I'm Waiting for the Yin Poison to Take Effect. What Are You Waiting For?

"?"

A huge question mark rose in Zhao Er's mind as he listened to the Longwind Gang Leader speak.

Good grief. First I thought it was hidden treasure, then I thought it was grave robbing, and now you're giving me a love affair between a man and a ghost?

Zhao Er inwardly marveled at how thrilling this was. He had thought martial arts like the Ginseng Spirit Art, which harmed the practitioner to benefit others, were already this world's limit.

But now it seemed that some of this world's unorthodox martial arts had developed far beyond anything Zhao Er could imagine.

He was no fool. After hearing what the Longwind Gang Leader said, he had already pieced it together.

Clearly, the Longwind Gang Leader practiced some kind of Unorthodox Path martial art that required a corpse's yin energy as a cultivation resource.

And the person buried in this grave was presumably the cultivation subject the Longwind Gang Leader had selected.

Huh? Wait, aren't you cultivating martial arts to break through? You're actually fucking stripping!

Zhao Er's eyes widened. Through the gaps in the bushes, he saw the Longwind Gang Leader start taking off his clothes after lifting the coffin lid.

He had originally assumed that cultivating with yin energy would be something like Mei Chaofeng practicing the Nine Yin White Bone Claw.

But now it looked completely different. Both involved penetration, but Mei Chaofeng thrust her fingers into skulls, while the Longwind Gang Leader's method seemed to be something else entirely.

An opening!

But a moment later, Zhao Er spotted his chance to strike and quietly slipped out of the bushes.

As a man himself, Zhao Er knew perfectly well when a man was most vulnerable. This time, however, he had no intention of waiting for that moment. He was genuinely afraid the sight would scorch his eyes.

Zhao Er emerged from the bushes without making a sound, then picked up a stone. His eyes stayed on the grave mound surrounded by earth, but he threw the stone toward the far side of it.

Crack!

The stone traced an arc through the darkness before striking a large tree on the opposite side. The crisp sound stood out sharply in the dark.

"Who's there!"

Hearing the noise, the Longwind Gang Leader immediately rose from the coffin and looked warily toward its source.

Whoosh!

Just then, he heard something cutting through the air behind him. With no time to think, Luo Yu, the Longwind Gang Leader, immediately turned, channeled his force, and chopped down with his palm.

In the candlelight, Luo Yu's naked body instantly turned an ashen gray. His descending palm sent the air howling, seemingly affecting even the surrounding candles. Their flames swayed, and the area suddenly dimmed.

Unfortunately for him, before his palm could fully connect with his enemy, a cold gleam of steel struck his neck.

Clang!!!

The billhook in Zhao Er's hand moved fast and fiercely. Backed by his tremendous strength and the advantage of attacking from behind, it struck Luo Yu's neck in the blink of an eye. But the instant the blade landed, Zhao Er sensed something was wrong.

The blow felt as though it had struck bluestone rather than flesh. By the dim candlelight, Zhao Er could see only a shallow bloody mark on his opponent's neck, while the edge of his own heavy billhook had already curled.

The result made Zhao Er's expression change despite himself.

Zhao Er was already a martial artist, so the slight recoil transmitted through the billhook was negligible. But this was no time to concern himself with that, because Luo Yu's palm was already chopping down straight toward his chest.

"Scorpion Tail Sweep!"

With no time to think or block the palm strike, Zhao Er flicked his toes up and kicked straight at Luo Yu's chest.

Bang!!!

A tremendous crash rang out. Zhao Er's kick struck Luo Yu in the chest, while his opponent's palm hit him in turn, sending him flying backward.

It was not that Luo Yu's palm strike was especially powerful. Rather, even as Zhao Er was knocked away, he had landed a Scorpion Tail Sweep on his opponent.

He had already been airborne, and the combination of taking the blow and using its force to disengage made him look more battered than he was.

Luo Yu, meanwhile, looked entirely unscathed. After taking both Zhao Er's blade and his kick, he had not budged an inch. He did not pursue, either, and even began studying Zhao Er with interest.

"It's you! If I'm not mistaken, you must be that newly advanced martial artist from Zhao Family Village, Zhao Er. You actually dared to ambush me. Truly a newborn calf that knows no fear!"

Seeing Zhao Er's billhook, its edge completely curled and ruined, along with his clothing, Luo Yu's expression lit with recognition.

Zhao Er said nothing. After landing, he merely crouched beneath a large tree and looked up at Luo Yu with a grave expression. A palm print was clearly visible on his chest.

"Heh heh... how does it feel? That palm strike wasn't pleasant, was it? Doesn't it feel like your body has plunged into an ice cellar? Like the blood-energy inside you has frozen and won't obey you? Hahahaha! I'm waiting for the yin poison in my palm strike to take effect. What are you waiting for?"

Seeing that Zhao Er neither spoke nor showed any intention of attacking, Luo Yu grew even smugger. Yet he remained standing in the graveyard without striking again, clearly not worried in the slightest that Zhao Er could dispel the yin poison in his body.

Or perhaps he was waiting for the poison to take full effect.

...Like plunging into an ice cellar? My Blood-Energy Force freezing? No wonder my chest felt a little cold just now. So that was the yin poison!

Listening to Luo Yu, Zhao Er's expression turned peculiar. He glanced at his chest, where the fabric struck by that palm had crumbled completely, as though it had rotted away.

But Zhao Er was certain that he was entirely uninjured.

Not only had he activated the Nine-Turn Golden Armor Art at the crucial moment to withstand the damage, but he also had lv.2 Poison Resistance. Strong as that so-called yin poison was, it had done him very little harm.

"Because I'm waiting for my poison to take effect too!"

A smile curled Zhao Er's lips. He raised a hand, pointed at his opponent's chest, and spoke softly.

"Hm? This is..."

Seeing Zhao Er's smile, Luo Yu sensed something was wrong. He looked down and saw that the spot Zhao Er had kicked, where his skin had been ashen gray, had somehow turned dark red.

Instinctively, he began circulating the blood-energy inside him, trying to purge the poison from his chest.

But just as his blood-energy gathered, Zhao Er rushed over before he knew it and chopped down with his billhook.

Squelch!

Perhaps the poisoning had created a flaw in his body-protection technique. Zhao Er's blade met no resistance as it struck his chest, and the single slash laid his entire chest open.

Thud, thud, thud!

Zhao Er did not stop after that slash. His right hand darted like a Spirit Snake Flicking Tongue, striking the blade three times in succession.

Zhao Er drove those three blows in along the wound. Infused with force, his palm strikes came fast and fierce, each one hitting Luo Yu's internal organs.

"You... what poison is this?"

Perhaps practicing that Unorthodox Path technique had dulled his body's senses, or perhaps the poison had finally taken effect. Throughout Zhao Er's flurry of attacks, Luo Yu merely raised his hand slightly, unable to mount an effective defense. In the end, he could only force out that unwilling question.