The winter wind howled above the Wilderness City. Even in the south, the cold was still bitter.
But after the Great Nirvana, humans had developed powerful physiques, and martial artists even more so. Their resistance to both heat and cold had increased considerably.
On the rooftop, Luo Feng stood with the Blood Shadow Battle Blade in one hand and the Hexagonal Shield in the other, facing Zhang Zehu, who held a Mountain-Cleaving Saber. Both were poised for battle.
A group watched from the side.
There were eleven spectators in total: the other five members of the Tiger Fang Squad, the other five members of the Fire Hammer Squad, and Dongguan.
Since Luo Feng was going to fight Tiger Fang, and having a War God present ensured their safety, Gao Feng had called up his squad's other four members.
Now Dongguan watched with keen interest, while everyone else felt rather tense.
The five members of the Tiger Fang Squad studied Luo Feng's strength, preparing their responses. After all, if Zhang Zehu failed to win, they would have to fight too.
They still had confidence in Zhang Zehu. He was extremely close to the Warrior General level and had abundant experience, whereas Luo Feng was only a rookie.
The five members of the Fire Hammer Squad were nervous.
Because Dongguan had intervened this time, Luo Feng had not revealed his identity as a Psychic.
They knew Luo Feng was a genius and had high hopes for his future, but the future was not the present.
"Luo Feng, you may be talented and lucky, but a dead genius is nothing." Zhang Zehu tightened his grip on the Mountain-Cleaving Saber, his gaze filled with murderous intent.
"Anyone can talk tough. What matters is what you can actually do." Luo Feng's eyes gradually narrowed. He shifted his feet slightly, ready to strike.
"Die!" Zhang Zehu shouted, charging at Luo Feng with his Mountain-Cleaving Saber. The concrete beneath his feet cracked as he pushed off.
Faced with Zhang Zehu's powerful strike, Luo Feng responded calmly. He stepped back, overlapped his blade and shield, and braced with his entire body.
Bang!
The Mountain-Cleaving Saber collided with the Blood Shadow Battle Blade. Luo Feng retreated several more steps than Zhang Zehu.
Their brief exchange of probing blows was over.
Had he been caught off guard, he might have lost his grip under that single blow and been forced to reveal that he was a Psychic.
There would not actually be anything wrong with revealing it. He might even receive greater attention and better training. But he did not want to leave his hometown yet.
An Advanced Warrior possessed between 4,000 and 8,000 kilograms of strength. Zhang Zehu, only a step away from the Warrior General level, had over 7,000 kilograms-roughly twice Luo Feng's strength of around 4,000 kilograms.
Seizing the advantage, Zhang Zehu gave him no quarter. He pressed forward with his whole body, driving Luo Feng back again and again.
His lack of strength was a serious disadvantage, but Luo Feng had a trump card and remained unruffled. He retreated while searching for an opening, waiting for his chance.
In the blink of an eye, they reached the edge of the rooftop.
"Get down there!"
As Zhang Zehu slashed at him, Luo Feng planted a foot on the low wall bordering the rooftop and ducked, evading the strike and moving behind Zhang Zehu.
With Luo Feng out of the way, Zhang Zehu's saber struck the rooftop's edge, sending a large section of bricks tumbling from the six-story building.
First stage of the Ninefold Thunder Blade!
Luo Feng channeled his strength, unleashing two layers of hidden force. With a full 140 percent of his strength, he slashed at Zhang Zehu.
Clang!
Zhang Zehu had committed fully to his previous strike and had not expected Luo Feng's sudden increase in strength. He could only block with the back of his saber, slightly spraining his right thumb.
"The Ninefold Thunder Blade? You really are a genius. But the more talented you are, the more you need to die!"
The murderous intent in Zhang Zehu's eyes deepened. After activating the first stage of the Ninefold Thunder Blade, Luo Feng's strength was already close to his.
As a fellow blade user, Zhang Zehu had also purchased the Ninefold Thunder Blade manual, but he had never managed to master it.
With Luo Feng exerting 140 percent of his strength, the gap in their raw power was no longer so large.
Moreover, their fighting styles differed, and Luo Feng's attacks were somewhat faster than his.
Under these circumstances, he truly could not guarantee victory.
Shaking out his right hand, Zhang Zehu changed his stance and suppressed both his lingering contempt and his impatience to finish the fight quickly.
The two continued fighting.
Although Zhang Zehu was less talented than Luo Feng and had failed to master the Ninefold Thunder Blade, he had studied a slightly inferior manual. Years of practice had also brought his footwork close to the Microscopic level.
Luo Feng immediately felt the mounting pressure.
Yet that very pressure drove him to improve continuously, learning from Zhang Zehu and correcting his shortcomings.
Occasionally, he also used his psychic power to adjust his posture.
This left Zhang Zehu frustrated. Many excellent opportunities slipped away because of "luck."
Just a little short. Still a little short. Why am I always just a little short? Zhang Zehu wondered.
