperture (Beast Bronze Statue) Martial Arts: Myriad Beasts Bronze Statue Art (Third Layer), Incomplete Life-Nourishing Breakthrough Method (Ninth Layer), Blood Surge Through the Nine Apertures (MAX, can be fused) Special Effect: Beast's Will Level 2, Colossal Beast Physique Level 5, Aerial Leap Level 11.
Every attribute had increased slightly because he had activated an Essence Aperture.
He was not particularly enthusiastic about activating Essence Apertures. After all, in theory, he could stack Martial Arts without limit, raise his attributes, and become invincible beneath the heavens.
The Martial Artist system of this world was merely a bonus to him. After breaking through, every level could increase quite a few attributes.
Once matters in Jinning Commandery were settled, barring any surprises, he could head to the very center of the Great Abyss, enjoy resources far superior to those in Jinning Commandery, and learn even more powerful Martial Arts.
If he had a choice, Chen Xu would rather find somewhere to hide, lie low until he became invincible beneath the heavens, then emerge to punch the old folks at South Mountain Nursing Home and kick the children at North Sea Kindergarten.
Unfortunately, his predecessor had already proven that his talent was insufficient. Chen Xu estimated that even if he obtained the greatest ultimate art in the world and studied it diligently for a lifetime, it was uncertain whether he could even get started.
Nearly ten years of bitter training without even managing to begin Tiger Howl Fist was no laughing matter.
The only thing he could rely on was Psychic Energy, but Psychic Energy could not appear out of thin air. Chen Xu could only abandon the idea of lying low and work hard to earn Psychic Energy and increase his strength.
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