Counterkill

Wang Haichuan's face flushed red. "If you want to fight, then fight. Why all the damn nonsense?"

The ugly man sneered. "It's not that I look down on you, but if we really fight, not one of you will escape. Of course, you still have a chance now. One, two..."

Liu Tao's smile vanished as he said coldly, "Are you truly determined to make enemies of us, sir?"

"Five, six, seven..." The ugly man did not answer, merely staring at them as though they were already dead.

Ye Chen and Liu Tao exchanged a glance. The meaning in their eyes was clear.

"Nine! Kill them!" As soon as the words left his mouth, the ugly man drew his saber and leaped into the air, launching an attack on the group.

Most people would have thought they would strike only after counting to ten. In truth, this was one of their tricks, and it had never failed them. It could easily catch an opponent off guard. The ugly man himself was named Ma Wu, a vicious jianghu criminal who had fled from another city. He had once served as a guard for a small family surnamed Wang. Later, coveting the beauty of a Wang Family young lady, he decided to go all the way; under cover of night, he violated and murdered her. His ruthless methods were utterly monstrous.

Liu Tao, Wang Haichuan, and the others had all been bluffed, while Ye Chen alone had been prepared. It was not because he had extensive jianghu experience—he had none at all—but because his powerful Soul Force allowed him to detect the deception from Ma Wu's slightest movements.

Driving his Internal Energy to its limit, Ye Chen shifted sideways and gripped his sword with both hands, sweeping it horizontally as he unleashed the eighth move of the Flowing Cloud Sword Technique, 'Flowing Clouds, Flowing Water'.

Ma Wu froze. He had thought he would catch them unprepared, only to find that preparation had met preparation. Instead, he himself was caught off guard.

In a flash of sparks, Ma Wu twisted his saber aside, scraping past Ye Feng's Fine Steel Sword.

Clang! Sshk!

Amid scattering Mars, a sword mark was carved into Ma Wu's waist, blood slowly seeping out. It was only a superficial wound.

No one could believe their eyes. A Qi Cultivation Realm Sixth Layer martial artist had actually wounded a Qi Cultivation Realm Tenth Layer martial artist with one sword strike. It was like seeing a ghost in broad daylight.

What they did not know was that Ye Chen was inwardly lamenting the missed opportunity. Had Ma Wu reacted just a little slower, that strike would certainly have inflicted a grave wound. Or, failing that, if his opponent's cultivation had been slightly weaker, the saber would not have been able to knock aside his attack, and the sword wound would have cut another inch deeper. This was the killing power of the Flowing Cloud Sword Technique when cultivated to perfection. It was not only high-grade martial skills that could wound people.

"A Qi Cultivation Realm Tenth Layer martial artist truly cannot be underestimated." His first sword having failed, Ye Chen's second sword followed—the ninth move of the Flowing Cloud Sword Technique, 'Night Light Movement'.

In an instant, dark, watery Sword Light spread out, as though the air was no longer air, but rather the unfathomable waters of a deep pool beneath the night sky.

"Damn it, how is this brat's swordsmanship realm so high?"

Ma Wu's scalp tingled. Then a vicious light surfaced in his eyes. His saber howled through the air as it slashed like lightning toward the central point of the watery Sword Light, determined to destroy his opponent's sword Momentum. Otherwise, the situation would turn against him.

Whoosh!

His fully charged blow struck nothing but air. Ma Wu's face changed drastically, and he kicked off the ground, retreating in haste.

Ye Chen seemed to have anticipated this. He shot forward in a single stride, his sword Momentum shifting as it traced a brilliant arc and swept upward in return. It was the sinister Thirteen Peaks Sword Style.

A savage gleam flashed through Ma Wu's eyes. His left hand, filled with Internal Energy, struck at the sword blade as he shouted, "Damn little brat, die!"

Boom!

A Qi Cultivation Realm Tenth Layer martial artist was not so easy to kill. Violent Qi Force erupted like a hurricane, effortlessly blasting Ye Chen away.

Yet Ye Chen seemed to lose all weight. He lightly tapped the ground, and his aura abruptly changed. Like a collapsing mountain, he pressed forward again, the brilliant Sword Light piercing through at a touch.