But he was patient. Luo Feng had the advantage in speed, while he had the advantage in strength. The gap in technique could gradually narrow, but the difference in basic strength could not be overcome during a fight.
"It's getting a little more interesting," Dongguan remarked from the side.
Warrior-level fights, and even Warrior General-level fights, were fairly unremarkable to him. But Luo Feng's progress during battle was quite entertaining.
Of course, the main reason was that one of the combatants was Luo Feng.
City Lord Luo is only eighteen, still young and inexperienced. The thought surfaced in Dongguan's mind as he watched Luo Feng struggle.
Meanwhile, the members of the Tiger Fang Squad watched expectantly, hoping for Zhang Zehu's victory.
The Fire Hammer Squad, on the other hand, was worried. It did not matter if Luo Feng lost, as long as nothing happened to him.
They glanced at Dongguan from time to time, but he merely watched the duel without making any other move.
"Die!" Zhang Zehu finally found his opportunity. Using his extensive experience to control the rhythm of the fight, he forced Luo Feng into a corner, minimizing the influence of "luck."
Luo Feng blocked a Cleave Mount Hua, but it was only a feint.
Having used too much force to block, Luo Feng lost his balance slightly. Zhang Zehu seized the opening and swept his saber toward Luo Feng's waist, aiming to cut him in half.
Luo Feng realized the problem too. He immediately released his Blood Shadow Battle Blade to obstruct Zhang Zehu's vision, then used psychic power to control his Combat Suit. Without any leverage, he forcibly twisted his body and dodged the slash.
Zhang Zehu unleashed over a dozen consecutive slashes, but Luo Feng evaded them all.
That's enough. Luo Feng's gaze sharpened. If he continued fighting "normally," he would not be able to defeat Zhang Zehu. After all, this was his first trip outside the base city. He lacked combat experience, and his physical attributes were inferior to his opponent's.
Even a genius needed room to grow.
But Luo Feng was a Psychic.
He decided to end the fight.
He closed in, making as if to seize the Blood Shadow Battle Blade's hilt again.
Although Zhang Zehu had lost his earlier chance to secure an immediate victory, he would not surrender his advantage.
He kicked the Blood Shadow Battle Blade away, sending it farther from Luo Feng.
At that moment, Luo Feng crouched and thrust his Hexagonal Shield at Zhang Zehu's lower body.
Zhang Zehu leaped away, swinging his Mountain-Cleaving Saber down onto the shield.
"Ha ha! Luo Feng, die!" Zhang Zehu laughed triumphantly.
Danger! Zhang Zehu's instincts sounded an alarm. He hurriedly looked at Luo Feng and saw him pull throwing knives from his waist and launch them at him.
As he hurled the knives, Luo Feng rolled across the ground and retrieved his Blood Shadow Battle Blade.
Was that blade there just now?
Zhang Zehu noticed something strange about both the Blood Shadow Battle Blade and the throwing knives. In particular, the knives actually changed speed as they approached his body.
But it was already too late.
One of the throwing knives, which he had clearly knocked aside, suddenly changed direction in midair and plunged straight into his abdomen.
"You're..." Zhang Zehu finally confirmed that Luo Feng was a Psychic, but he could no longer say it.
Another throwing knife had sliced across his neck.
Apart from Dongguan, no one noticed anything unusual about how Zhang Zehu had died. They merely thought Luo Feng had thrown his knives exceptionally well.
Finally, Luo Feng kicked Zhang Zehu's corpse off the rooftop, delivering it to the ravenous monsters waiting below.
The members of the Tiger Fang Squad looked grim.
But they were also puzzled. Even if Luo Feng had mastered the first stage of the Ninefold Thunder Blade, his strength was still inferior to Zhang Zehu's. How had Zhang Zehu lost?
"Who's next?" Dongguan's calm voice drifted over.
Pan Ya, the Tiger Fang Squad's captain, wanted to fight. Zhang Zehu had already been defeated, and only he and the squad's other melee-weapon Warrior General could reliably defeat Zhang Zehu in close combat.
But Dongguan had not been asking him. He had been asking Luo Feng.
By now, everyone could tell that he seemed to admire Luo Feng greatly.
Luo Feng's gaze naturally shifted to one member of the Tiger Fang Squad: Li Xiao.
The Fire Hammer Squad and the Tiger Fang Squad were fairly familiar with each other. Since Luo Feng also had a grudge against Zhang Zehu, his teammates had naturally shared information about the Tiger Fang Squad with him.
Within the Tiger Fang Squad, Li Xiao was closest to Zhang Zehu, and his strength was unremarkable.
In truth, with his powerful psychic power, Luo Feng had nothing to fear even from their captain, Pan Ya. But for now, he would deal with the others first and recover a little in the meantime.
Li Xiao clenched his fists, preparing to step forward.
Although his physical attributes surpassed Luo Feng's, so had Zhang Zehu's, and he could not even beat Zhang Zehu in close combat.
"Luo Feng," Pan Ya, the Tiger Fang Squad's captain, spoke up. "Actually, apart from Hu, there isn't much bad blood between us, is there?"
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