Sshk!

The sword tip pierced through Ma Wu's throat and emerged from the back of his head, clean and decisive.

A martial artist on the verge of reaching the True Condensation Realm had been slain by Ye Chen's sword just like that, as easily as drinking tea or eating a meal. It also gave Ye Chen an initial understanding of his own combat strength. More importantly, he now knew just how formidable the killing power of the Thirteen Peaks Sword Style truly was.

Pulling out his sword and shaking off the blood, Ye Chen tried hard to clear away the distracting thoughts that came after killing someone. Looking around, he found that the others had already joined battle as well. Seven or eight vicious men were surrounding Liu Tao's group of five, attacking them. The clashing of weapons crackled together like beans popping in a pan.

"Get lost!" Liu Tao had the highest cultivation. His palms struck out in succession, instantly knocking several men away.

Yet one man retreated only three steps. The clothes over his chest had split open, but his body was completely unharmed.

Liu Tao's pupils contracted. "A body-tempering technique!"

The man had a square face and a broad mouth. He stood two meters tall, broad-backed and powerfully built. His bulging chest muscles were like small mountains, hard as iron plates, faintly glimmering with a blackish-blue hue. They did not seem human.

"Hehe, the technique I cultivate is Iron Cloth Shirt. With daily rubbing and soaking in medicinal wine, I have long tempered myself into bronze skin and Steel Bone. So long as a single breath of Internal Energy remains, it won't matter how many times you hit me. Come on!"

"Courting death."

It was Wang Haichuan who spoke. Holding the Azure Dragon Halberd, he swept it in a wide arc to force back the men besieging him. Then he spun around and thrust at the other man with a Returning Horse Spear.

This time, the tall man did not dare be careless. No matter how far Iron Cloth Shirt was trained, it could not turn flesh into steel. He did not fear ordinary blunt weapons, but a sharp weapon would still kill him if it pierced him. What was more, Wang Haichuan's strike was fierce and domineering, perhaps strong enough to pierce even iron armor.

Pressing his palms together, the tall man seized the shaft of the Azure Dragon Halberd, refusing to let it advance another inch.

Seizing the opportunity, Liu Tao flew down before him and lightly pressed a palm against his chest.

Puff!

Like an iron hammer striking leather, blood seeped from the tall man's mouth. A shallow palm print appeared on his chest, mottled red and green.

Just then, two vicious men took the opportunity to attack Liu Tao.

Liu Tao inwardly cursed. Although he had wounded the tall man with that palm strike, the recoil had numbed both his arms, and he could not draw up another breath of Qi.

Wang Haichuan was also willing but powerless. The vicious men he had previously forced back had launched an even more frenzied counterattack, leaving him with the feeling that he could barely hold them off.

Only Yao Qing and the twin brothers were still managing to hold on, since they were each fighting one-on-one.

Just as Liu Tao was about to be killed, a clear and dazzling streak of Sword Light shot over, twisting twice in midair. Blood spurted from the necks of the two vicious men, and they fell stiffly to the ground.

Having succeeded with one sword, Ye Chen did not pause. With a move that found an opening, he pierced another vicious man through the heart, relieving Wang Haichuan's pressure.

"Thanks!" Liu Tao's face was somewhat pale after narrowly escaping death, and he spoke gratefully.

Ye Chen nodded. "Let's kill them first."

In truth, after Ma Wu had been killed, their fate had already been sealed. It was only a matter of time.

Before long, aside from the man who cultivated Iron Cloth Shirt, everyone else was dead or wounded. On Ye Chen's side, apart from him and Liu Tao, everyone else had suffered injuries to varying degrees.

"Where do you think you're going!" Wang Haichuan noticed that the tall man was trying to flee. The two-meter-long Azure Dragon Halberd shot out with a piercing shriek through the air.

Crack!

The tall man was battle-hardened. He twisted his body aside and narrowly avoided the Azure Dragon Halberd.

But while a monk might flee, his temple could not. Ye Chen moved with his sword, breaking through the man's Iron Cloth Shirt with a single strike and piercing his heart.

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